Look at these examples to see how question tags are used.
You haven't seen this film, have you?
Your sister lives in Spain, doesn't she?
He can't drive, can he?
Try this exercise to test your grammar.
- Grammar test 1
Read the explanation to learn more.
Grammar explanation
We can add question tags like isn't it?, can you? or didn't they? to a statement to make it into a question. Question tags are more common in speaking than writing.
We often use question tags when we expect the listener to agree with our statement. In this case, when the statement is positive, we use a negative question tag.
She's a doctor, isn't she?
Yesterday was so much fun, wasn't it?
If the statement is negative, we use a positive question tag.
He isn't here, is he?
The trains are never on time, are they?
Nobody has called for me, have they?
If we are sure or almost sure that the listener will confirm that our statement is correct, we say the question tag with a falling intonation. If we are a bit less sure, we say the question tag with a rising intonation.
Formation
If there is an auxiliary verb in the statement, we use it to form the question tag.
I don't need to finish this today, do I?
James is working on that, isn't he?
Your parents have retired, haven't they?
The phone didn't ring, did it?
It was raining that day, wasn't it?
Your mum hadn't met him before, had she?
Sometimes there is no auxiliary verb already in the statement. For example, when:
... the verb in the statement is present simple or past simple and is positive. Here we use don't, doesn't or didn't:
Jenni eats cheese, doesn't she?
I said that already, didn't I?
... the verb in the statement is to be in the present simple or past simple. In this case we use to be to make the question tag:
The bus stop's over there, isn't it?
None of those customers were happy, were they?
... the verb in the statement is a modal verb. Here we use the modal verb to make the question tag:
They could hear me, couldn't they?
You won't tell anyone, will you?
If the main verb or auxiliary verb in the statement is am, the positive question tag is am I? but the negative question tag is usually aren't I?:
I'm never on time, am I?
I'm going to get an email with the details, aren't I?
Do this exercise to test your grammar again.
- Grammar test 2
May I ask a question? In the dialogue: "We've already made decision" - "So, l have no say in the matter, haven't I/don't I?" What is the right tag? Thanks.
Hello Elena.V.Bondar,
I'd use 'do I?' in this situation, though 'have I?' is also possible. Even though the phrase 'I have no say' is affirmative, it is negative in meaning and so the question tag should be affirmative.
'do I' follows 'I have' because we typically use the auxiliary verb 'do' to make questions or negatives with 'have'.
'have I' is possible because in some varieties of English, we can form a question with the verb 'have' through simple inversion of subject and verb form. This is much less common, though, so in general I'd recommend 'do I'.
All the best,
Kirk
LearnEnglish team
Hello.Could you help me with this tag question , please? It is said he is rich, isn't it? or isn't he?
Hi Lucy Lucy,
There are two options, depending on what you want to check.
However, the second option seems less likely, because the focus of the sentence seems to be more on "It is said ...". If you want to make a similar meaning using the tag "isn't he?", you could say something like: He's rich, isn't he? That's what people say.
I hope that helps.
Jonathan
LearnEnglish team
Hello Jonathan.Thanks for reply.That helps.
Could you please tell me the answer to this question? 1- you don't think they have the ability to do it,...................? a- do you. b- don't they. c- do they. d- do I.
Hello maxmax23,
The correct answer is (a) do you. The tag refers to 'You don't think...' so the pronoun required is 'you' and a positive tag is needed.
Please note that we generally focus on explanations and clarifications rather than just providing answers for tasks from elsewhere - if we did this consistently we'd end up doing our users' homework for them!
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Thank you very much for your help
Hello. Could you please tell me the correct answer?And also can you explain?
1.Let's go out for a walk,.........?
a.let we
b.shall we
2.I think he is from India,.....?
a.doesn't he
b.don't I
c.isn't he
Hi xadice,
For suggestions using let's, the right question tag is shall we? This reflects the meaning of let's (i.e., a suggestion), rather than the literal words.
For sentence 2, it should be isn't he?. There are two verbs in the sentence, I think and he is. This speaker probably wants to check or confirm the second one (he is from India), so the question tag should be based on that.
It's possible that the speaker wants to check/confirm the first one (I think), but it seems not very likely because it is the speaker's own opinion. There's no clear reason why the speaker wants to check/confirm that.
Jonathan
LearnEnglish team