Make Suggestions in English: Offer an Idea and Discuss the Options
Practise making suggestions in English: offer an idea, test it against the situation, compare alternatives, and decide what works.
Offer one idea, test it against the situation, compare alternatives, then decide.
“How about meeting at six?” is not a tiny contract. It is an option. The useful English comes next: “Six is difficult for me—could we do seven?”
Offer → Test → Compare → Decide.
Offer an option, not a verdict
Cambridge Grammar lists several common suggestion forms, including How about…?, Why don’t…?, Let’s… and could. British Council LearnEnglish also models forms such as “How about starting…?”, “Why don’t you…?” and “Shall we…?” inside an actual meeting.
Original practice example
How about meeting at six?
This offers six o’clock as an option. It leaves room for the other person to accept, reject or adjust the time.
Useful for everyday plans and scheduling.
Function: open suggestion.
Replace the time with one idea you want the other person to consider.
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Original practice example
We could take the train instead.
“Could” presents another possible course of action without making it sound like the decision is already final.
Useful when comparing transport, meeting formats, venues or other practical options.
Function: alternative option.
Name one current plan, then offer a different option with “We could…”
Test the idea against the real situation
A suggestion becomes useful when someone checks whether it works. Time, cost, preference and feasibility are not obstacles to the conversation—they are the conversation.
Original practice example
Six might be difficult. Could we do seven?
The first sentence introduces a constraint. The second keeps the discussion moving with a counterproposal.
Useful when the original suggestion partly works but needs one detail changed.
Function: constraint → revised suggestion.
Take one suggestion and invent a realistic constraint. Then change only the part that causes the problem.
British Council plan-making material models this kind of exchange: one option is proposed, another person cannot do it, and a new suggestion follows. The change is not conversational failure. It is collaborative planning.
Compare options before you call anything decided
Suggestion language and decision language do different jobs. “How about seven?” means seven is being considered. “Seven works for me. Let’s do that.” closes the choice.
Original practice example
Seven works for me. Let’s do that.
The first sentence accepts the option. The second marks the move from discussion to decision.
Useful after people have compared options and actually chosen one.
Function: accepted option → decision.
Take a suggestion and write one sentence that clearly shows the discussion is finished.
British Council meeting material likewise separates giving opinions and discussing them from the point where a group makes a decision. Keep that distinction visible in your own English.
Option Lab: let the first idea change
For each round, make the first suggestion before opening the constraint. Then revise the option if needed and finish only when there is a real decision.
Round 1: dinner
Goal: choose a place for dinner.
Constraint: one person wants somewhere inexpensive.
See one possible exchange
“How about the Italian place near the station?” → “It’s a bit expensive for me.” → “We could try the noodle place instead.” → “That works. Let’s go there.”
Round 2: study time
Goal: choose when to study.
Constraint: six o’clock is too early.
See one possible exchange
“Shall we start at six?” → “I’m still at work then.” → “How about seven thirty?” → “Perfect.”
Round 3: meeting format
Goal: choose online or in person.
Constraint: two people are travelling.
See one possible exchange
“Let’s meet in the office.” → “Two people won’t be in town.” → “We could do this one online and meet in person next week.” → “Good idea. Let’s do that.”
Round 4: transport
Goal: choose how to get to the airport.
Constraint: parking is expensive.
See one possible exchange
“Why don’t we drive?” → “Parking will cost a lot.” → “We could take the train instead.” → “Yes, the train makes more sense.”
Correction lab: suggestion grammar that changes the structure
“How about to go at seven?”
Classification: wrong in standard English for this suggestion pattern.
What a listener will probably understand: a suggestion to go at seven.
Likely learner intent: use How about…?
Natural alternative: “How about going at seven?”
Context note: Cambridge documents How about + -ing for this structure.
“Let’s to meet tomorrow.”
Classification: wrong in standard English.
What a listener will probably understand: a suggestion to meet tomorrow.
Likely learner intent: use Let’s…
Natural alternative: “Let’s meet tomorrow.”
Context note: Let’s takes the base form.
“Shall we to meet at eight?”
Classification: wrong in standard English.
What a listener will probably understand: a suggestion about meeting at eight.
Likely learner intent: use Shall we…?
Natural alternative: “Shall we meet at eight?”
Context note: shall we is followed by the base form; usage also varies by variety and context.
“She suggested me to take the train.”
Classification: wrong in standard English for the intended structure.
What a listener will probably understand: she recommended taking the train.
Likely learner intent: report another person’s suggestion.
Natural alternative: “She suggested taking the train.” or “She suggested that I take the train.”
Context note: Cambridge does not use suggest + person + to-infinitive for this meaning.
The two-option rule
For one real decision today, make one suggestion and one backup option before choosing. The goal is not to produce more language. It is to practise changing an idea without treating that change as failure.
A suggestion is an option, not a decision
Make suggestions in English by putting an idea on the table, not by pretending the discussion is already over. Offer it. Test it. Compare it with another option. Then decide.