sug ‧ ges ‧ tion S1 W2 /səˈdʒestʃ ə n $ səɡ-/ BrE AmE noun
[ Word Family: noun : ↑ suggestion , ↑ suggestiveness ; adjective : ↑ suggestive , ↑ suggestible ; verb : ↑ suggest ; adverb : ↑ suggestively ]
1 . [countable] an idea, plan, or possibility that someone mentions, or the act of mentioning it:
Any suggestions would be welcome.
suggestion that
The committee rejected the suggestion that houses should be built on this site.
suggestion for
Here are some suggestions for further activities.
suggestion about
My suggestion about menus was ignored.
at sb’s suggestion
She took a seat at his suggestion.
2 . [singular, uncountable] a sign or possibility of something
suggestion of
There was never any suggestion of criminal involvement.
The government have denied any suggestion of involvement in her death.
suggestion that
There’s some suggestion that the intruder was the same person that killed Angie.
3 . a suggestion of something a slight amount of something:
There was just a suggestion of a smile on her face.
4 . [uncountable] an indirect way of making you accept an idea, for example by ↑ hypnotism :
the power of suggestion
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COLLOCATIONS
■ verbs
▪ make a suggestion
Can I make a suggestion?
▪ offer/put forward a suggestion
A few suggestions were put forward.
▪ have a suggestion
I have a suggestion for you.
▪ come up with a suggestion (=think of something to suggest)
We’ve come up with five suggestions.
▪ accept/adopt a suggestion (=do what is suggested)
The issue was finally settled when Amelia’s suggestion was adopted.
▪ reject a suggestion (=not do what is suggested)
The government rejected the suggestion of a referendum.
▪ be open to suggestions (=be willing to listen to suggestions)
We don’t have a firm plan yet, so we’re open to suggestions.
▪ welcome suggestions (=be keen to listen to suggestions)
We welcome your comments and suggestions.
■ adjectives
▪ a good/excellent suggestion
I think that’s an excellent suggestion.
▪ a helpful/useful/valuable suggestion
He made various helpful suggestions.
▪ a sensible suggestion
This was the first sensible suggestion she had heard from him.
▪ a constructive/positive suggestion (=involving helpful ideas, not criticism)
Any evaluation should be fair and linked to positive suggestions for improvement.
▪ a stupid/ridiculous suggestion
It seemed a ridiculous suggestion.
▪ a practical suggestion (=based on real situations, not just ideas)
What practical suggestions can you offer to teachers of children with learning difficulties?
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THESAURUS
▪ suggestion an idea, plan, or possibility that someone suggests:
We welcome any suggestions as to how to improve our service.
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Sally made a few useful suggestions about places we could visit.
▪ proposal a formal or official suggestion:
They will consider our proposal at their next meeting.
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The proposal to build a new airport has finally been rejected.
▪ recommendation an official suggestion about what to do, especially one that is contained in a report:
The safety board has made some recommendations.
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The Government decided to accept the recommendation of the Lockwood Report.