Tag question: isn’t it

1. Tag Question, isn’t it?
By: Hussain Al-ghawi

2. What is Tag Questions
A tag question is a special construction in English.
It is a statement followed by a mini-question.
We use tag questions to ask for confirmation. They mean something like: "Is that right?" or "Do
you agree?"
They are very common in English

3. Tag questions with be, have, or modal
Positive statement Negative tag answer
Statement with be, Have, or
Modal
Be, have, or modal +
Not
Subject Affirmative Negative
I’m right, Aren’t I ? Yes, you are No, you aren’t
He was tried, Wasn’t He? Yes, he was No, he wasn’t
We have finished, Haven’t We? Yes, you have No, you haven’t
They should come, Shouldn’t They? Yes, they
should
No, they
shouldn’t

4. Continue
Positive statement Negative tag answer
Statement with be, Have, or
Modal
Be, have, or modal Subject Affirmative Negative
I’m not right, am I ? Yes, you are No, you aren’t
He wasn’t tried, Was He? Yes, he was No, he wasn’t
We haven’t finished, Have We? Yes, you have No, you haven’t
They shouldn’t come, Should They? Yes, they
should
No, they
shouldn’t

5. Tag Questions with Do
Positive statement Negative tag answer
Simple present or past
statement
Do/does + Not Subject Affirmative Negative
I play badly, Don’t I? Yes, you do. No, you don’t.
It costs a lot, Doesn’t It? Yes, it does. No, it doesn’t.
You live nearby, Don’t You? Yes, we do. No, we don’t.
They sang well, Don’t They? Yes, they did. No, they didn’t.

6. Continue
Negative statement Positive tag answer
Statement with be, Have, or
Modal
Do/does Subject Affirmative Negative
I don’t play badly, Do I? Yes, you are No, you aren’t
It doesn’t cost a lot, Does It? Yes, he was No, he wasn’t
They didn’t sang well, Did They? Yes, they
should
No, they
shouldn’t

7. Note:
 After simple present or past statement with all verbs except be, use the correct form of do in
the tag.
You live nearby, don’t you? It doesn’t cost a lot, does it?
They sang well, didn’t they? They didn’t sing well, did they?
 Answer tag questions with do in the same way you answer YES/NO questions with do.
A. It cost a lot, doesn’t it? B. They didn’t sing well, did they?
B: yes, it does. Or No, it doesn’t B. yes, they did. OR No, they didn’t.

8. Subject Pronouns In Tag Questions
Statement Tag
He seems shy, Doesn’t he?
John seems shy Doesn’t he?
This is fun, Isn’t it?
These are Ana’s, Aren’t they?
Those are mine, Aren’t they?
There’s more hot water Isn’t there?

9. Note:
• When a personal pronoun is used in the statement, it is always repeated in the tag.
• When a noun is used in the statement, use the appropriate pronoun in the tag.
Gina is nice, isn’t she? His car is really old, isn’t it?
• When this or that is used in the statement, substitute it in the tag.
• When these or those is used in the statement, substitute they in the tag.
• When there is used in the statement, substitute there in the tag

10. Meaning and use notes
1. Tag questions VS. Yes/No Questions
Tag questions are different from Yes/No questions
Use a tag question when you have a previous idea or opinion about something and want to
confirm.
 Use Yes/No question when you have no previous idea or opinion
 tag questions are more common in spoken English than in writing English.

11. 2. Intonation patterns and certainty
2 A. use tag question with falling intonation if you are very certain of your pervious idea or
opinion.
Use tag question with rising intonation if you are less certain.
Falling intonation Rising intonation
He makes a lot money, doesn’t he? He makes a lot money, doesn’t he?
(I’m sure he makes a lot of money.) (I think he makes a lot of money, but not sure.)

12. Continue
2 B. we often use tag questions with rising intonation to express doubt or surprise.
We also use them to make polite requests with modals, especially when we’re not sure that the
listener will agree to our request.
Expressing doubt or surprise
That box won’t fit in the trunk, will it?
Making a polite request
You couldn’t lend me five dollars, could you?

13. Continue
2 C. We often use tag question with falling intonation information we are already sure of, or to
ask for agreement.
Confirming information
we’ve met before, haven’t we?
Asking for agreement
We haven’t had rain for a long time, have we?

14. Negative words in affirmative statements
3. an affirmative statement that uses a negative adverb of frequency (such as rarely, hardly,
seldom, and never) or a word with no (such as nobody, nowhere, and nothing) has a negative
meaning. It requires an affirmative tag.
You never go to class, do you?
There’s nobody here, is there?