Teenagers are recommended to get 9-10 hours of sleep.

[z7655431]

"Sb is recommended to do "sth"—correct or not?

Most people think the collocation “recommend sb to do sth” is incorrect. Even though Oxford does list such use as “we'd recommend you to book your flight early.” However, most dictionaries don’t include such a collocation.

How about its passive form? Instead of “recommend sb to do sth,” is it correct and common to say “sb is recommended to do sth”?

Are the following sentences correct?

Teenagers are recommended to get 9–10 hours of sleep.

Students are recommended to make an appointment with a counselor. (Longman)

Visitors are recommended to bring warm clothes.

If the three sentences are natural and correct, don't you feel it's weird that it's ok to use the passive while not ok to use the active?

 

[jutfrank]

Most people think the collocation “recommend sb to do sth” is incorrect.

Right.

How about its passive form? Instead of “recommend sb to do sth,” is it correct and common to say “sb is recommended to do sth”?

I say yes, it's fine, and quite common, I would say.

If the three sentences are natural and correct, don't you feel it's weird that it's ok to use the passive while not ok to use the active?

A little bit, I suppose, yes.

 

[emsr2d2]

If the three sentences are natural and correct, don't you feel it's weird that it's ok OK/okay to use the passive while it's not ok OK/okay to use the active?

Note my changes above. At the start of a sentence, write "OK" or "Okay". Anywhere else in a sentence, write "OK" or "okay". Note that "ok" is always wrong.

In your sentence above, you needed another "its" after "while". To avoid that, you could have simply used "but".

 

[Annabel Lee]

Are the following sentences correct?

Teenagers are recommended to get 9–10 hours of sleep.

Students are recommended to make an appointment with a counselor. (Longman)

Visitors are recommended to bring warm clothes.

If the three sentences are natural and correct, don't you feel it's weird that it's ok to use the passive while not ok to use the active?

In my opinion, such sentences work much better with "advised," with which the active-voice correlate is possible.

Teenagers are advised to get 9-10 hours of sleep
Healthcare practitioners advise teenagers to get 9-10 hours of sleep.​

​

Students are advised to make an appointment with a counselor.​

The school advises students to make an appointment with a couselor.​

​

Visitors are advised to bring warm clothes.​

We advise visitors to bring warm clothes. ​

 

[SoothingDave]

Most people think the collocation “recommend sb to do sth” is incorrect. Even though Oxford does list such use as “we'd recommend you to book your flight early.” However, most dictionaries don’t include such a collocation.

I'd use the subjunctive. "We recommend you book your flight early."

 

[jutfrank]

I'd use the subjunctive. "We recommend you book your flight early."

Yes. This is similar with the verb 'suggest', which in many contexts I think is slightly more synonymous with 'recommend' than 'advise'. You can't use 'advise' in this subjunctive way.

*We advise you book your flight early.

 

[Annabel Lee]

*We advise you book your flight early.

I myself don't find that example ungrammatical. I think that sometimes advise is used with subjunctive that-clauses -- e.g.:

• "Assuming that you have only your client's best interests in mind, what do you advise that he do?" (source)

 

[jutfrank]

I myself don't find that example ungrammatical.

It's really the lack of 'that' that I don't like.

I think that sometimes advise is used with subjunctive that-clauses -- e.g.:

• "Assuming that you have only your client's best interests in mind, what do you advise that he do?" (source)

It sounds good to me with the word 'that' included, but not without. I wonder if anyone else agrees with me on this.

 

[z7655431]

It's really the lack of 'that' that I don't like.

It sounds good to me with the word 'that' included, but not without. I wonder if anyone else agrees with me on this.

I guess BrE tends to include THAT, while AmE tends to exclude THAT.

 

[Tarheel]

I guess BrE tends to include THAT, while AmE tends to exclude THAT.

Not necessarily.

Sb is recommended to do "sth"

What's "sb" supposed to mean?

 

[emsr2d2]

What's "sb" supposed to mean?

Most dictionaries use "sb" as an abbreviation for "somebody" and "smth" for "something". Many learners here don't know, until we tell them, that we ask them to write the words out in full.

 

[Tarheel]

Most dictionaries use "sb" as an abbreviation for "somebody" and "smth" for "something". Many learners here don't know, until we tell them, that we ask them to write the words out in full.

Thanks! Maybe I will remember the explanation this time.