Learn English – The usage of ‘give a crap’

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I heard the sentence below in the TV show, "Two Broke Girls".

I don't give a crap what you said.

I think it should add an 'about'. Then it becomes:

I don't give a crap about what you said.

What would be the correct/idiomatic way to say it?

Also, I see lots of similar phrases: give a darn, give a damn, give a shit, give a f*ck, and etc. Do these phrases mean exactly the same?

Best Answer

This is one a whole family of verbs and verbal expressions with similar meaning: "care", "mind", "give a toss/crap/shit/hoot/damn/fuck". They can all take an indirect object with "about". But they can also take a direct object, but only if it is an "indirect question" - a clause introduced with an interrogative word:

I don't care what he said.

I don't care when you finish.

I don't care whether it's ready.

"Know" is similar, but it can take other kinds of direct object as well.

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