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TAG QUESTIONS
Tag questions are small questions added to the end of a statement when seeking or expecting confirmation of
that statement.
They mean something like: "Am I right?" or "Do you agree?"
They are very common in spoken English rather than the written form.
The basic structure is:
Statement Tag Question Answer
Positive (affirmative), Negative tags? Positive answers.
[+] [-] [+]

Negative statements, Positive tags? Negative answers.
[-] [+] [-]
Note: The statement is like the answer (positive = positive, and vice versa)
The structural form of the question:

 Tag questions are made using an auxiliary verb (for example: be, do or have) and a subject pronoun (for
example: I, you, she). Negative question tags are usually contracted.
 If the main clause has an auxiliary verb in it, you use the same verb in the tag question. If there is no
auxiliary verb (in the present simple and past simple) use do / does / did.
 The statement and the tag are always separated by a comma.
Positive sentences, with negative tags:
Positive statement [+] Negative tag [-]

main subject
tense subject auxiliary auxiliary
verb pronoun
Present simple ‘be’ You are Saudi, aren’t you?
Present simple other verbs You like coffee, don’t you?
Present continuous You are coming, aren’t you?
Past simple ‘be’ Maria was there, wasn’t she?
Past simple other verbs He went to the party, didn’t he?
Past continuous You were waiting at the station, weren’t you?
Present perfect We have finished, haven’t we?
Present perfect continuous She has been studying a lot recently, hasn’t she?
Past perfect He had forgotten his wallet, hadn’t he?
Past perfect continuous We had been working, hadn’t we?
Future simple She will come at six, won’t she?
Future continuous They will be arriving soon, won’t they?
Future perfect They will have finished before nine, won’t they?
Future perfect continuous She will have been cooking all day, won’t she?
Emphatic ‘do’ You do like coffee, don’t you?
Have got Ann has got a bike, hasn’t she?
Modals He can help, can’t he?
Modals Tom must stay, mustn’t he?
Modals shouldn’
He should try harder, he?
t
1/
Modals We ought to wake Helen, oughtn’t we?
Negative sentences, with positive tags:
Negative statement [-] Positive tag [+]

subject
tense subject auxiliary main verb auxiliary
pronoun
Present simple ‘be’ You aren’t English, are you?
Pres. simple other verbs He doesn’t like coffee, does he?
The
Present continuous isn’t coming, is it?
bus
Past simple ‘be’ She wasn’t at home, was she?
Past simple other verbs They didn’t go out last week, did they?
Past continuous You weren’t sleeping, were you?
Present perfect She hasn’t eaten all the cake, has she?
Present perfect continuous He hasn’t been running in this weather, has he?
Past perfect We hadn’t been there before, had we?
Past perfect continuous You hadn’t been sleeping, had you?
Future simple They won’t be late, will they?
Future continuous He will be studying tonight, won’t he?
Future perfect She won’t have left before six, will she?
Future perfect continuous He won’t have been traveling all day, will he?
Modals She can’t speak Arabic, can she?
Modals We mustn’t tell her, must we?
Modals He shouldn’t drive so fast, should he?
Modals It oughtn’t to rain today, ought it?
NOTE
 The question tag after I am is aren’t I.
- I am the winner, aren't I?
 This/that (subject) becomes it in the tag. There remains unchanged.
- That isn’t Tom, is it?
- This will fit in your pocket, won’t it?
- There won’t be time, will there?
 Be careful of the contractions ‘s and ‘d
- He’s ready, isn’t he?
- He’s finished, hasn’t he?
- He’d seen it, hadn’t he?
- He’d like it, wouldn’t he?
 Non-negative tags are used after sentences containing negative words like never, no, none, nobody, hardly,
hardly any, scarcely and little.
- You never say what you’re thinking, do you?
- It’s no good, is it?
- It’s hardly rained at all this summer, has it?
- There’s little we can do about it, is there?
 When the subject is nobody/anybody/everybody etc., the pronoun they is used in the tag.
- Nobody liked the play, did they?
 Verb ‘to have’
Have in Present Perfect makes questions and negatives without do.
- You haven’t heard the news, have you?
After non-auxiliary have (possession, obligation), question tags with have and do are often both possible. Do is
common in American and modern British English.
2/
- Your father has a bad back, hasn’t/doesn’t he?
- We have plenty of time, don’t we?
- She had to leave, didn’t she?
Imperative
Imperative Tag
Give me a break, won’t you? Affirmative statement
Don’t walk on the grass, will you? Negative statement
Give me a hand, will you? Will/would/can/could you?: to
Open a window, would you? tell or ask people to do things
Shut up, can’t you? Can’t you expresses impatience
Let’s have a party, shall we? After let’s (in suggestions etc.)
Let’s not get into that now, shall we? we use shall we?
3/

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TAG QUESTIONS

The basic structure is:

Statement Tag Question Answer

Positive (affirmative), Negative tags? Positive answers.

[+] [-] [+]

The structural form of the question:

Positive sentences, with negative tags:

Positive statement [+] Negative tag [-]

Negative sentences, with positive tags:

Negative statement [-] Positive tag [+]

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