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JLPT N4Expressions

たらどうですか— Why don't you / How about (polite suggestion)

A polite suggestion form. "Why don't you / how about doing X?" Softer and more formal than たらどう.

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A short lesson: the pattern, its sentence anatomy, a quick quiz and a sentence to build.

Pro lessonUNIT 87 · EXPRESSIONS

Structure · 形

[Verb た-form] + らどうですか

Examples · 例文

  • 先生に相談してみたらどうですか？

    Sensei ni soudan shite mitara dou desu ka?

    Why don't you try consulting the teacher?

    相談してみたら + どうですか (polite suggestion)

  • 少し休んだらどうですか。

    Sukoshi yasundara dou desu ka.

    How about resting for a bit?

    休んだら + どうですか

  • 疲れているなら、今日は早く帰ったらどうですか。

    Tsukarete iru nara, kyou wa hayaku kaettara dou desu ka.

    If you're tired, why don't you go home early today?

    帰ったら + どうですか (polite suggestion)

Usage notes · 注意

  • Politeness: たらどう (casual) < たらどうですか (polite).
  • Even politer: たらいかがですか (very formal, used in business/service).
  • Summary: A caring suggestion form, not a command.

Commonly confused with

The JLPT rarely asks whether you recognise a pattern — it asks which of several similar patterns fits. These are the ones たらどうですか is tested against.

vs〜ほうがいい

ほうがいい gives direct advice ('you'd better ~'); たらどうですか is a softer suggestion phrased as a question ('why don't you ~?'), less pushy.

vs〜ば / 〜たら (plain conditional)

The bare conditional just states 'if'; たらどうですか adds どう(ですか) to turn it into a proposal — 'if you did X, how about it?' = a recommendation.

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