Giving Advice

Giving Advice

There are many ways of giving advice in English. Here are some of the more common expressions.

"If I were you, I would…"

"Have you thought about…"

"You really ought to…" ('ought' is pronounced 'ort')

"Why don't you…"

"In your position, I would…"

"You should perhaps…"

"You could always…"

Examples

If someone says "I'm having problems learning English", you could say:

"If I were you, I'd sign up for an English course."

"Have you thought about going to the UK for a couple of weeks?"

"You really ought to watch English television."

"Why don't you read more English books?"

"In your position, I would try and practise speaking English."

"You should perhaps look at the english-at-home.com website."

"You could always get a penpal."

• Dialogue of expressing advice

Nanda has a problem. His girlfriend forbade him to follow the singing competition in Palma. Then, Nanda asked to Resti in school, how to solve the problem

Resti : Good morning, Nanda

Nanda : Good morning, Resti. (Looks confused)

Resti : How are you, Nanda

Nanda : I’m confused now.

Resti : Why?

Nanda : My girlfriend forbade me to follow the singing competition. If you
were me, what would you tell her?

Resti : I would say that the competition is very important to you, and instead,
the prize of the competition would you give to her

Nanda : That’s a good idea. I will do it. Thank you very much, Resti. Now i want
to go to canteen. See you.

Resti : You’re welcome. See you too.