If I want someone to, say, bring me a screwdriver, I probably say something like this:
Will you please bring me that Robertson screwdriver?
I use “will you” virtually every time I need someone to do something for me. I’ve had people tell me it sounds stuffy or too formal, but I have my reasons.
You might have heard alternatives, such as “would you” or “could you”, but, in my opinion, these are insufficient.
While I recognize that popular usage suggests them for making polite requests, both, strictly speaking, are conditional verbs. In other words, you use them if you’re placing a condition on your request (or for that matter, on your response).
For example,
Would you go out with me if I paid for the date?
Could you read the book if I taught you how to read?
I would bring you the Robertson screwdriver if you paid me $20.
I could take the garbage out if I grew horns.
Using “will you” is direct. Using “would you” or “could you”, on the other hand, leaves options open for the diabolical: “I would—thinking to himself now—if I didn’t have to see your face ever again.”
“Will you” keeps you safe, and ensures that the request and response are both clear.
