'Question Tag' questions are familiar for all candidates, Kerala PSC conducted examinations must have one question from 'Tag Question'. So every one definitely study this simple English grammar. It is very easy to understand and quickly study all the rules with in this lesson. I divide this lesson in to different chapters because basic knowledge is very important.
![Question Tags]( "Question Tags")
Chapter #1Must study the basic English knowledge like model auxiliary verbs, pronouns and negative words for question tag.
If everyone want to study English grammar, please study the basic knowledge in the English grammar very well, unless no one can continue for further grammars. So the below given materials study well and repeat to read for the best result.
Auxiliary Verbs/Helping Verbs/Special Verbs
Total 24 Auxiliary verbs in English and they divided into two category. They are, Primary auxiliary verbs and modal auxiliary verbs.
Primary Auxiliary Verbs (11 Nos.)
Is, am, are, was, were, has, have, had, do, does, did.
Modal Auxiliary Verbs (13 Nos.)
Will, would, shall, should, can, could, may, might, must, need, dare, used to, ought to.
PronounsI, We, You, He, She, It, They.
Negative WordsNo, Not, Nil, Never, None, None of, Neither...nor, Nobody, Nowhere, Nothing, No one, Hardly, Scarcely, Rarely, Barely, Few, Little, Seldom... etc.
Chapter #2
How to find the answer from 'question tag' questions?
1. First find the auxiliary verb from the sentence.
2. If there is no auxiliary verb in the sentence, take it from the main verb. Example: if the verb is 'Dances', 'does' is the auxiliary verb.
| Verb | Form |
|---|
| go | do |
| goes | does |
| went | V2 |
| gone | V3 |
| going | ing |
3. If the sentence is positive(No negative word)add 'not' to the auxiliary verb (example: was+not=wasn't), If negative(Any negative word is present in the sentence it will be treated as negative sentence, otherwise it is positive sentence) does not add 'not'.
4. Next find the subjective pronoun from the given sentence and add after the auxiliary verb (Eg: isn't he?)
| Subject | Pronoun |
|---|
| Male | he |
| Female | she |
| Two or more persons | they |
| object/thing | it |
| you | you |
| we | we |
| I | I |
5. Add a question mark (?). Done !
Chapter #3
Question Tag Workout QuestionsNisha was my friend, wasn't she?Suresh has a pet dog, hasn't he?Raju and Smitha were not friends, were they?My mobile is very useful to me, isn't it?You can help me, can't you?He must have a dictionary, mustn't he?
Chapter #4 - Rules
Rule - 1:
[am + not = aren't]
[will + not = won't]
[Shall + not = shan't]
Examples:I am a candidate, aren't I?She will come today, won't she?I shall pass, shan't I?
Rule - 2
For a sentence begins with 'Let's' / 'Let us' give the tag "Shall we?"
Example:Let's sit here, shall we?Rule - 3
If the imperative sentence ( a sentence that begins with a verb) showing emergency action give the tag 'won't you?', otherwise (no emergency) give 'will you?'
Examples:Save the life of the child, won't you?Study well, will you?
Rule - 4
For a sentence that mentions an impatience, give the tag 'can't you?'
Example:Don't insult me, can't you?Rule - 5
A sentence's subject - pronoun conversion table given below,
| Subject/Begin with | Pronoun |
|---|
| no one | they |
| nobody | they |
| some one | they |
| somebody | they |
| everyone | they |
| everybody | they |
| anyone | they |
| anybody | they |
| neither | they |
| none | they |
| Some of you | you |
| none of you | you |
| Some of them | they |
| none of them | they |
| Some of us | we |
| none of us | we |
| This | it |
| That | it |
| You+I | We |
| One | One |
| There | There |
Examples:Nobody will help you, will you?This cow is very precious, isn't it?You and I are friends, aren't we?
Rule - 6
If the auxiliary verb is 'used to', instead of take 'did' as the auxiliary verb.
Example:Rahul used to come here regularly, didn't he?Rule - 7
If the auxiliary verb is singular and the pronoun is plural in a tag, change the auxiliary verb into plural also.
Examples:Everybody is there, aren't they?Nobody was there, were they?
Any doubts in this lesson? don't worry, i will definitely help. Please post your questions below comment section.
