In most of the competitive examinations we can see one or two questions related to question tag or tag questions. So it is important to learn and how to construct tag questions to get more mark in the examinations.
Tag questions are often used in our daily conversations to get confirmation or to seek a clarifications. To convey meaning properly we have to learn question tags clearly.
What are tag questions or question tags ?
Tag questions, also known as question tags, are short questions added to the end of statements. Its purpose is to confirm information, seek agreement, or invite a response from the listener. Question tags are typically formed by using an auxiliary verb (eg. am, is, was, were, are, should, can, etc.) followed by a subject pronoun (eg. he, she, you, they, it, etc.).
Some simple examples to tag questions:
- He is going to Mumbai, isn’t he ?
- She was not writing a letter yesterday noon, was she?
from the given examples ‘is’ and ‘was’ are auxiliary verbs and ‘he’ and ‘she’ are subjct pronoun.
The structure of a question tag or tag qustions is usually:
- In negative question tag : auxiliary verb +not (‘nt) subject pronoun
- In positive question tag : auxiliary verb + subject pronoun
Some rules we must keep in mind while making question tag or tag questions:
- An affirmative sentence takes negative question tag
- A negative sentence takes postive question tag
- Always subject pronoun is used in the tag question
- Sentence and question tag will be in the same tense form
- Contracted form of the auxiliary verbs are used in the negative tags
Here are some examples for tag questions : Learn more through examples
Positive Statement with Negative Tag Questions and Negative Statement with Postive Tag Questions:
- You’re coming to the party, aren’t you?” (positive statement takes negative tag)
- Tom is a good driver, isn’t he? (positive statement takes negative tag)
- She wasn’t a good singer, was she? (Negative statement takes positive tag)
- She plays football well, doesn’t she? (positive statement takes negative tag)
Sentence beginning with ‘let us’ or ‘let’s’ use ‘shall we’ as its question tag
- Let us go for a walk, shall we?
- Let’s go for a nice movie, shall we?
- Let’s play, shall we?
In Imperative sentences ‘will’ or ‘won’t’ use to form its tag question
- Open the door, won’t you?
- please do your home work daily, Will you?
- Please come here, will you?
- Consult a doctor, won’t you?
The ‘Can’t you’ question tag can be used if an imperative sentence is in rude manner or it denotes madness
- Keep calm, can’t you?
- Use your mobile phone, can’t you?
- Mind your own buisiness, can’t you?
If there is no a helping verb in the sentence do/does/did are used to form question tags
- she plays well, doesn’t she?
- John and his brother sang a song, didn’t they?
- Teachers prepare work sheets, don’t they?
- Manu doesn’t learn well, does he?
- Captain and his team do not follow instructions, do they?
- Arjun didn’t gave his pen to her, did he?
When a sentence contains a word with negative meaning (never, hardly, scarcely, seldom, no, no one , none, nothing etc.) the question tag will be positive
- No one can solve his problem, can they?
- She rarely goes to school, does she?
- No one passed in the examination, did they?
Execptions and more examples
- I am late, aren’t I ?
- I am right, aren’t I ?
- I am not late, am I ?
- I am not right, am I ?
- Wait a minute, can you?
Tag questions: more examples with answers
- Anil is a good student, isn’t he?
- Mary is not playing, is she?
- They didn’t give it to them? did they?
- Patric is from Ireland, isn’t he?
- I was wrong about him, was’nt I?
- Students were curious about their trip, weren’t they?
- Please open the window, will you?
- Please give me your note book , will you?
- Get out from here, won’t you?
- Show me your note book, won’t you?
- Let’s go for a ride, shall we?
- Let’s have a dinner, shall we?
- Let’s play badminton, shall we?
- Let’s browse, shall we?
- Ratna never talks to you like this, does she?
- No one can do it easily, can they?
- John talked him nothing, did he?
- Bravo! she won the match, didn’t she?
- Wow! It was a stunning game, wasn’t it?
- They run fast, don’t they?
- Some one made a mistake, didn’t they?
- she plays piano, does’nt she?
- she will go to Mumbai Next day, won’t she?
- Every one attended the function, didn’t they?
- They dare not talk so to the principal, dare they?
- She need not go to market, need she?
- I am very busy, aren’t I?
- I am not very busy, am I?
Now we have discussed tag questions or question tags in detail. Tag questions play an important role in english grammar. When we frame tag questions we should follow rules of the tag questions which we discussed above. We have given above more questions to practice according to the all rules of the tag questions. We know tag questions play an important role in the competitive examinations that is alteast one or two question tags could be seen in the questions papers from english grammar sections.
