В will/would/could you? would you like to?

Will you have lunch with me tomorrow? is informal, but Would/Could you have lunch with me? or Would you like to have lunch with me? can be used in both informal and formal situations.

These invitations would be reported by invite/ask + direct object + to + noun, or invite/ask + direct object + infinitive: He invited me to lunch/to have lunch with him.

С Answers to invitations

Offers of a drink/a cigarette etc. are usually answered:

Yes, please or No, thank you. Invitations with would you/could you/would you like are usually answered:

I'd like to very much/I'd love to or

I'd like to very much but I'm afraid I can't. wouldn't like, of course, would not be possible. An invitation and answer might be reported:

He invited us to dinner/to a party/to spend the weekend with him and we accepted/but we refused/but we had to refuse because...

D When the speaker doesn't really expect his offer/invitation to be accepted he can say:

You wouldn't like another drink, would you? (Perhaps the speaker would like another drink himself, and wants an excuse. He doesn't really expect that his friend will accept, though.) You wouldn't like to come with me, would you? (Again he doesn't really expect an acceptance.)

287 Advice forms

A must, ought to and should can be used for advice:

You must read this book. It's marvellous. You should grow your own vegetables. You ought to plant some trees.

In indirect speech must, ought to and should here can remain unchanged or be reported by advise + object:

He advised me to plant trees.

В you had better + bare infinitive (see 120): You 'd better take off your wet shoes. You 'd better not wait any longer. had better can be used with the third person: He 'd better stop taking those pills.

С if I were you I should/would:

If I were you I'd buy a car.

This is often shortened to I should/would with a slight stress on the I:

I'd buy a car.

In indirect speech If I were you I should/would ... is reported by advise + object:

He advised me to buy a car.

D I advise/would advise you + infinitive:

/ (would) advise you to apply at once or I advise/would advise + gerund: I('d) advise applying at once.

E why don't you...? can be either advice or suggestion:

Why don't you learn to play your guitar? Why don't you take a holiday?

When this is advice it is reported by advise + object: He advised me to take a holiday.

F it is time you + past tense:

It is time you bought a new coat. (See 293.) This would be reported:

He said it was time I bought a new coat.

288 Advice with may/might as well + infinitive

This construction can express very unemphatic advice:

You may/might as well ask him = It would do no harm to ask him.

She said I might as well ask him. This form can be used with the third person:

He may as well come with me and the speaker may use it of himself:

As there isn 't anything more to do, I may as well go home early.

289 Suggestions

A First person suggestions with let's or shall I/we let's + infinitive:

Let's paint it ourselves. shall we is sometimes added: Let's get the paint today, shall we? shall I/we + infinitive: Shall we invite Bill?

Suggestions with let's or shall we can be answered affirmatively by yes, let's, let's not could be used jokingly as a negative answer:

Let's take the tent. ~ Let's not! Or it can introduce a negative suggestion:

Let's not start too early. don't let's could also be used here:

Don't let's start too early.

В First and second person suggestions

why don't we/you + infinitive or why not + infinitive/expression of time or place:

Why don't we meet and discuss it? Why not meet and discuss it?

Where shall we meet? ~ Why not here?/Why not at the hotel? In colloquial English what's wrong with/what's the matter with + noun could also be used:

What's wrong with the hotel? what/how about + gerund/noun:

Where shall we sleep? ~ What about renting a caravan?

What about a bed and breakfast place? suppose I/we/you + present or past tense:

Suppose you offer/offered to pay him?

С First, second or third person suggestions with suggest or propose

suggest (+ possessive adjective) + gerund, or suggest that + subject + present tense/should. propose is used in exactly the same way but is slightly more formal than suggest.

In the active, suggest + should + infinitive is more formal than suggest + a present or past tense.

/ suggest (your) selling it.

We suggest that you should sell it. (formal)

/ propose that the secretary sends in/should send in a report, (formal)

I propose that a report (should) be sent in. (formal) that... should is necessary in the passive. With should be it is possible in formal English to omit the should, leaving the be alone, as shown above.

D Suggestions in indirect speech Suggestions can be reported by:

suggest/suggested (+ possessive adjective) + gerund, or suggest that + subject + present tense/should, or suggested that + subject + past tense/should, or suggest (any tense) + noun/pronoun:

Tom suggests/suggested (our) having a meeting. Ann suggests that he sells/should sell his house. Ann suggested that he sold/should sell it.

Mr Jones suggested a meeting. (For suggestions with let's, see also 322.) 28 The subjunctive

290 Form

A The present subjunctive has exactly the same form as the infinitive; therefore the present subjunctive of to be is be for all persons, and the present subjunctive of all other verbs is the same as their present tense except that s is not added for the third person singular:

The queen lives here, (simple present tense)

Long live the queen! (subjunctive)

В The past subjunctive has exactly the same form as the simple past except that with the verb be the past subjunctive form is either I/he/she/it was or I/he/she/it were. In expressions of doubt or unreality were is more usual than was:

He behaves as though he were the owner. (But he is not the owner.) In conversation, however, was is often used instead of were (see also 225). Past subjunctives are often known as 'unreal pasts'.

291 Use of the present subjunctive

A The present subjunctive is used in certain exclamations to express a wish or hope, very often involving supernatural powers: (God) bless you! God save the queen! Heaven help us! Curse this fog! Come what may, we 'II stand by you!

Notice also the phrase if need be, which means 'if it is necessary': If need be we can always bring another car.

В It is sometimes used in poetry, either to express a wish or in clauses of condition or concession:

STEVENSON: Fair the day shine as it shone in my childhood. (May the day shine/I hope it will shine.)

SHAKESPEARE: If this be error, and upon me proved ... (if this is error)

BYRON: Though the heart be still as loving... (though the heart is)

С As seen in 235 certain verbs are followed by should + infinitive constructions. When the infinitive is be, the

should is sometimes omitted:

He suggested that a petition (should) be drawn up. The infinitive thus left alone becomes a subjunctive.

292 as if/as though + past subjunctive

The past subjunctive can be used after as if/as though to indicate unreality or improbability or doubt in the present (there is no difference between as if and as though):

He behaves as if he owned the place. (But he doesn't own it or probably doesn't own it or we don't know whether he owns it or not.)

He talks as though he knew where she was. (But he doesn't know or he probably doesn't know or we don't know whether he knows

or not.)

He orders me about as if I were his wife, (but I am not) The verb preceding as if/though can be put into a past tense without changing the tense of the subjunctive:

He talks/talked as though he knew where she was.

After as if/as though we use a past perfect when referring to a real or imaginary action in the past:

He talks about Rome as though he had been there himself. (But he

hasn't or probably hasn't or we don't know whether he has or not.) Again, the verb preceding as if/though can be put into a past tense without changing the tense of the subjunctive:

He looks/looked as though he hadn't had a decent meal for a month.

293 it is time + past subjunctive (unreal past)

it is time can be followed by the infinitive:

It's time to start or by for + object + infinitive:

It's time for us to go or by subject + a past subjunctive:

It's time we went. It's time we were leaving. There is a slight difference in meaning between the forms. it is time + infinitive merely states that the correct time has arrived; it is time + subject + past subjunctive implies that it is a little late. high can be added to emphasize this idea:

It's high time we left. it is time + I/he/she/it cannot be followed by were:

It's time I was going.

(For past subjunctives/unreal pasts in conditional sentences, see 222; after would rather/sooner, see 297; after

wish + subject, see 300; in indirect speech, see 310.)

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