Tag-questions

What is a tag-question?

A statement turned into a question

with the help of a “tag”
 You are a student, aren’t you?
 They weren’t teachers, were they?

tags
 The weather is nice today, isn’t it?
 Your friend had a dog once, didn’t he?
 You have read this book, haven’t you?
 Your sister will call us later, won’t she?
 They can help you, can’t they?
 She can’t do this task, can she?
 Tag-question parts

Tag questions have two parts:

positive and negative.
You have a new car, don‟t you?

Positive statement Negative tag

You don‟t have a new car, do you?

Negative statement Positive tag

 A. Tag-question structure

Tag is made of the auxiliary +

pronoun in question form.

The weather was nice yesterday, wasn‟t it ?

Subject Pronoun
Auxiliary Auxiliary
TASK + not
Study the following sentence. What is different?
Why?

The weather wasn‟t nice yesterday, was it ?

 B. Tag-question structure

A modal verb can be also used

instead of an auxiliary.

The weather can change easily, can‟t it ?

Subject Pronoun
Modal Modal+
TASK not
Study the following sentence. What is different?
Why?

The weather can‟t change easily, can it ?

 Remember!

Auxiliary and pronoun always

depend on subject and tense.

SUBJECT
SUBJECT TAG
This,
Friends,
that,
These, cats,
dog,
those,
everybody,
Helen,
trees,
Tom,
table,Helen
father,
You
somebody,We
sister,
Iwater,and
she
he
nobody, they
you
she
we
he
itI
everything
Tom, they
no one
 Remember!

Auxiliary and pronoun always

depend on subject and tense.

Verb „have‟
verb TAG
TAG
TENSE TAG
TAG
ininTENSE
Present
Past do,
to be (is, are, do,
are,
was,
have, does,
is,
were,
has,
can,Simple
Present
could, must, stay
same
had,
did,
the
doesn‟t,
will,
aren‟t,
don‟t,
won‟t
haven‟t,
wasn‟t,
Past
Present
Past
was,
Continuous
Future
Perfect
Simple
were
Perfect
Simple hadn‟t
didn‟t
same
forms
don‟t,
should,
Continuous
ought weren‟t
hasn‟t
doesn‟t
isn‟t
except
had„am‟)
have, has doesn‟t
 Irregular tags

The tag for I am is aren‟t I.

The tag for Let‟s is shall we.
Use will you? or won‟t you? after
an imperative.
I am a fool, aren‟t I?
Let‟s go to the cinema, shall we?
Sit down, will you?
Have a seat, won‟t you?
 Reply questions

One can use a short question to

reply to what someone says to
show interest, surprise or
uncertainty.
- I have never eaten spaghetti.
- Haven‟t you?

- We are leaving at 6.00.

- Are we?
 A. Practice

Choose the correct tag.

1. Jim got lost, did he/didn’t he?
2. You don’t know the answer, do you/don’t you?
3. The children were making a lot of noise, wasn’t
it/weren’t they?
4. Harry doesn’t feel well, isn’t it/does he?
5. George didn’t complain, did he/didn’t he?
6. Something has gone wrong, has it/hasn’t it?
7. You aren’t sitting here, isn’t it/are you?
8. You will read this, will you/won’t you?
9. Paul likes Jill, isn’t it/doesn’t he?
10. You’re waiting for Sue, isn’t it/aren’t you?
 B. Practice

Choose the correct tag for the statements

1. Ann catches the bus,
2. Jan is leaving in the morning,
3. Sally won’t be back,
4. Helen has left,
5. Kate finished the book,
6. Sue hasn’t got a bike,
7. Tina isn’t a French teacher,
8. Paula didn’t say a lot,
9. Mary was sitting next to you,
10. Pam doesn’t like classical
music,
 C. Practice

Write a tag for each question.

1. hasn’t he
Harry has been helping you, ________________?
2. do you
You don’t eat meat, _______________?
3. wasn’t he
Paul was sleeping, _______________?
4. didn‘t I
I missed a good film, _____________?
5. isn’t she
Jane is leaving in the morning, ____________?
6. aren’t we
We are going to win, ____________?
7. has he
Jack hasn't done his homework, ___________?
8. are you
You aren’t having dinner, ____________?
9. are they
David and Kate aren’t coming to the party, _________?
10. did she
Sue didn’t leave early, ____________?
 D. Practice

Add a reply question to each sentence.

1. Have we
We’ve got a test tomorrow. - ___________?
2. I don’t understand this sentence. - Don’t you
_________?
3. Did she
Fiona phoned me last night. - ___________?
4. Don’t you
I don’t like ice-cream. - ___________?
5. Is he
Tom is leaving tomorrow. - ____________?
6. Is there
There’s a policeman at the door. - __________?
7. Has she
Lisa has just had a baby. - ___________?
8. Haven’t you
I haven’t eaten Chinese food. - ___________?
9. Isn’t there
There isn’t any milk in the fridge. - __________?
10. Did you
I met David in France. ___________?
 E. Practice

Add a tag question to each sentence.

1. aren’t we
We’re nearly there, __________?
2. You haven’t got a spare pen, have you
__________?
3. aren’t you
You’re coming to my party, __________?
4. will you
You won’t be late, ____________?
5. isn’t he
Harry is 15, ____________?
6. don’t they
Kate and Pat live in Leeds, ____________?
7. do you
You don’t feel well, _____________?
8. don’t you
You like fish, ___________?
9. has he
Richard’s brought a new bike, ____________?
10. should I
I shouldn’t tell you this, ___________?
 F. Practice

Make a new sentence with a tag

question which has the same meaning
as the first sentence. Make any
necessary changes.

Study the example:

I‟m sure that Paul doesn‟t like football. –

Paul doesn’t like football, does he?

 F. Practice

1. I’m checking that you’ve got a sister. - You

__________________________________________?
2. I don’t think that you’ve done your homework! – You
__________________________________________?
3. I’m angry that you sat next to Ellen! – You
__________________________________________?
4. I’m surprised that the quests have arrived. – The quests
____________________________________?
5. I’m checking that your name is John. – Your name
__________________________________________?
6. I’m surprised to meet you and think your name might be
John. – Your name ________________________?
7. You’re certain that you didn’t leave your wallet on the desk.
– I __________________________________________?
 F. Practice

1. You’ve got a sister, haven’t you?

2. You haven’t done your homework, have you?
3. You sat next to Ellen, didn’t you?
4. The quests haven’t arrived, have they?
5. Your name is John, isn’t it?
6. Your name isn’t John, is it?
7. I didn’t leave my wallet on the desk, did I?
Well done!