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. 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.

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.

(+) positive statement (-) negative tag

main personal pronoun same as

subject auxiliary verb auxiliary not 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?

They will help, wo n't they?

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?

John was there, was n't he?

Notice:

 the use of do in the two coffee questions. Remember that in Present Simple, do is optional in
positive statements (You like coffee/You do like coffee). But the do must appear in the tag. The
same applies to Past Simple did.
 in last two questions, no auxiliary for main verb be in Present Simple and Past Simple. The tag
repeats the main verb.

Negative Statement Tag Questions

Look at these examples with negative statements. Notice that the negative verb in the original
statement is changed to positive in the tag.
(-) negative statement (+) positive tag

main personal pronoun same

subject auxiliary verb auxiliary 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 wo n't be late, will you?

You are n't English, are you?

John was not there, was he?

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.

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!

Answer a tag question according to the truth of the situation. Your answer reflects the real facts, not
(necessarily) the question.

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

correct
tag question answer notes

Snow is white, isn't it? Yes (it is). Answer is same in But notice change
both cases - because of stress when answerer does
snow is white! not agree with questioner.

Snow isn't white, is it? Yes it is!

Snow is black, isn't it? No it isn't! Answer is same in

both cases - because
snow is not black!

Snow isn't black, is it? No (it isn't).

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.

Tag Question Special Cases

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
treated as negative statement positive tag

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?

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

Take a seat, won't you? polite invitation

 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

Same-way tag questions

Although the basic structure of tag questions is positive-negative or negative-positive, it is sometimes

possible to use a positive-positive or negative-negative structure. We use same-way tag questions to
express interest, surprise, anger etc, and not to make real questions.

Look at these positive-positive tag questions:

 So you're having a baby, are you? That's wonderful!

 She wants to marry him, does she? Some chance!
 So you think that's funny, do you? Think again.

Negative-negative tag questions usually sound rather hostile:

 So you don't like my looks, don't you? (British English)

Asking for information or help

Notice that we often use tag questions to ask for information or help, starting with a negative
statement. This is quite a friendly/polite way of making a request. For example, instead of saying
"Where is the police station?" (not very polite), or "Do you know where the police station is?" (slightly
more polite), we could say: "You wouldn't know where the police station is, would you?" Here are
some more examples:

 You don't know of any good jobs, do you?

 You couldn't help me with my homework, could you?
 You haven't got $10 to lend me, have you?

Some more special cases

 example notes

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 use first auxiliary

I?

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)

Practice
1. You’re Russian, ___________?

2. The capital of Mongolia is Ulan Bator, _________?

3. You’ve done a lot of travelling, ___________?

4. You speak Farsi, _________?

5. Let’s play a trick on him, _________?

6. Oh, shut up, _________!

7. You wouldn’t hurt me, ___________?

8. Don’t be too upset about it, ________?

9. Let’s go to the pub tonight, _________?

10. You couldn’t lend me a fiver, __________?

11. There’ll be lots to see in Sicily, __________?

12. You can’t smoke at ‘Rose of York’, __________?

13. Say something to me in Greek, _________?

14. There isn’t any smog in the Highlands of Scotland, ________?

15. Your father works in Canada, ___________?

16. You met your husband in Canada, __________?

17. Help me with these bags, _________?

18. Shakespeare was born in Stratford-Upon-Avon, _________?

19. You haven’t broken that as well, __________?

20. There aren’t any theatres in Saudi Arabia, __________?

21. Sit down a moment, ________?

22. Look after this for a moment, _________?

23. You couldn’t help me with my homework, __________?

24. There won’t be too many people at the party, __________?

25. She looks really great, __________?

26. Your father doesn’t drink whisky, _________?

27. You haven’t got a dog, ________?

28. I’m a teacher, ___________?

29. There isn’t any soccer violence in your country, __________?

30. He’s got a very peculiar voice, __________?

31. Oh, shut the door, _________?

32. Soho isn’t a very nice area, ________?

33. You haven’t got a pen by any chance, _________?

34. Let’s take a break, _________?

35.You don’t like football, ________?

36. They’re not exactly slim, _________?

37. Your brother can’t drive, _________?

38. She’s never loved her parents, ________?

39. It’s extremely cold in Siberia in the winter, ________?

40. She’s going to have a baby soon, ________?

41. Let’s meet at 8, ________?

42. Some people are really crazy, _________?

43. We’re going to Bournemouth on Saturday, _________?

44. You’d like to win a fortune on the lottery, __________?

45. You've been working late again, ____________?

46. The night bus service is very convenient, ________?

47. I’ve been teaching for sixteen years, __________?

48. You must be careful when you go to Rio de Janeiro, __________?