Keeping a conversation going

Sometimes, there are questions we make during a conversation so that the other person
goes on speaking about something.

Here are some examples:

A- Fill in the gaps in short questions 1- 10 with these words.

what - mean - going - come - as - sort - else – way - that - like

1. How's it _ going __?

2. Why's __ that __ ?
3. Like __ what__ exactly?
4. How do you _mean_? (diff. from “what do you mean?”)
5. What 's the teacher _like_? (What does the teacher look like?)
6. What else _ are you doing?
7. Such __ as __ ? (to ask for an example)
8. How __ come_ ? (=why)
9. In what __ way _? (explain further)
10. What _sort__ of dancing?

To find out some facts of interest about what the other person is saying, we can also
formulate short questions with the following structure:

WH WORD + PREPOSITION
For example:

 Who with? Who are you going on vacation with?

 Who for? Who are those glasses for?
 Where to? Where are you going on vacation to next week?
 Who from? Who is this gift from?
 Who / what about? Who/what was the meeting about?
 How long for? How long are you staying in Miami for?
 What for? What is the gift for?
 B- Formulate a short question to keep these conversations going.

1) – We’re spending our next holidays abroad. We’re taking a plane in six hours,
actually.
- Really? ____________________ ?

2) – I’m having such a terrible day!

- ______________________ ?

3) – My son Terry loves doing extreme sports.

- Oh! __________________?

When we want to check that the information we have on something is correct, we add a
comma (,) and then formulate a short question called “question tag”.

A question tag is made up of just two parts:

AUXILIARY + PERSONAL PRONOUN

Here are some examples:

 You work at Goldwyn Associates buffet, don’t you?

 This is your elder sister, isn’t she?
 We have a meeting today, don’t we?
 Your wife will pick you up from work, won’t she?
 They didn’t come to class yesterday, did they?
 You weren’t at home last night, were you?
 Your brother-in-law doesn’t study medicine, does he?
 Sofia hasn’t arrived yet, has she?

NOTE THAT…

 When the sentence is affirmative, the question tag is negative. (+ / -)

 When the sentence is negative, the question tag is affirmative. (- / +)
C- Write a question tag to complete these sentences.

1. Britney has got a brother, _______________?

2. His surname isn’t Carson, _______________?
3. They’ll come to our dinner party, ______________?
4. She cancelled the meeting, ____________?
5. You didn’t call the doctor, ___________?
6. You have an appointment, ___________?
7. The class starts at 6, ___________?
8. He’s going to come soon, ___________?
9. The children aren’t home yet, __________?
10. You can’t do it today, _____________?

D- Choose the best alternative.

1. They didn’t see this film, ___________?

a- have they b- are they c- did they

2. Most of the coffee we drink is grown in Colombia these days, __________?

a- is it b- grown it c- isn’t it

3. A seal can’t swim faster than a shark, __________?

a- can it b- does it c- is it

4. Marnie loves reading romance novels, ___________?

a- is she b- does she c- doesn’t she

5. Leo’s car broke down yesterday, __________?

a- didn’t he b- didn’t it c- did it

6. They won’t be late today, ___________?

a- will you b- won’t you c- will they
E- Complete the gaps in this conversation with ONE word.

CHLOE: You’re not going anywhere on vacations this summer, ________ you?
SOPHIE: Actually, I am! The Maldives. But first, I'm going to my cousin's wedding in
New York.
CHLOE: _____ you? Who _________?
SOPHIE: My brother, Dave. I'm rather nervous about the whole thing, though.
CHLOE: Really? How _________?
SOPHIE: Dave and I don't really get along particularly well.
CHLOE: How do you _________?
SOPHIE: Er, we tend to argue a lot.
CHLOE: Yes, families can be difficult, ____________they? What ___________ are you
doing?
SOPHIE: After the wedding I'm going on a trip that my friend Mike organized.
CHLOE: _______you? What __________ of trip?
SOPHIE: We're going walking in the Rockies.
CHLOE: How long _________?
SOPHIE: Five days. Oh, I can't wait! I think it’ll be wonderful… And you? Got any
vacation plans?
CHLOE: No, we’re not going anywhere this year, I'm afraid.
SOPHIE: Why's _________?
CHLOE: We've put in an offer on a flat so we can’t afford going on vacation.
SOPHIE Wow! You’re moving! What's the place _________?
CHLOE: Well, it’s quite old, so it needs a lot of work, I think…
SOPHIE: Such _________?
CHLOE: Plumbing, repairing, painting ... everything!