Why don't we ...? / How about ...?
Why don't we ...? / How about ...? means “Why don't we ...? and How about ...? are friendly ways to make a suggestion”. These patterns suggest an activity in a relaxed way. Formation: Why don't you/we + V ...? · How about + V-ing / noun ...?
Why don't we ...? and How about ...? are friendly ways to make a suggestion
A2Formation
Why don't you/we + V ...? · How about + V-ing / noun ...?
Explanation
These patterns suggest an activity in a relaxed way. Why don't you ...? / Why don't we ...? is followed by the base verb: Why don't you ask her? Why not ...? is a shorter version: Why not try it? How about ...? is followed by a noun or V-ing, not the base verb: How about a coffee? How about meeting at six? Despite the words, none of these is really a why question — they are invitations.
Examples
Note
Watch the form after How about: it takes V-ing (How about going ...?), never the base verb (How about go ...?).
FAQ
Why don't we ...? / How about ...? — what does it mean and how is it used?
Why don't we ...? and How about ...? are friendly ways to make a suggestion. These patterns suggest an activity in a relaxed way. Why don't you ...? / Why don't we ...? is followed by the base verb: Why don't you ask her? Why not ...? is a shorter version: Why not try it? How about ...? is followed by a noun or V-ing, not the base verb: How about a coffee? How about meeting at six? Despite the words, none of these is really a why question — they are invitations.
Why don't we ...? / How about ...? — how do you form it?
Why don't you/we + V ...? · How about + V-ing / noun ...?
Why don't we ...? / How about ...? — any usage notes?
Watch the form after How about: it takes V-ing (How about going ...?), never the base verb (How about go ...?).