The Australian Dictionary of Invisible Culture for Teachers
can you/could you/would you do X?
phrase: someone says these words (see more)
I say “I want you to do X.”
I think “Maybe you will do it, I don’t know.”
"I know it's a real pain, but could you stay on call over the weekend in case something goes wrong?"
"Would you book the hotels for our holiday please? I don't have time."
"Can you get some more milk while you're at the shops?"
Back to Requests and Directives