Recommendations, Part Two
2023-07-14
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1Imagine you want to ask for information.
2Perhaps you are looking for a good restaurant, a nice hotel, or a fun activity.
3How should you ask your question?
4In this week's Everyday Grammar, we continue our exploration of recommendations.
5We will learn about important question words. And you will get a chance to practice what you learn.
6Let's start with some important terms and ideas.
7In a recent Everyday Grammar lesson, we talked about the question word "which."
8We learned how to use it to ask for a recommendation - a suggestion about a choice or an activity.
9But we can also use other question words to ask for recommendations.
10"Where" and the verb BE are two nice choices. Let's explore each of these in turn.
11Imagine you are in a new city.
12You might ask a friend the following question:
13"Where can I find a good restaurant?"
14Our question word "where" begins the sentence.
15It tells the listener that you are asking for a location.
16Then we have the modal verb "can," followed by the subject and main verb "I find."
17This structure is very common and useful.
18It is a phrase to memorize. You should be able to produce it without much thinking.
19"Where can I find..." is followed by a noun phrase.
20The exactness of this noun phrase can affect the quality of the answer that you receive.
21Consider this example.
22"Where can I find a restaurant?"
23In the question, "Where can I find..." is followed by the noun phrase "a restaurant."
24The question is very general. The listener will probably give you the first answer that comes to mind.
25But we are likely to get a better answer if we ask something like this:
26"Where can I find a good restaurant?"
27Or
28"Where can I find a good, inexpensive restaurant?"
29In both of these examples, we expand our noun phrase to include adjectives such as "good" and "inexpensive."
30We are giving the listener a little more information, and, as a result, we will probably receive a better answer.
31The listener is more likely to give you a good recommendation when you ask a more exact question.
32So, for example, if you love Indian food, you might ask:
33"Where can I find a good Indian restaurant?"
34"Where" is one nice question word to use, but the verb BE is also useful.
35We use it to ask what are called "yes or no" questions.
36That means a question could be answered with a simple "yes" or a "no."
37For example, if you are looking for a hotel, you could ask someone:
38"Is there a nice hotel in this area?"
39This question consists of the verb BE, the word "there," as well as the noun phrase "a nice hotel."
40Please note that additional information about location might be required.
41That is why our question included "in this area."
42Now imagine that you are looking for a good restaurant.
43How might you ask about it?
44Here is one possibility:
45"Is there a good restaurant near here?"
46Let's take some time to work with these ideas.
47Use the word "where" to ask about the noun phrase, "a good bookstore."
48Pause the audio to consider your answer.
49Here is one answer:
50"Where can I find a good bookstore?"
51Now use the verb BE to ask about a bookstore.
52Be sure to ask about location by using the phrase "near here."
53Pause the audio to consider your answer.
54Here is one answer:
55"Is there a good bookstore near here?"
56The ideas we explored today are a useful way to indirectly get a recommendation.
57If you take what you have learned today and combine it with the ideas in our earlier report, you will soon be asking for recommendations in English with ease.
58I'm John Russell.
1Imagine you want to ask for information. Perhaps you are looking for a good restaurant, a nice hotel, or a fun activity. How should you ask your question? 2In this week's Everyday Grammar, we continue our exploration of recommendations. We will learn about important question words. And you will get a chance to practice what you learn. 3Let's start with some important terms and ideas. 4Recommendations 5In a recent Everyday Grammar lesson, we talked about the question word "which." We learned how to use it to ask for a recommendation - a suggestion about a choice or an activity. 6But we can also use other question words to ask for recommendations. "Where" and the verb BE are two nice choices. Let's explore each of these in turn. 7Where 8Imagine you are in a new city. You might ask a friend the following question: 9"Where can I find a good restaurant?" 10Our question word "where" begins the sentence. It tells the listener that you are asking for a location. Then we have the modal verb "can," followed by the subject and main verb "I find." 11This structure is very common and useful. It is a phrase to memorize. You should be able to produce it without much thinking. 12"Where can I find..." is followed by a noun phrase. The exactness of this noun phrase can affect the quality of the answer that you receive. 13Consider this example. 14"Where can I find a restaurant?" 15In the question, "Where can I find..." is followed by the noun phrase "a restaurant." 16The question is very general. The listener will probably give you the first answer that comes to mind. 17But we are likely to get a better answer if we ask something like this: 18"Where can I find a good restaurant?" 19Or 20"Where can I find a good, inexpensive restaurant?" 21In both of these examples, we expand our noun phrase to include adjectives such as "good" and "inexpensive." We are giving the listener a little more information, and, as a result, we will probably receive a better answer. 22The listener is more likely to give you a good recommendation when you ask a more exact question. 23So, for example, if you love Indian food, you might ask: 24"Where can I find a good Indian restaurant?" 25The verb BE 26"Where" is one nice question word to use, but the verb BE is also useful. We use it to ask what are called "yes or no" questions. That means a question could be answered with a simple "yes" or a "no." 27For example, if you are looking for a hotel, you could ask someone: 28"Is there a nice hotel in this area?" 29This question consists of the verb BE, the word "there," as well as the noun phrase "a nice hotel." Please note that additional information about location might be required. That is why our question included "in this area." 30Now imagine that you are looking for a good restaurant. How might you ask about it? 31Here is one possibility: 32"Is there a good restaurant near here?" 33Practice 34Let's take some time to work with these ideas. 35Use the word "where" to ask about the noun phrase, "a good bookstore." 36Pause the audio to consider your answer. 37Here is one answer: 38"Where can I find a good bookstore?" 39Now use the verb BE to ask about a bookstore. Be sure to ask about location by using the phrase "near here." 40Pause the audio to consider your answer. 41Here is one answer: 42"Is there a good bookstore near here?" 43Closing thoughts 44The ideas we explored today are a useful way to indirectly get a recommendation. If you take what you have learned today and combine it with the ideas in our earlier report, you will soon be asking for recommendations in English with ease. 45I'm John Russell. 46John Russell wrote this lesson for VOA Learning English. Caty Weaver was the editor. 47_______________________________________________________________________ 48Words in This Story 49recommendation - n. the act of saying that something is good and deserves to be chosen 50practice -- v. to do something again in order to become better at it 51phrase - n. a group of two or more words that express a single idea but do not usually form a complete sentence 52_______________________________________________________________________ 53What do you think of this story? We want to hear from you. 54We have a new comment system. Here is how it works: 55Write your comment in the box. 56Under the box, you can see four images for social media accounts. They are for Disqus, Facebook, Twitter and Google. 57Click on one image and a box appears. Enter the login for your social media account. Or you may create one on the Disqus system. It is the blue circle with "D" on it. It is free. 58Each time you return to comment on the Learning English site, you can use your account and see your comments and replies to them. Our comment policy is here.