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Without me you'd be lost,
That's the smallest cost.
You use me every day,
More than I can even say,
You do but don't see me,
So whatever could I be?

Inside, outside, all around
I'm even underground.
I can make no sound
Can't really be bound.
So tell me if you can see
What it is that I might be?

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    $\begingroup$ Would it be too snarky for me to say "essential"? :] $\endgroup$ – user20 Mar 12 '15 at 19:27
  • $\begingroup$ Maybe a little :) $\endgroup$ – Aggie Kidd Mar 12 '15 at 19:28
  • $\begingroup$ Vitamins A through K. $\endgroup$ – Mazura Mar 13 '15 at 1:14
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I'm going to say that you are

Light

Without me you'd be lost, That's the smallest cost.

I couldn't get around very well without light and there are certainly vastly more significant impacts.

You use me every day, More than I can even say,

I don't know about you, but I use light all day every day. Not so much at night, though.

You do but don't see me, So whatever could I be?

You "see" light as it's the only way to see anything. You never notice it, though, because your grain interprets it as seeing the objects and not the light they're emitting / reflecting.

Inside, outside, all around. I'm even underground.

Light be friggin' everywhere, yo. There are underground lights such as in a subway and, if we could get to the core of the Earth, there would be light from the core's heat.

I can make no sound; Can't really be bound.

Light creates no sound waves and is difficult to contain. We can slow it down but haven't been able to stop it or store it yet.

So tell me if you can see. What it is that I might be?

Per your comment on the Language answer, you said the second to last line contains a clue. Only those that can see use light. Those that are totally blind don't need it.

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    $\begingroup$ I was writing that answer! Nooooooooo! $\endgroup$ – Anthony Pham Mar 12 '15 at 20:47
  • $\begingroup$ Nicely done! How about the added two lines from the middle? $\endgroup$ – Aggie Kidd Mar 12 '15 at 20:47
  • $\begingroup$ Let there be light! $\endgroup$ – Manoj Kumar Jul 3 '18 at 15:28
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I know this has been correctly answered already, but I want to share my answer, anyway:

Gravity

Without me you'd be lost, That's the smallest cost.

Lost in space (at least, assuming it was switched off. The universe wouldn't look anything like it does if it had never worked.)

You use me every day, More than I can even say,

Even if you're in orbit.

You do but don't see me, So whatever could I be?

You see the effects of it, but you don't register it because it's so normal.

Inside, outside, all around, I'm even underground.

Even at the centre of the Earth, you're gravitationally affected by the rest of it. Even discounting that, you're affected by the gravity of the Sun.

I can make no sound, Can't really be bound.

You can be bound to it, though.

So tell me if you can see, What it is that I might be?

Ok, Gravity only works if I still didn't realise this was supposed to be a clue, too.

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  • $\begingroup$ Nice alternate. I like it. $\endgroup$ – Aggie Kidd Mar 12 '15 at 21:58
  • $\begingroup$ It should be noted that while we are bound to gravity, gravity can't be bound to us. Iit's a one way relationship. I mean, we sort of generate an EXTREMELY small gravity field, but yeah. $\endgroup$ – ranger10700 Mar 12 '15 at 22:50
  • $\begingroup$ I like this answer better than light. $\endgroup$ – MikeP Mar 31 '18 at 1:45
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This one might be a bit general, but:

Language

"Without me you'd be lost"

If you can't communicate with people, finding your way around new places is extremely difficult

"That's the smallest cost"

Not being able to get around places is minor compared to not being able to communicate with family, friends, etc.

"You use me every day" is self-explanatory

"More than I can even say"

There are many non-verbal forms of language used daily

"You do but don't see me"

Going along with the last part, there are both visible (written) and non-visible (verbal) forms of language

"Inside, outside, all around
I'm even underground"

You see written language inside and outside, including underground areas such as subway signs, writing on cave walls, etc.

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  • $\begingroup$ Not what I was thinking, but very nice non-the-less. Drat, I was hoping I hadn't left it too open. The only thought I might have to help you towards what I was thinking of is to say that the second to last line contains a hint as well. $\endgroup$ – Aggie Kidd Mar 12 '15 at 20:08
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So tell me if you can see. What it is that I might be?

The human brain.

Without me you'd be lost, That's the smallest cost.

The body cannot live without the mind.

You use me every day, More than I can even say,

At least I hope you do.

You do but don't see me, So whatever could I be?

It's kind of a big problem when you say: Hey, look. Grey matter.

Inside, outside, all around. I'm even underground.

People be friggin' everywhere, yo.

I can make no sound; Can't really be bound.

A brain needs a mouth attached to make sound. If you try to clear your head you'll just end up thinking about Stay-Puff marshmallow men; imagination is not bound to reality nor can thoughts be controlled.

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I would have to say you are:

Air.

It seems fairly obvious that this answer meets all of the criteria.

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  • $\begingroup$ Nice thought, but I'd say you'd be dead without air, not lost. And you really can't see air. You can see the gunk in the air, but not air itself. $\endgroup$ – Aggie Kidd Mar 12 '15 at 19:31

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