Using Tag Questions

She's very beautiful, isn't she?

The baby doesn't want to eat her food, does she?

She's done something really interesting to her hair, hasn't she?

TAG QUESTIONS A tag question is a question added at the end of a sentence. Speakers use it to make sure their information is correct. October 7th. 2006

What is a tag question? A tag question is a sentence with a question phrase connected at the end. Example: It’s windy today, isn’t it? Sentence part Tag

Tag questions have two purposes: To clarify information (the speaker expects an answer) Example: We have a test tomorrow, don’t we? Mr. Smith is coming to the meeting, isn’t he? I’m permitted to park here, aren’t I?

Tag questions have two purposes: To agree with someone (the speaker does not expect an answer) Example: You’re falling asleep, aren’t you? The party was a lot of fun, wasn’t it? I didn’t win the lottery, did I?

Forming Tag Questions

Identify the verb in the sentence. Step 1: Identify the verb in the sentence. Sergio likes to eat at buffets, ______ __? verb

Sergio likes to eat at buffets, _____ ___? Step 2: Identify the type of verb. (Is it the verb “to be”, an auxiliary verb, or the main verb?) Sergio likes to eat at buffets, _____ ___? Main verb

Identify the tense of verb. Step 3: Identify the tense of verb. (Is it in present or past tense?) Sergio likes to eat at buffets, ______ ___? Present tense

Sergio likes to eat at buffets , _ _ ____? Step 4: If in present tense, determine if 1st or 3rd person. If in past tense, use auxiliary “to be” or “do” in past. Sergio likes to eat at buffets , _ _ ____? Use the auxiliary verb “does”. Third person

Sergio likes to eat at buffets, __________? Step 5: Is the verb affirmative or negative? Sergio likes to eat at buffets, __________? Write in the opposite. doesn’t Affirmative

Sergio likes to eat at buffets, doesn’t ? Step 6: Add the pronoun at the end. Sergio likes to eat at buffets, doesn’t ? he Noun

Overview Step 1: Identify the verb in the sentence. Step 2: Identify the type of verb. Step 3: Identify the tense. Step 4: If in present tense, determine if 1st or 3rd person. If in past tense, use auxiliary “to be” or “do” in past. Step 5: Affirmative or negative? Step 6: Add pronoun.

Affirmative sentence + negative tag Mary is here, isn’t she? They have left, haven’t they?

1. She works for a big company, ____ _? 2. The movie started at 8:00, _____ ___? 3. This is a good apple, ____ _____? 4. You've eaten breakfast, _____ ____? 5. The students are going to take a test today, ____ ____? 6. He'll be at the party, ______ ___? 7. Your car is working now, ______ ____? 8. John has some money, _______ _____? 9. You made some coffee, ______ ____? 10. They've done that before, _____ ___?

She works for a big company,________? doesn’t she? 2. The movie started at 8:00,_____ ___? didn’t it? 3. This is a good apple, ____ _____? isn’t it? 4. You've eaten breakfast, _____ ____? haven’t you? 5. The students are going to take a test today, ____ ____? aren’t they? 6.

6. He'll be at the party, ______ ___? won’t he? 7. Your car is working now, ______ ____? isn’t it? 8. John has some money, _______ _____? doesn’t he? 9. You made some coffee, ______ ____? didn’t you? 10. They've done that before, _____ ___? haven’t they?

Negative sentence + affirmative tag Edy can’t sing, can he? You don’t like tea, do you?

1. You don't have to work today, ___ ___? 2. She won't get here on time, _____ __? 3. Your dog hasn't had puppies, ____ ____? 4. That wasn't a very good movie, _____ __? 5. The computer isn't on, _____ ____? 6. Tracy and Bill are getting back together, ___ ____? 7. I'm not late, _____ ____? 8. The alarm didn't go off, _____ _____? 9. He can't move any heavy furniture, _ __? 10. It doesn't really matter, ____ ___?

Let’s Practice wasn’t it Lunch was delicious, ? Spring break is next week, ______? Class finished quickly, _________? isn’t it didn’t it

You’ve called the movers, They’re coming tomorrow, This isn’t going to be cheap, You haven’t finished packing, We don’t need any more boxes, Pablo is going to help us, We can put some things in storage, Jack isn’t buying our bookcases, We need to disconnect the phone, The movers aren’t packing the books for us, We can’t turn off the electricity yet, Moving is hard, can we? do we? is he? isn’t it? aren’t they? have you? isn’t he? is it? haven’t you? don’t we? can’t we? are they?

Important Notes In the present tense, if the subject is "I", the auxiliary changes to are or aren't. I'm sitting next to you, aren't I?

With let's, the tag question is shall we. Let's go to the beach, shall we?

With an imperative, the tag question is will you. Close the window, will you?

We use a positive tag question after a sentence containing a negative word such as never, hardly, nobody. Nobody lives in this house, do they? You've never liked me, have you?

When the subject is nothing, we use it in the tag question. Nothing bad happened, did it?

When the subject is nobody, somebody, everybody, no one, someone, or everyone, we use they in the tag question. Nobody asked for me, did they?

If the main verb in the sentence is have (not an auxiliary verb), it is more common to use do in the question tag. You have a Ferrari, don't you?

With used to, we use didn't in the tag question. You used to work here, didn't you?

We can use positive question tags after positive sentences to express a reaction such as surprise or interest. You're moving to Brazil, are you?

But you don't really love her, do you? This will work, won't it? 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?

1. You should pay your credit card bill, ____ ____? 2. They have to drive to Chicago next week, __ __? 3. Those carrots aren't very good, ____ ______? 4. You love me, ___ ____? 5. You can't play the piano, ___ ____? 6. She has to work this evening, ____ ___? 7. She had to work yesterday too, ____ ___? 8. Rob will go fishing with us this weekend, __ ___? 9. You were able to find it on the internet, __ __? 10. This quiz wasn't too hard, _____ ____?

You should pay your credit card bill, ____ ____? shouldn’t you? 2. They have to drive to Chicago next week, __ __? don’t they? 3. Those carrots aren't very good, ____ ______? are they? 4. You love me, ___ ____? don’t you? 5. You can't play the piano, ___ ____? can you? 6.

6. She has to work this evening, ____ ___? doesn’t she? 7. She had to work yesterday too, ____ ___? didn’t she? 8. Rob will go fishing with us this weekend, __ ___? won’t he? 9. You were able to find it on the internet, __ __? weren’t you? 10. This quiz wasn't too hard, _____ ____? was it?