Tag questions are a very common grammar topic used in everyday English communication. Using Tag questions fluently will help you improve your English communication ability as well as get closer to the goal of communicating in English like a native speaker.
A tag question is a special structure in English, consisting of a clause followed by a short question, separated by a comma.
For example:
Function: We use tag questions to confirm whether information is true or false. In English, tag questions mean something like: is that right?, do you agree?
Structure: The part of the clause before the comma, also known as the main clause, can be in both affirmative and negative forms. By adding an interrogative "tail" after that clause, we already have a tag question.
Note:
– The question tag is always abbreviated.
– If the questioner's voice drops at the end of the question, they really don't want to ask but are expecting the listener to agree with what they said.
– If the questioner raises his voice in the tag question, it means the speaker wants to know information from the listener.
- Ask to get information
With this usage, we will consider the tag question as an interrogative sentence. At that time, we raise our voice at the end of the sentence. The answer is similar to a normal question, we will answer Yes/No but with an additional clause containing information.
For example:
He went to the party last night, didn’t he?
Yes, he went to the party last night.
Or
No, he did not go to the party last night.
This time, we simply ask a question to wait for the listener to agree with our opinion, then we will lower our voice at the end of the sentence. The answer is Yes/No corresponds to the main clause.
For example:
The picture is so beautiful, isn’t it?
Yes, it is.
The bus isn’t coming, is it?
No, it isn’t
The first rule when building tag questions is: The form of the tag is always the opposite of the main clause.
As follows:
Main clause |
Final question part |
Affirmative clause |
Negative |
Snow is white, |
isn’t it? |
Negative clause |
Confirm |
You don’t like me, |
do you? |
General formula: S + V + O, auxiliary verb + subject pronoun of S?
For example:
He’s Italian, isn’t he? – auxiliary verb is, the infinitive of he is he
Your sister has many children, doesn’t she? – auxiliary verb does, your sister's subject pronoun is she.
This structure applies to the present simple and present continuous tenses.
This structure applies to the past simple and past continuous tenses.
Affirmative clause, wasn't/ weren't + S? |
Negative clause, was/were + S? |
|
VerbTo be |
– We were young, weren’t we? – He was studying at 7pm yesterday, wasn’t he? |
– I wasn’t wrong, was I? – They weren’t sleeping at that time, were they? |
Regular verbs |
Affirmative clause, didn't + S? – We finished our project, didn’t we? – John ate spaghetti, did he? |
Negative clause, did + S? – I didn’t know that, did I?– You didn’t trust me, did you? |
Affirmative clause, won't + S? |
Negative clause, will + S? |
We will attend the game, won’t we? |
You won’t go to Ho Chi Minh, will you? |
Affirmative clause, haven't/hasn't/hadn't + S? |
Negative clause, have/has/had + S? |
– You have studied English for 10 years, haven’t you? – He has lived here since 1999, hasn’t he? – She had lived in London before moving to Rome, hadn’t she? |
– Her father hasn’t been to France, has he? – I hadn’t finished my lunch before going to school, had I? |
Modal verbs (modal verbs) là các từ: should, can, could, may, might, must, have to.
Note: have to still needs to use the auxiliary verb, must when indicating necessity we use the tag question needn't.
Affirmative clause, modal V + not + S? |
Negative clause, modal V + S? |
– He should play football, shouldn’t he? – You have to go out for a while, don’t you?– John must stay at home, needn’t he? |
– She cannot swim, can she? – They must not come late, must they? |
ATTENTION:
– In tag questions we always use subject pronouns (I, he, it, they,..) to ask questions.
– DO NOT use object pronouns (me, you, him, her, them, us).
– DO NOT use your own name (wasn't Jack is wrong).
In the examples above, you have probably seen some tag questions that do not follow a fixed structure. It can be seen for example that we use “aren't I” and not “am not I”. Those are special cases of tag question structure. There are quite a few, are you ready to learn with Step Up?
Special tag question structure
Do not use “am not I” but use “aren't I” for tag questions.
For example:
I am wrong, aren’t I?
I am your good friend, aren’t I?
- When “must” indicates necessity in affirmative form, we use “needn't” for tag questions.
For example:
- When “must” indicates a prohibition in the negative form must not, we use must for tag questions.
For example:
- When "must" indicates a prediction in the present, we rely on the verb following "must" to choose the appropriate verb.
For example:
- When “must” indicates a prediction in the past (in the formula “must + have + V3/ed), we use have/has for tag questions.
For example:
With the modal verb “have/ has/ had to”, we use the auxiliary verb “do/ does/ did” for tag questions.
For example:
When "Let” placed at the beginning of the sentence, based on the meaning that “let” convey in a sentence to choose the right verb.
- “Let’s” In a suggestion sentence, inviting someone to do something with us, we use “shall we?” for tag question.
For example:
- “Let” in the sentence asking for permission to let someone do something, we use “will you?” for tag question.
For example:
- "Let" in a sentence asking to help others (let me), we use "may I?"
For example:
An imperative sentence is a sentence used to command and express the desire for someone to follow your advice.
- To express an invitation, we use "won't you" for tag questions.
For example:
- To express a request, we use "will you" for the tag question.
For example:
- To express orders, we use “can/ could/ would you” for tag questions.
For example:
- For negative imperative sentences, only use “will you” for tag questions.
For example:
When the subject of the sentence is an indefinite pronoun that refers to a person such as: Anyone, anybody, no one, nobody, nobody, everybody, everyone, somebody, someone, then we use the pronoun "they" as the subject in the tag question.
For example:
However, if the subject is a negative pronoun such as no one, nobody, none, the tag question will be in the affirmative form.
For example:
When the subject of the sentence is an indefinite pronoun denoting things such as: Nothing, something, everything, we use the pronoun "it" as the subject in the tag question.
For example:
Declarative sentences containing negative words such as: Neither, none, no one, nobody, nothing, scarcely, barely, hardly, hardly ever, rarely, the tag question part will be affirmative.
For example:
When the main clause is one exclamation, we take the noun in the sentence and change it to a subject pronoun, and at the same time use the auxiliary verb in front: is, are, am.
For example:
When the main subject in the main clause is “one”, in tag questions use “you” or “one”.
For example:
When clause of use structure used to to go To describe habits and actions that happened in the past, we consider "used to" to be a verb conjugated in the past tense. Therefore, the corresponding tag question only needs to borrow the auxiliary verb "did".
For example:
When clause of use structure had better means to advise someone, we borrow the auxiliary verb “had” to form a tag question.
For example:
When clause of use structure would rather means what you want to do, we borrow the auxiliary verb “would” to form a tag question.
For example:
When the sentence has the following structure:
I + think/ believe/ suppose/ figure/ assume/ fancy/ imagine/ reckon/ expect/ see (main clause) + subordinate clause
We use the verb in subordination to identify auxiliary verbs for tag questions.
For example:
Note:
- If the main clause contains the word NOT, the negation still affects the subordinate clause. So the tag question must be in the opposite form, which is affirmative.
For example:
- Same structure pattern, but if the subject is not "I", then use the main verb in the sentence (think/ believe/ suppose/...) to determine the auxiliary verb for the tag question.
For example:
When the main clause is used wish sentence wish To express wishes, we use “may” for tag questions.
For example:
When the subject is a noun clause, we use “it” for tag questions.
For example:
This/ that is replaced by it for tag questions.
For example: