In the last lesson, we learned to say 'let's' and 'should' to make strong suggestions. The sentence patterns in this lesson are much less direct.
'Why don’t we/you do this?'
When you say "Why don't we do this?", you are implying that "this" might be a good idea.
- Why don't you buy a new dress? (= Wouldn't it be a good idea to buy a new dress?)
- Why don't we get some coffee? (= Coffee might wake us up.)
'How about this / doing this / we do this?'
When you say "How about doing this?", you are asking for the listener's opinion: "How do you feel about doing this?" We use 'how about' like this: 'How about' + noun / gerund / clause?
Remember that gerunds (verbs in -ing form like 'going/walking/playing') function like nouns. In the sentences, "I like soccer" and "I like playing soccer", both "soccer" and "playing soccer" are basically nouns.
For instance, if you are shopping for a dress, this is how the store clerk may recommend one:
- How about this dress? (= How do you feel about this dress? Do you like/dislike it?)
- How about trying on this dress? (= How do you feel about trying on this dress? Try on this dress and see if you like it.)
'Can/Could we do this?' 'We/you could do this.'
When we say "Can we do this?", we are asking if 'this' is possible. When we say "Could we do this?", we are asking if 'this' would be possible. Using 'could' is therefore more polite than 'can.'
- Can you lend me your car tomorrow? (= Is that possible?)
- Could you drive me to the hospital please? (= Would that be possible?)
- You could tell your parents about your decision. (= I don't know if it is a good idea, but it is a possibility)
'I think we should do this' / 'I thought we could do this.'
Finally, to make your suggestions even more polite, you can say 'I think' or 'I thought.' 'I thought' is even more polite than 'I think', because you are just expressing a thought, rather than saying you want to do something.
- I think we should take a walk after lunch. (= I would like to do this)
- I thought we could take a walk after lunch. (= It would be nice to do this, but only if you want to)
