suggest
suggest
/səˈdʒest/
1 to put forward an idea or a plan for other people to think about
suggest something I'd like to suggest a different explanation for the company's decline.
suggest something to somebody The designer is known for suggesting innovative ideas to her clients.
suggest itself He thought long and hard, but no answer suggested itself.
suggest itself to somebody A solution immediately suggested itself to me (= I immediately thought of a solution).
suggest (that)… I strongly suggest (that) you don't get involved.
suggest doing something I suggested going in my car.
it is suggested that… It has been suggested that bright children take their exams early.
(British English also) It has been suggested that bright children should take their exams early.
+ speech ‘We could go for a drive,’ Nate suggested hopefully.
2 to tell somebody about a suitable person, thing, method, etc. for a particular job or purpose
suggest somebody/something for something Who would you suggest for the job?
suggest somebody/something as something She suggested Paris as a good place for the conference.
She suggested John as chairman.
suggest somebody/something Can you suggest a better way of doing it?
You cannot ‘suggest somebody something’: Can you suggest me a better way of doing it?
May I suggest a white wine with this dish, Sir?
There is a suggested donation of $5 to attend the show.
suggest how, what, etc… Can you suggest how I might contact him?
3 to put an idea into somebody’s mind; to make somebody think that something is true
suggest (that)… All the evidence suggests (that) he stole the money.
suggest something Recent studies suggest the possibility of a cure for the disease.
Some believe that organic foods offer no health benefits, but this research suggests otherwise.
The symptoms suggest a minor heart attack.
The stage lighting was used to suggest a beach scene.
suggest something to somebody What do these results suggest to you?
Collocations
adverb
verb + suggest
seem to
be meant to
4 to state something indirectly
suggest (that)… Are you suggesting (that) I’m lazy?
I’m not suggesting (that) she was responsible for the accident.
suggest something I would never suggest such a thing.
It is not far-fetched to suggest a connection between them.
You're not seriously suggesting that is a plausible explanation?
I do not mean to suggest that the poem is purely biographical.
I am merely suggesting that there is more than one way to view this matter.
Collocations
adverb
verb + suggest
seem reasonable to
be far-fetched to
seem far-fetched to…
preposition
as
for
to
phrases
can I suggest…
I suggest…
I would suggest……
Word Origin
early 16th cent.: from Latin suggest- ‘suggested, prompted’, from the verb suggerere, from sub- ‘from below’ + gerere ‘bring’.