Please is weirder than a 3 dollar bill! Does please make any statement a question? Is it polite?
"TAKE OUT THE TRASH" vs. "Take out the trash, please" is one an option?
My son always says when I say please it makes it a question then he never does no chores! Also, some of them Midwesterner folks use it in place of "what?" or "come again?" What the heck!?!
Best Answer
Thank you for your question, Darlene.
Let's break your question into smaller chunks here:
1. Does using "please" change a statement into a question?
Yes it could.
It depends on how your voice is inflected. As when the speaker makes a question, his/her voice reflects the question, at the end of the sentence statement.
You can see the rising and falling of voice inflection in two sentences here:
Thus, if we turn the statement {Take out the trash.] into a question, using "please" {Take out the trash, please?}; it is entirely possible- by the rising intonation at the end of the sentence.
2. Does using "please" mean you are being polite?
3. Does using "please" means you are giving the other person an option of "YES or NO" and not a "MUST".
Questions 2 and 3 both refer to the speaker's purpose or intent.
If the speaker intended to be polite: "Take out the trash, please." Using please helps to soften the command commonly associated with the action verb: "Take..".
If the speaker intended to give the receiver/the other person a choice, to agree or to reject: "Do your chores, please [YES .... NO]".
This is different from: "Do your chores [MUST]."
4. Does using "please" equal to "What?" or "Come Again?"
This is also a possible function of using "please", at the end of a statement-turned-question.
Where, depending on local usage of that particular area, people can use "what" and "come again" as fillers/substitutes of "please" for the function of requesting clarification.
Say it, [please?]. [Please= clarification]
Say it, [what?]. [What= clarification]
Say it, [come again?]. [Come again= clarification]