Question Tags

A tag question (or question tag) is a short grammatical structure added to the end of a statement to turn it into a question. The basic rule is to use an opposite polarity: if the main clause is positive, the tag is negative, and if the main clause is negative, the tag is positive. They are primarily used in conversation to check information or seek agreement.

To form a tag question, you use the auxiliary verb or modal verb from the main clause combined with a subject pronoun. If the main clause does not contain an auxiliary verb (e.g., in Simple Present or Simple Past), you must use do, does, or did in the tag (e.g., You like coffee, don't you?). Note that the pronoun in the tag must always match the subject of the main clause in gender, number, and person.

Learners often make mistakes by using a generic tag like isn't it? for everything (e.g., saying You study English, isn't it? instead of don't you?). Another common error is failing to flip the polarity of the statement, resulting in positive-positive tags which have a completely different tone. Also remember the irregular tag for I am, which is aren't I (e.g., I am right, aren't I?).