What is the difference between suggestion and recommendation?
A suggestion is an idea or plan by someone that is put forward for certain considerations. While
a recommendation is an opinion which is given by someone who did an analysis of something presented to his/her clients and is considering whether to buy it out or not. Usually done by more knowlegeable people in that field being tackled. Anyone can make a suggestion. But to make recommendations someone has to be more expert on that field.
These words are interchangeable in most speaking/writing situations.
In terms of specific connotation, in my experience, a suggestion generally refers to the way someone might suggest solving a specific problem that comes up in discussion, while a recommendation could be for any number of common needs.
For example, you suggest that your friend spy on her husband when she suspects him of cheating. To help her out further, you might recommend the same brand of spy camera you used when spying on your own dishonest partner.
However, if you switched out the two words in the previous example, the sentences would still be grammatically correct and the reader’s understanding of the content would not likely be altered.
Hi Merve Tabak
I try to explain to you
We use “suggest” when talking about giving someone an idea in general, and we use “recommend” when telling someone that a certain choice or option is the best one. For example:
I suggest that you wear a nice suit tomorrow. The company president is going to be visiting the office.
If you want to cook delicious dishes, I suggest that you buy fresh ingredients.
My brother suggested a Greek restaurant for dinner tonight. What do you think?
I recommend that you try the chocolate cake for dessert. I think it’s the best dessert on the menu.
My friend recommended that we go to Spain for our vacation. He said it was the best country he’s ever been to.
The clerk in the bookstore recommended this book for people who are interested in Asian culture.
With the words “suggest” and “recommend” it’s very important to pay attention to the grammar because we often use a different verb tense called the subjunctive with these words. For example, many non-native English speakers say things like: “I suggest you to study economics.” or “I recommended my friend to try the apple pie.” These sentences are totally WRONG!
If you look at the example sentences I wrote above, you’ll see that the grammar is different. The grammar is as follows:
subject + suggest/recommend + that + another person + base form of the verb
It’s important to note that the verb which comes after “suggest” or “recommend” is always in the base form, even with “he” and “she”. That’s what makes this the subjunctive tense. We can also use this tense with the verbs “demand” and “insist”. Let me give you some more examples:
My friend wants to lose weight, so I suggested that he join a gym.
The waiter recommended that we not try the curry soup because it’s very spicy.
My customer demanded that I give him a refund.
My boss insisted that Pauline go home because she wasn’t feeling well.
Normally, we would say “he joins” or “Pauline goes” but, as I said before, we must always use the base form of the verb in these types of sentences.
However, if we put a noun directly after the words “suggest” or “recommend”, the sentence is not subjunctive. For example:
My brother suggested a Greek restaurant for dinner tonight. What do you think?
The clerk in the bookstore recommended this book for people who are interested in Asian culture.
