ge11-5.7· Unit 5: Adjectives, Adverbs & Clauses· ~12 min

Question tags and short answers

Forming tags with the right auxiliary and polarity, plus So/Neither + auxiliary and short answers.

A question tag is a short question added to the end of a statement to check information or invite agreement, like 'isn't it?' or 'don't they?'. The basic rule is reversed polarity: a positive statement takes a negative tag and a negative statement takes a positive tag ('You are coming, aren't you?'; 'She doesn't drive, does she?'). The tag repeats the auxiliary of the main verb, or uses do/does/did if there is no auxiliary, and always ends with a pronoun. A few cases must be memorised: 'I am' takes 'aren't I?'; an imperative usually takes 'will you?'; 'Let's' takes 'shall we?'; words like never, nobody, hardly make the statement negative, so the tag is positive. Closely related are short answers, which avoid repeating the whole verb ('Yes, I do'; 'No, she isn't'), and the agreement structures 'So + auxiliary + subject' (for positive agreement) and 'Neither/Nor + auxiliary + subject' (for negative agreement): 'I like tea.' — 'So do I.' For example: 'You haven't finished yet, have you?' — 'No, I haven't.'

Key terms

Question tag — A short question added to the end of a statement to check information or invite agreement, such as 'isn't it?' or 'don't they?'.
Reversed polarity — The rule that a positive statement takes a negative tag and a negative statement takes a positive tag: 'You are coming, aren't you?'; 'She doesn't drive, does she?'.
Auxiliary / operator — The helping verb or modal (be, do, have, can, will, would, etc.) that the tag copies; if the statement has none, the tag uses do/does/did.
Short answer — A reply that avoids repeating the whole verb by using only subject + auxiliary, e.g. 'Yes, I do.' or 'No, she isn't.'.
So / Neither agreement — Agreement structures that invert auxiliary and subject: 'So + auxiliary + subject' for positive agreement ('So do I'), 'Neither/Nor + auxiliary + subject' for negative agreement ('Neither do I').
Negative-meaning words — Words like never, nobody, nothing, hardly, seldom, few that make a statement negative in meaning, so the tag becomes positive: 'She never calls, does she?'.
Tag rules: forming the correct question tag
StatementTagExample
Positive statementNegative tagIt is cold today, isn't it?
Negative statementPositive tagHe can't swim, can he?
I am ...aren't I?I am next in the queue, aren't I?
Imperativewill you?Close the window, will you?
Let's ...shall we?Let's go for a walk, shall we?
Negative word (never, nobody)Positive tagShe never arrives on time, does she?
Short answers: matching the auxiliary
QuestionShort answerExample
Do you ...?Yes, I do. / No, I don't.'Do you speak French?' — 'Yes, I do.'
Is she ...?Yes, she is. / No, she isn't.'Is she at home?' — 'No, she isn't.'
Have you ...?Yes, I have. / No, I haven't.'Have you seen this film?' — 'No, I haven't.'
Can he ...?Yes, he can. / No, he can't.'Can your brother play the guitar?' — 'Yes, he can.'
✎Adding the correct tag: 'They have finished, ___'
  1. 1Find the auxiliary: The statement uses 'have' (present perfect), so the tag copies 'have', not 'do'.
  2. 2Reverse the polarity: The statement is positive, so the tag must be negative: haven't.
  3. 3Match the pronoun: The subject is 'they', so the tag ends with the subject pronoun 'they', not 'them'.
  4. 4Answer: They have finished, haven't they?
✎Giving a short answer: 'Have you seen this film?' — 'No, ___'
  1. 1Identify the auxiliary: The question uses 'have' (present perfect), so the answer must use 'have', not 'do' or 'did'.
  2. 2Choose the polarity: The answer is 'No', so make the auxiliary negative: haven't.
  3. 3Keep the subject pronoun: Use only subject + auxiliary; do not repeat the main verb 'seen'.
  4. 4Answer: No, I haven't.
🚫Common mistake

Flip the polarity. A positive statement needs a NEGATIVE tag and a negative statement needs a POSITIVE tag: 'You are coming, aren't you?' (not 'are you?'); 'She doesn't drive, does she?' (not 'doesn't she?').

🚫Common mistake

The tag must copy the SAME auxiliary or modal as the statement. 'He can't swim, can he?' uses 'can' (not 'does'); 'They have finished, haven't they?' uses 'have' (not 'do').

🚫Common mistake

The tag pronoun must match the subject and be a subject pronoun: 'they' not 'them', 'he' not 'Tom', 'it' for 'this'. With everyone/someone/nobody use 'they'.

💡Note

Short answers and So/Neither agreements use the AUXILIARY, not the main verb. 'Do you speak French?' — 'Yes, I do.' (not 'I speak.'); 'I like pizza.' — 'So do I.' (not 'So am I.').

Rules

  1. 1Reverse the polarity: positive statement → negative tag, negative statement → positive tag ('It's cold, isn't it?'; 'He can't swim, can he?').
  2. 2The tag copies the auxiliary or modal of the statement, or uses do/does/did if there is none, and ends with a pronoun subject.
  3. 3Memorise the exceptions: 'I am...' → 'aren't I?'; imperative → 'will you?'; 'Let's...' → 'shall we?'.
  4. 4Negative words (never, no one, nothing, hardly, seldom) make the sentence negative, so use a POSITIVE tag: 'She never calls, does she?'
  5. 5Agree with 'So + auxiliary + subject' (positive: 'So am I') and 'Neither/Nor + auxiliary + subject' (negative: 'Neither do I').

Practice

15 easy · 15 medium · 15 hard

10 random questions per test

EasyMediumHardMixed