Índex

1.0. Introduction ......................................................................................................... 2

2.0. Tag Questions....................................................................................................... 3

2.1. Positive Statement Tag Questions .................................................................. 3

2.2. Question Tags and Auxiliary Verbs ................................................................... 3

3.0. Answering Tag Questions ..................................................................................... 4

4.0. Tag Question Special Cases ................................................................................ 6

4.1. Negative adverbs .............................................................................................. 6

6.0. Bibliography ......................................................................................................... 8

www.oxfordreference.com ............................................................................................... 8
1.0.Introduction

Question tag is a especial construction in english. It is a statement followed by a mini-

question. The whole sentence is a “question tag”

Objectives:

 The formation of question tag when the same operator used in the tag as in the
main clause.
 Statement sentence with short question at the a question mark.
2.0. Tag Questions

A tag question is a special construction in English. It is a statement followed by a mini-

question. We use tag questions to ask for confirmation. They mean something like: "Is
that right?" or "Do you agree?" They are very common in English.

The basic structure of a tag question is:

positive statement negative tag

Snow is white, isn't it?

negative statement positive tag

You don't like me, do you?

Notice that the tag repeats the auxiliary verb (or main verb when be) from the statement
and changes it to negative or positive.

2.1. Positive Statement Tag Questions

Look at these examples with positive statements. You will see that most of the time, the
auxiliary verb from the positive statement is repeated in the tag and changed to
negative.

2.2.Question Tags and Auxiliary Verbs

The most common way to form a question tag is to use a pair of auxiliary verbs.
Remember, an auxiliary verb is either a 'to have' or 'to be' verb. In sentences that have a
question tag, the verbs should match one another. Let's look at a few examples:

 She wasn't in the parade, was she?

 He hasn't gone to the store yet, has he?
 The zoo isn't closed, is it?
 Mom and dad weren't in the car, were they?
 Sara is at the park, isn't she?
 The dog is in the bedroom, isn't it?
(-) 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 they?

They Will Not help will i?

I Can Never Do It right can we?

We must n᾽t tell her, must he?

He Should n᾽t drive so fast, should you?

you wo n᾽t be late will you?

Notice:

 won't is the contracted form of will not

 the tag repeats the auxiliary verb, not the main verb. Except, of course, for the
verb be in Present Simple and Past Simple.

3.0.Answering Tag Questions

How do we answer a tag question? Often, we just say Yes or No. Sometimes we may
repeat the tag and reverse it (They don't live here, do they? Yes, they do).
Be very careful about answering tag questions. In some languages, an opposite system
of answering is used, and non-native English speakers sometimes answer in the wrong
way. This can lead to a lot of confusion!

For example, everyone knows that snow is white. Look at these questions, and the
correct answers:

tag question correct answer notes

Snow is Answer is But notice
white, isn't it? Yes (it is). same in both change of
Snow isn't Yes it is! cases - because stress when
white, is it? snow is white! answerer does
Snow is No it isn't! Answer is not agree with
black, isn't it? same in both questioner.
Snow isn't No (it isn't). cases - because
black, is it? snow is not
black!

In some languages, people answer a question like "Snow isn't black, is it?" with "Yes"
(meaning "Yes, I agree with you"). This is the wrong answer in English!

Here are some more examples, with correct answers:

 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.
4.0.Tag Question Special Cases
4.1.Negative adverbs

The adverbs never, rarely, seldom, hardly, barely and scarcely have a negative sense.
Even though they may be in a positive statement, the feeling of the statement is
negative. We treat statements with these words like negative statements, so the question
tag is normally positive. Look at these examples:

positive statement positive tag

treated as negative statement
He never came again, did he?
She can rarely come these days, Can she?
You hardly ever came late, did you?
I barely know you, do I?
You would scarcely expect her to know that, would you?
5.0.conclusion

In this work was conclude that a question tags are short at the end of statements the
change the statements into question. They are used to confirm that something is true or
not true, to encourage a reply from the listener. A statement could be positive or
negative.
6.0.Bibliography

www.oxfordreference.com
www.coursehero.com

Unacademy.com