In this mini episode, you will learn the “Why not VERB?” construction.
Episode 297 of the Everybody ESL podcast is a mini episode that teaches you the “Why not VERB?” construction. Send your questions about English and your suggestions for future episodes to EverybodyESL@gmail.com! (And let me know if you’d like to record the introduction to a future episode.)
Intro
“Hey, what’s up, everyone? This is Rio, from Korea. And you’re listening to Everybody ESL.”
Welcome to episode 297 of Everybody ESL, the podcast for everybody who wants to improve their English, practice their English, or just learn more English. My name is Ben, and I have a mini episode for you today, where I am going to teach you about one English topic. You can subscribe to the Everybody ESL podcast at Apple podcasts, on the Stitcher app, and wherever you find your podcasts. If you like Everybody ESL, leave it a good review so other people can find out about it too. And if you have any questions, comments, or suggestions for me, please send an email to everybodyESL@gmail.com. Okay! Let’s get on with this mini episode.
The episode
In this episode, I am going to teach you about an interesting and useful construction. This is the “Why not VERB?” construction. I call it that because that’s the form that it takes: “Why not” and then a verb.
For example, this is the construction that you hear in this sentence: “Why not call me this weekend?” Why not call me this weekend?
What does this construction mean? When do we use it?
We use this “Why not VERB?” construction as an informal way of making a request or giving a suggestion. Sometimes it feels somewhere in the middle, somewhere between a request and a suggestion.
When I say, “Why not call me this weekend?” what I’m saying is “Maybe you would like to call me this weekend,” or “Do you have a good reason for not calling me this weekend?”
So it’s sort of like I am requesting that you call me this weekend, or I am suggesting that you call me this weekend. I’m telling you that it is a good idea to call me this weekend, or maybe it’s something you would like to do.
Here is another example of a situation where someone might use this “Why not VERB?” construction.
Let’s say that you have a friend who is always complaining about her job. She does not really enjoy her job. It’s not really the right job for her. And one day you say to your friend, “Why not look for a new job?” Why not look for a new job? What you are saying when you say, “Why not look for a new job?” is “Maybe you would like to look for a new job,” “Maybe it is good to look for a new job,” “This is my suggestion,” or “This is my idea. This is my advice. I think that it might be good for you to look for a new job.” “Why not look for a new job? What’s wrong with that idea? Isn’t that a good idea? Do you have a good reason not to look for a new job?” This is what I’m saying when I say, “Why not look for a new job?”
And that is “Why not VERB?”—a very useful construction that I think you should know.
Outro
This is the end of episode 297 of Everybody ESL. You can contact me at EverybodyESL@gmail.com if you have questions about English or suggestions for me, or if you want to find out about private tutoring, or if you would like to record an introduction that I can play at the beginning of future episodes—the same way Rio recorded the introduction you heard at the beginning of this episode. I’ll be back soon with a new episode, and until then, keep going, keep practicing, and keep learning. I’ll see you soon. Goodbye!