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Is it correct to say "to suggest to someone that they should do something"?

English Language & Usage Asked on February 19, 2021

Is it correct to say "to suggest to someone that they should do something"?

Found in "Advanced Trainer, Six Practice Tests with Answers" by Felicity O’Dell and Michael Black, Second edition, Cambridge University Press and UCLES 2015, page 145:

Why does Erica talk about her cousin? (multiple choice,

  • answer A: to suggest to Ross that he should not overreact)

I looked up the verb "suggest" in different dictionaries (Longman Dictionary Of Contemporary English, Oxford Online Dictionaries, Collins Cobuild Dictionary, Cambridge Online Dictionares) but could not find this structure:

to suggest to someone that they should do something

The structure closest to it that I have found is "a simpler explanation suggested itself to me" (Oxford Dictionaries Online)

2 Answers

The only thing I can see to correct is the word they, which is a plural pronoun. The word someone is singular, so I would rewrite it as "To suggest to someone that he or she should do something."

Answered by Dunnup on February 19, 2021

Yes, it is correct to say "to suggest to someone that they should do something".

"Suggest" is a monotransitive verb. It takes a direct object.

"They suggest to me that he should do it."

Here the that-clause is the direct object of the verb "suggest". "Me" is the object of the preposition 'to'.

(NOT, "They suggest me that he should do it.")

Answered by Sandip Kumar Mandal on February 19, 2021

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