Question Tags Explanations
question tag is a question added at the end of a sentence. Speakers use question tags chiefly to make sure their information is correct or to seek argument.They consist of a statement and a tag . A negative tag is used with an affirmative statement whereas a positive tag is used with a negative statement.
- A. If the statement has “be” as an ordinary verb, we use a form of be in the tag. Tags are always used with pronouns.
After positive statements, we use a negative tag.
You are from Zaire, aren’t you?
Angela is here, isn’t she?
Your father was at school, wasn’t he?
They were on holiday, weren’t they?
It was a super show, wasn’t it?
It is a big garden, isn’t it?
After negative statements, we use a positive tag.
I am not surprised, am I?
Tim and Ted aren’t rich, are they?
They weren’t at the cinema, were they?
That isn’t Ben, is it?
You are not a policeman, are you?
We aren’t lucky, are we?
Mustapha isn’t at home, is he?
They are not with us, are they? - B. If the statement has a modal, it is repeated in the tag.
Kara can go herself, can’t she?
You should get up early, shouldn’t you?
You wouldn’t do that, would you?
We must help them, mustn’t we? - C. With the Simple Present Tense we use do / does - don’t / doesn’t? With the Simple Past Tense we use did / didn’t?
They like going to the cinema, don’t they?
You don’t take sugar in tea, do you?
Raffi listens to music, doesn’t he?
Alan works at a bank, doesn’t he?
You all watched TV during the night, didn’t you?
Alicia went to the cinema, didn’t she?
He didn’t read the novel, did he?
Andrew doesn’t live here, does he?
After all tenses, we just put the auxiliary.
Maral is coming today, isn’t she?
Muhammad is not drinking beer, is he?
They were playing football yesterday, weren’t they?
Laila and Steve were on the bus, weren’t they?
They are going to play football, aren’t they?
Note: Remember that ‘s = is or has, and ‘d = had or would
Peter’s got a cat, hasn’t he?
She’s in the office, isn’t she? - D. Question tags with HAVE and DO are often both possible after the noun– auxiliary "have".
Note: "do" is preferred in American English.
Mr. Farmer has two cars, hasn’t he? Or doesn’t he?
She has a nice kitten, hasn’t she? Or doesn’t she?
You haven’t a house, have you? Do you?
They have a garden, haven’t they? Or don’t they? - E.
If the statement contains words such as no , no one , nothing , nobody ,
scarcely , hardly , hardly ever , never , neither , seldom, under no
circumstances … etc, it is considered a negative statement and
followed by an affirmative tag.
Julia hardly ever drinks coke, does she?
Nothing will cure his illness, will it?
He never acts like a gentleman, does he?
She is hardly the right person for the job, is she?
It is no good, is it? - F.
If the subject of the statement is somebody, anybody, nobody,
everybody, no one, and neither …. We use the pronoun “they” in question
tag.
Somebody entered the garden, didn’t they?
Everybody was upset, weren’t they?
Nobody objects to the plan, do they? - G.
When the subject of the statement is that or this, the pronoun in the
tag is "it". The pronoun is "they" for their plural forms these and
those.
This is an expensive necklace, isn’t it?
Those are very naughty children, aren’t they?
That wasn’t a big surprise, was it?
These weren’t yours, were they? - H. When we use a there + be combination in a sentence the pronoun in the tag is again "there".
There isn’t a hotel next to the museum, is there?
There won’t be any trouble, will there?
There is a bus to Atlantic City every hour, isn’t there?
There weren’t any children at school, were there? - I. Let’s has the tag "shall we?"
Let’s go to the cinema, shall we?
Let’s have a party, shall we?
Let’s drink tea, shall we?
Let’s go out for a walk, shall we? - J. “Have to” is considered Simple Present and “had to” is considered Simple Past.
Your father has to wear glasses, doesn’t he?
They don’t have to come early, do they?
We had to borrow some money to buy a new house, didn’t we?
They didn’t have to read the story book, did they? - K.
Some introductory phrases such as “I am afraid, I think, I believe, I
am sure, I suspect, I suppose , it appears that , it seems that , it
looks as if , as far as I remember , as far as I can see … so on “
don’t affect question tags except for the transfer of negation .
I suppose you are not serious, are you?
I think my mom returned home, didn’t she?
I don’t suppose you are serious, are you?
I don’t believe you have paid for it yet, have you?
I don’t think anyone will volunteer, will they?
I hope he won’t object to our plan, will he?
It appears that she is enjoying herself, isn’t she?
As far as I can see, Wade is the best, isn’t he?
Note: For the phrase “you know that “ the question tag is don’t you ?
You know that you can do it, don’t you? - L. If the subject of the sentence is everything, nothing, something, anything the pronoun in the tag is "it".
Everything is ready, isn’t it?
Nothing has the end, has it?
Anything is possible, isn’t it? - M.
After positive imperatives, we use will you, won’t you, can you, can’t
you, could you …etc .Yet for the negative imperatives we only use “will
you? “
Open the door, will you / won’t you, can you, could you …etc
Don’t play with your nose, will you?
After “I am” the tag is "aren’t".
I am your father, aren’t I?
I am a bit late, aren’t I?
I am a teacher, aren’t I?
PS. Negative interrogative question tags without contractions are possible but the word order is different.
You killed him, did you not? (This is much less usual form)
INTONATION IN QUESTION TAGS
When a tag is spoken, the voice can go up or down. If the voice goes up, it is called Rising Intonation and if it goes down, it is called Falling Intonation.It is a nice today, isn’t it? ↘
A falling intonation means that the speaker is sure (or almost sure) that the statement is true.The speaker knows that it is a nice day. The tag is not a real question. He is inviting his friend to continue the conversation.
You have been on holiday haven’t you? ↗
A rising intonation means that the speaker is less sure. He thinks that his friend has been on holiday, but he isn’t sure. The tag is more like a real question.