Learn English > English lessons and exercises > English test #131630: Question tags

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	> Similar tests: - Question tags - Imperative mood and its tags. - Question Tags - Surprise; Contradiction; Short answers. - Do: Insistence-Contradiction-Confirmation - Questions tags - Infinitive implied by its particle. - Tags: surprise and contradiction.
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Question tags - English lesson

Question Tags

Question tags are short questions added at the end of a sentence. They are used to:

check information,
ask for confirmation,
keep a conversation going.

1. Positive sentence → Negative question tag

If the sentence is positive, the question tag is negative.

Examples:

She is happy, isn't she?
Tom was late, wasn't he?
They can swim, can't they?
You have finished, haven't you?

2. Negative sentence → Positive question tag

If the sentence is negative, the question tag is positive.

Examples:

She isn't tired, is she?
They don't live here, do they?
He can't drive, can he?
We haven't finished, have we?

3. Use the same auxiliary verb

The question tag always uses the same auxiliary verb as the main sentence.

Sentence Question tag
She is here isn't she?
They were late weren't they?
He has finished hasn't he?
We can swim can't we?
You will come won't you?

4. If there is no auxiliary...

Use do, does, or did.

Examples:

She likes music, doesn't she?
They play football, don't they?
Tom visited Paris, didn't he?

5. Use the correct pronoun

Replace the subject with the appropriate pronoun.

Examples:

Tom is here, isn't he?
Mary likes chocolate, doesn't she?
The children are outside, aren't they?
Your parents are coming, aren't they?

6. Intonation
Use falling intonation when you expect the listener to agree.

It's a beautiful day, isn't it?

Use rising intonation when you are genuinely asking for confirmation.

You haven't seen my keys, have you?

Remember!
Positive sentence → negative tag
Negative sentence → positive tag
Keep the same auxiliary verb
If there is no auxiliary, use do / does / did
Use the correct pronoun
Examples
She likes music, doesn't she?
We can leave now, can't we?
They aren't ready, are they?
He finished the work, didn't he?
Mary has arrived, hasn't she?

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1. She likes music, ?

2. We can swim, ?

3. He is your friend, ?

4. They don't live here, ?

5. Mary isn't at home, ?

6. He can't drive, ?

7. Tom and Anna are married, ?

8. It is cold today, ?

9. He plays football, ?

10. You don't have a car, ?

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