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So, Becca, I was thinking that we should do a programme about dogs and cats.
I think that's a brilliant idea.
I've wanted to do a programme about dogs and cats for a long time.
But let's not do what everyone else is doing.
Hello and welcome to Learning English Grammar.
I'm Pippa.
And I'm Phil.
We've just heard Becca and Neil talking about the next programme they want to make.
And I was thinking that today we could look at different ways to make suggestions.
Great idea.
Let's do that.
Now you can read along with this podcast using the transcript on our website, bbclearningenglishcom.
So, Phil, I was wondering what we should do after this programme.
Let's not waste any time.
Let's write the next one.
Hmm, might I suggest that we focus on getting this one finished first?
Yeah, sure.
Now, let's listen to Becca and Neil talking about their dogs and cats programme idea.
See if you can hear how they each make suggestions.
So, Becca, I was thinking that we should do a programme about dogs and cats.
I think that's a brilliant idea.
I've wanted to do a programme about dogs and cats for a long time.
But let's not do what everyone else is doing.
So many producers go straight to pet owners.
So what can we do?
That's a bit different.
Well, I think we've got to talk to a vet because vets spend all their lives with animals.
They must have a million stories.
Yeah.
Might I suggest that we approach a vet who's got quite a bit of experience?
Yeah.
Sounds like a good idea.
So I heard Neil suggest making a programme about dogs and cats.
And I also heard him suggest talking to a vet.
That's probably a good idea.
Do you know any vets, Pippa?
I do know a vet, actually.
But I was going to suggest that you and I Phil, speak to someone else, someone who can tell us more about the language here.
Someone suggested I come and help you, so here I am.
Yes.
Can you give some ways to make suggestions?
Sure.
There are quite a few different ways of doing this in English.
Now, we often make suggestions in an indirect way and one way to do this is to use a past tense.
So, Becca, I was thinking that we should do a programme about dogs and cats.
I was thinking.
It's in the past and it's continuous.
This is to create a bit of distance to make the request seem more polite.
Now, we can say I was thinking or I was thinking that, followed by the clause.
Georgie, I heard Neil say we've got to.
Isn't that usually used for obligation?
Well, I think we've got to talk to a vet.
OK.
Well, we can use got to for obligation, but sometimes we're actually using it to make a strong suggestion.
It's not an obligation.
There's no rule to make Neil talk to a vet.
He just thinks it would be a good idea.
And Georgie, I heard Becca making a negative suggestion using let's.
But let's not do what everyone else is doing.
Yes, so we often use let's for suggestions and it also works as a negative.
So instead of saying let's do something different, Becca said let's not do what everyone else is doing.
The meaning is very similar.
Shall we have a look at the expression, might I suggest?
Might I suggest that we approach a vet who's got quite a bit of experience?
Yes, might I suggest is a nice little fixed expression.
This is just two colleagues talking, but it could be used in more formal situations.
Notice that Becca used the present simple after suggest that.
Might I suggest that we approach a vet who's got a bit of experience?
Thanks for that Georgie, that's really helpful.
We've got some useful expressions for making suggestions.
Bye guys.
OK, Phil, let's play a game to practice what we've learned.
I'm going to give an instruction and you have to turn it into a suggestion.
And as you're listening to this, see if you can make a suggestion before Phil does.
Are you ready?
Yes.
OK, first one.
Make this programme more fun.
I was thinking of making this programme more fun.
Yes, that's right.
OK, another one.
Listen to lots of podcasts.
Might I suggest that we listen to lots of podcasts?
That's right.
And finally, don't forget to ask the rest of the team for help.
Let's not forget to ask the rest of the team for help.
That's right.
What do you suggest we make a programme about?
Let us know by emailing us at learningenglish at bbc.co.uk.
That's it for this episode.
We learnt that Becca wants to talk to Yvette.
And we learnt that past tenses can make suggestions more polite.
We'll be back next week to learn some more grammar tips.
In the meantime, you can test what you've learned in this episode with the worksheet on our website, bbclearningenglishcom.
Bye for now.
Bye.
