Verb tense rule in making suggestions?

[Bookyeti]

Silly little question here, from a newbie...

Is there a general rule of thumb when it comes to the tense of verbs used in a suggestion?

For example...

Let's eat at a restaurant tonight?
Why don't we go swimming tomorrow?
How about having a party at my house this week?
It might be a good idea to pick up* some groceries for the weekend.

* I'm assuming this is a phrasal verb.

Is there a hard and fast rule?
I would appreciate your help. Thanks!

[Yankee]

Hi Bookyeti

Some further examples of suggestions:

Feel like going for a swim?
What if we had the reception at the Ritz?
I think we ought to take the train.
We could all go in my car.
Should we have a couple of pizzas delivered?
Shall we dance? 8)
I suggest he clean up his act without delay.
The answer to the problem might be option (c).

I'm sure there are many more possibilities.

To me, suggestions have little connection to verb tense. A suggestion is a function of language, so I'm not quite sure what you're expecting to hear. As I see it, the main connection to time is that a suggestion frequently refers to something to be done in the future. But even that isn't hard and fast.

Suggestions can be formal or informal. They can be questions or statements. They can be strong or tentative. A suggestion might contain modal verbs, participles, gerunds, conditional or subjunctive forms, etc.

Are you new to teaching ESL?
.
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