BSIT

COURSE TITLE: FUNCTIONAL ENGLISH

COURSE CODE: ENGL1114

Topic: Making Requests and Asking Questions

Q: What is speaking?

Ans: Speech is human vocal communication using language. Each language uses phonetic

combinations of words and consonant sounds that form the sound of its words, and using those words in

their semantic.

Speaking is the delivery of language through the mouth. To speak, we create sounds using many

parts of our body, including the lungs, vocal tract, vocal cords, tongue, teeth and lips. Speaking is the second

of our four language skills.

Speaking is the skill that makes human beings different from and superior to the species of living

beings. Speaking is a complex cognitive and linguistic skill. A child learns to speak through interaction with

people around him/her in native language. Speaking is a verbal skill that involves words and sounds.

Q: What is meant by making request?

Ans: Request is an act of asking politely or formally for something.

‘ a request for information’

Request is defined as the act of asking for something you asked for.

When we are asking for something/information, we generally try to be polite in order to build up a

good relationship with the person we are addressing.

Generally, when we make a simple request, we use two-part verb such as; Turn down, put away,

clear up, hang up, take out, etc.

But if we want to make a request in a polite way, we usually use; can, could and would you mind,

etc.

Examples are;

Excuse me
I’m sorry to bother you

May I borrow your pen…

The way we make request in English will probably depend on many factors;

Situation we are in,

A person we shall be making request of,

Our relationship with this person,

The nature of the request itself.

There are two ways of making requests;

Formal and Informal.

Formal way is less personal. A formal request is an official one.

Informal way is a personal one. It is used in everyday conversation.

Some examples of Formal and Informal requests are;

We apologize for any inconvenience…( Formal)

Sorry for any trouble…(Informal)

Would you by any chance help…?(Formal)

Could you help me..?(Informal)

I wonder if you would mind helping..?(Formal)

Can you help me..?(Informal)

 Additional Notes

There are many different ways of making polite requests in English.

Would you…? /
Could you…? /
Would you like
to…?

If you are asking

other people to do
things, you would
normally use Would
you or Could you +
infinitive. Would
you like to…? is
also a very polite
way of suggesting or
requesting
something, politer
than Do you want
to…? Compare the
following:

 Would you
please
bring your
library
books
back today
as they are
needed by
another
borrower?

 Could you
join us on
Saturday?
Tom's back
from
Sydney and
we're
having a
barbecue.

 Would you
like to
join us on
Saturday?
We're
having a
barbecue in
the back
garden.

 Would you
care to
join us on
Saturday?
We're
celebrating
Tom's
return from
Sydney.

 Do you
want to
join us on
Saturday?
We're
having a
bash in the
garden.
 Would you like…?
+ infinitive /

Would you
mind…?

If you want to sound

particularly polite, or
if you think the
answer may be
negative, you can
also use Would you
mind + verb-ing as
the preferred
alternative to Could
you…? Would you
mind…? literally
means: Would you
object to…?

 Would you
mind
locking
the
door when
you leave?
~ No, not
at all!

 Could you
please
lock the
door when
you leave?
~ Yes,
certainly!

 If you're
not busy at
the
moment, w
ould you
mind
helping
me with
my
homework?

 If you're
not busy at
the
moment, c
ould you
give me a
hand with
my
homework?

Can I / could I / may I / might I

If you are requesting something for yourself, all of these forms are
possible. May and might are considered to be more polite, more formal or more
tentative than can and could, but can and could are usually preferred in normal
usage. Compare the following:

 Can I ask a favour of you? ~ Of course you can.

 Could I ask you to collect Deborah from school tomorrow ~ Of course

you can.

 Could I possibly have another cup of coffee? ~ I don't think you should.
You won't sleep tonight if you do.

 If you've finished with the computer, may I turn it off? ~ Yes, please do.
  Might I leave work a bit earlier today? I've got a doctor's appointment at
5.

Might is more frequently used in indirect questions, as an indirect question softens

the request. Note the further polite alternatives that we can use:

 I wonder if I might leave work a bit earlier today? I've got a doctor's
appointment.

 Would I be able to leave work a bit earlier today? I've got a dentist
appointment at 6.

 Would it be OK if I left work a bit earlier today? I've got to take our cat
to the vet.

Would you / Do you mind if I…?

Similarly, if we use Do / Would you mind if I…? to make a request, we may be

anticipating possible objections:

 Would you mind if I put off talking to Henry until tomorrow? ~ I think
that's a mistake. I think you should speak to him today

Note the difference between: Would you mind…? and Would you mind me/my…?:

 Would you mind filling the ice trays and putting them in the freezer? (=
you do it)

 Would you mind me/my filling the ice trays and putting them in the
freezer? (= I'll do it)

Assignment#2

Read the following dialogues carefully and find the request making words and write new request

making sentence using these words.

Dialogue 1:

A: Can I see the menu, please?

B: Certainly, madam. Here you are. Would you like something to drink before you order?

A: Yes, please. Actually, I’m waiting for a friend to join me. But in the meantime, I’ll have a glass of lime

juice and some mineral water.

B: Chilled or room temperature?

A: Room temperature, please.

B: Thank you, madam. I’ll bring your drinks right away.

Dialogue 2:

A: Excuse me, I’m sorry to bother you. Can you tell me the time?
B: I’m sorry, I’m not wearing my watch. But I guess it must be about 10 o’clock.

A: Thanks a lot.

Dialogue 3:

A: Good afternoon, sir. Welcome to the Hotel Costaplenty.

B: Good afternoon. I’d like a double room with an attached bathroom.

A: All our rooms have attached bathrooms, sir. How long will you be staying with us?

B: Three nights. How much is the room?

A: Eight thousand rupees per night.

B Do you have anything cheaper?

A: I’m afraid not, sir.

Dialogue 4:

A: Could you tell us what you are doing at the moment, Ms Yaqoob?

B: I’m working for a travel agency in Lahore. I’ve been there for two years.

A: And what kind of work do you do there?

B: I deal with customers on a daily basis, and I am also the company representative for all our business with

the UAE.

A: Sounds like an interesting job. So why are you interested in joining us?

Dialogue 5:

A: I’m sorry to bother you, madam.

B: Yes.

A: Would you like to give a contribution to the flood disaster fund to help people in need? I expect you’ve

seen the terrible flooding on television.

B: Yes, I have. So many people have lost their homes and land, haven’t they? Here you are.

A: Thank you, madam, for helping us to help others.