Tag - questions (0)

Questions : “tag” - questions

You speak English , don't you?
 A tag question is a special construction in English. It is a statement followed by a mini-question. The whole sentence is a "tag question", and the mini-question at the end is called a "question tag".
We use tag questions at the end of statements to ask for confirmation. They mean something like: "Am I right?" or "Do you agree ?" They are very common in English.
The basic structure is:
+
Positive statement,
-
negative tag?
Snow is white,
isn't it?
-
Negative statement,
+
positive tag?
You don't like me,
do you?
Look at these examples with positive statements:
positive statement [+]
negative tag [-]
notes :
subject
auxiliary
main verb
 
auxiliary
not
personal
pronoun
(same as subject)
 
You
are
coming,
 
are
n't
you?
 
We
have
finished ,
 
have
n't
we?
 
You
do
like
coffee,
do
n't
you?
 
You
like
coffee,
do
n't
you?
You (do) like...
They
will
help,
 
wo
n't
they?
won't = will not
I
can
come,
 
can
't
I?
 
We
must
go,
 
must
n't
we?
 
He
should
try
harder,
should
n't
he?
 
You
 
are
English,
are
n't
you?
no auxiliary for main verb be present & past
John
 
was
there,
was
n't
he?
Look at these examples with negative statements:
negative statement [-]
positive tag [+]
subject
auxiliary
 
main verb
 
 
auxiliary
personal
pronoun
(same as subject)
It
is
n't
raining,
 
 
is
it?
We
have
never
seen
 
that,
have
we?
You
do
n't
like
 
coffee,
do
you?
They
will
not
help,
 
 
will
they?
They
wo
n't
report
 
us,
will
they?
I
can
never
do
 
it right,
can
I?
We
must
n't
tell
 
her,
must
we?
He
should
n't
drive
 
so fast,
should
he?
You
 
 
are
n't
English,
are
you?
John
 
 
was
not
there,
was
he?
Some special cases:
I am right, aren't I?
aren't I (not amn't I)
You have to go, don't you?
you (do) have to go...
I have been answering, haven't I?
use first auxiliary
Nothing came in the post, did it?
treat statements with nothing, nobody etc like negative statements
Let's go, shall we?
let's = let us
He'd better do it, hadn't he?
he had better (no auxiliary)
Here are some mixed examples:

• But you don't really love her, do you?
  
• This will work, won't it?
  
• Well, I couldn't help it, could I?
  
• But you'll tell me if she calls, won't you?
  
• We'd never have known, would we?
  
• The weather's bad, isn't it?
  
• You won't be late, will you?
  
• Nobody knows, do they?
  

ANSWERS to tag-questions :

• The moon goes round the earth, doesn't it? Yes, it does.
  
• The earth is bigger than the moon, isn't it? Yes.
  
• The earth is bigger than the sun, isn't it? No, it isn't!
  
• Asian people don't like rice, do they? Yes, they do!
  
• Elephants live in Europe, don't they? No, they don't!
  
• Men don't have babies, do they? No.
  
• The English alphabet doesn't have 40 letters, does it? No, it doesn't.
  

Question tags with imperatives

Sometimes we use question tags with imperatives (invitations, orders), but the sentence remains an imperative and does not require a direct answer. We use won't for invitations. We use can, can't, will, would for orders.
 
imperative + question tag
notes:
invitation
Take a seat, won't you?
polite
order
Help me, can you?
quite friendly
Help me, can't you?
quite friendly (some irritation?)
Close the door, would you?
quite polite
Do it now, will you?
less polite
Don't forget, will you?
with negative imperatives only will is possible