John Gill Commentary Esther 5:3

"Then said the king unto her, What wilt thou, queen Esther? and what is thy request? it shall be given thee even to the half of the kingdom." — Esther 5:3 (ASV)

Then said the king unto her, what do you want, Queen Esther ?
&c.] He supposed she had some business with him, some suit to make to him, by her coming in this manner:

and what is your request ?
signifying he was ready to grant it, be it what it would:

it shall be even given you to the half of the kingdom ;
as it was usual with the Persian kings to give their wives cities for certain purposes, (See Gill on Esther 2:18), here Ahasuerus, out of his great affection to Esther, offers half of his dominions, his one hundred and twenty seven provinces; meaning that he would grant her anything, and everything that was reasonable, and even magnificent; it is an hyperbolical and courtly way of speaking, and which has been used in later times, and in other countries; see (Mark 6:23) .