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Question Tag: Study, Don't You Close Will You Let's Shall We
Question Tag: Study, Don't You Close Will You Let's Shall We
Question Tag: Study, Don't You Close Will You Let's Shall We
Authors: Badriyatul Mutiah, Muh. Alwi Yahya, Faizal, Hilda Sri Mardawani
Question Tag
Question tags is short question. Which is located after the statement (question sentence),
imperative (command sentence) and invitation (invitation sentence).
The purpose of the question tag is, to ask the listener's consent, and also functions to ask the
listener's confirmation about something that has not convinced the speaker.
Examples:
A. General rules
Do not - don't
B. Special Rules
1. If in the statement there is an ordinary verb in the form of "be". So use the "be" in the tag,
example:
2. If in the statement there is an assist verb, then use the assist verb in the tag, example:
3. If the tenses in the statement are simple present (Verbal +) So use the assistive verb "do /
does + not" in the tag examples:
4. If the tenses in the statement consist of simple past (Verbal +) then use the auxiliary verb
"did + not" in the tag example:
5. If the statement contains "I am" So use "aren’t I" in the tag, example:
7. If the statement is a negative word, then the tag must contain positive (+) claims, such as:
8. If in the statement there is an imperative (+) / (-), then use "will you / won't", Examples
9. If in the statement there is an invitation "let's", then use "we will" in the tag like:
These subjects are known as indefinite subjects because they don't directly say 'who' or 'what'
the subject is. All the subjects are singular.
So the auxiliary verbs with them also should be plural, even if the auxiliaries in the sentences
are singular.
Here, the subject somebody is singular that is why the singular auxaliary verb 'does' is used
with the verb 'call' . (Does + call = calls) in this simple present sentence.
But in the question tag, as the pronoun 'they' of the subject somebody is plural, the plural
auxiliary verb of simple present 'do' is used.
This rule should be applied to all these indenfinite subjects, if the tense of the sentence has
more than one auxiliary verb.
But the pronoun of the indefinite subjects "something, everything, anything, nothing" is it
2. The pronoun of the subjects, "few , a few or the few" is also "they"
'few' is negative meaning where as , 'a few' and 'the few' are positive meaning.
'little' is negative meaning where as , a little and the little are positive meaning.
http://www.myenglishtutor.in/indefinite-subjects-and-their-pronouns-in-question-tags/ ( 29th
april 2020).