A tag question is a short attached question added at the end of a sentence.
Speakers use tag questions chiefly to make sure their information is correct or to seek agreement.*
Examples
-
Jack can come, can't he?
- Fred can't come, can he?
Auxiliaries and tag questions :
Auxiliaries, including the modals, are frequently used
in tag questions. The tag repeats the auxiliary used in the sentence. If there
is no auxiliary in the main sentence, do
is used in the tag for the simple present and did for the simple past. Some auxiliaries; however, do not
make good tag. If the main statement is affirmative, then the tag must be
negative; if the main statement is negative , then the tag must be affirmative.
Examples :
- Hank runs every day, doesn't
he?
-
John ran ten miles yesterday, didn't he?
-
Bill won't graduate this year, will he?
-
Betty can't go with us, can she?
-
You surely could do better, couldn't you?
-
We should leave for the airport, shouldn't we?
-
John isn't about to graduate, is he?
-
Some of them have been notified, haven't they?
-
Some houses will be torn down, won't they?
-
She hasn't been married before, has she?
-
When have to is used, the tag
becomes a form of do.
Examples :-
Mark and Willie don't have to move, do they?
-
Mary had to see a doctor, didn't she?
-
We don't have to be there by
-
The report has to be read by tomorrow; doesn't it?
A tag question also conveys
certain expectation on the part of the speaker. A tag in the affirmative
conveys the expectation of a negative answer; a tag in the negative conveys the
expectation of an affirmative answer.
AFFIRMATIVE SENTENCE Mary is here, You like tea, They have left, |
NEGATIVE TAG isn’t she? don’t you? haven’t they? |
AFFIRMATIVE
ANSWER Yes, she is. Yes, I
do. Yes, they
have. |
NEGATIVE SENTENCE Mary isn’t
here, You don’t
like tea, They haven’t
left, |
AFFIRMATIVE
TAG is
she? do
you? have
they? |
NEGATIVE
ANSWER No, she
isn’t. No, I
don’t. No, they
haven’t. |
NOTICE THAT
- The
tag pronoun for this/that = it.
-
This/That isn't your coat, is it?
- These/Those aren't
ours, are they?
1) In
sentences with there + be, there is used in the tag.
- There aren't any empty places,
are there?
2) Personal pronouns
are used to refer to indefinite pronouns. They is
usually used in a tag to refer to: everyone, everybody, someone, somebody, no one, and nobody.
- Everyone
took the test, didn't they?
3) Sentences
with negative words take affirmative tags Nothing is wrong, is it?
- Nobody
called on the phone, did they?
- You’ve
never been here, have you?
4)
A tag question may be spoken :
- The car
was repaired , wasn't it?
-
You are cold ;aren't you?