Question tags

1 Read the questions.

You’re working in the new bank in town, aren’t you?

You haven’t seen my purse, have you?

In the first question the intonation falls because the speaker is sure the answer is yes and
only wants confirmation.

In the second question the intonation goes up because the person is asking a real
question and doesn’t know what the answer will be.

2 Underline the auxiliary verbs in the questions.

1. He hasn’t been to Mexico, has he?

2. You are coming, aren’t you?

3. She’s learning how to dance salsa, isn’t she?

4. They aren’t happy, are they?

5. We didn’t send them an invitation, did we?

6. I hadn’t finished, had I?

3 Complete the rules.

• Use the auxiliary verbs .................................... , .................................... or

.................................... to make the tag.

• If the sentence is .................................... the tag is affirmative.

• If the sentence is affirmative the tag is .................................... .

4 Underline the verbs used in the question tags?

1. They can’t sing, can they?

2. You will do it, won’t you?

3. It must be Peter, mustn’t it?

4. We should tell him, shouldn’t we?

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5 What happens when there’s no auxiliary? Read the rules and complete the
questions.

When there is no auxiliary use do.

Take the original sentence She comes from Spain
Make it negative She doesn’t come from Spain
Invert the subject and the auxiliary
Add it to the original sentence She comes from Spain, doesn’t she?

1. She loves him, ....................................?

2. We had a nice house, ....................................?
3. They work hard, ....................................?
4. You saw the new film, ....................................?

6 Match the statement to the correct tag ending.

1 You won’t leave me a didn’t she?

2 He doesn’t do any exercise b won’t you?
3 You will finish it c has she?
4 She had a great holiday d does he?
5 He didn’t enjoy it e will you?
6 She hasn’t been well f did he?

7 Make tags for the following:

1. It’s a beautiful day, ..........................................................................................................

2. We need some milk, .......................................................................................................
3. You haven’t been to London, ..........................................................................................
4. She drives to work, .........................................................................................................
5. David won’t like it, ...........................................................................................................
6. It won’t be a problem, .....................................................................................................
7. They played well, ............................................................................................................
8. Your mother doesn’t speak English, ...............................................................................
9. He always plays tennis on Sundays, ..............................................................................
10. She hadn’t told him, ........................................................................................................
11. I’m so stupid, ..................................................................................................................
12. Question tags aren’t easy, ..............................................................................................

8 Practise asking the questions in 6 using the correct intonation.

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Teachers’ notes and answer key

Level: Intermediate
Aim: To revise the use and rules of question tags and practise correct intonation.
Duration: 1 hour

Explain to students that question tags are frequently used in spoken English. If students can grasp
them it helps them sound much more natural.

Exercise 1
Have students read the questions and the rules. Go round the class checking the intonation.
Encourage students to exaggerate a little so that they can really hear the difference.

Exercise 2
Ask students to underline the auxiliary verbs in the sentences. Make sure they look at both parts
of the question and don’t just focus on the tag.

Answer key:
1. He hasn’t been to Mexico, has he?
2. You are coming, aren’t you?
3. She’s learning how to dance salsa, isn’t she?
4. They aren’t happy, are they?
5. We didn’t send them an invitation, did we?
6. I hadn’t finished, had I?

Exercise 3
Have students complete the simple rules.

Answer key:
Use the auxiliary verbs, do, have or be to make the tag.
If the sentence is negative the tag is affirmative.
If the sentence is affirmative the tag is negative.

Exercise 4
Ask students to read the questions and find the verbs that are used in the tag. Explain that if there
is a modal verb or the question is in the future, then we don’t use an auxiliary. The same rules
about negative/affirmative apply here.

Answer key:
1. They can’t sing, can they?
2. You will do it, won’t you?
3. It must be Peter, mustn’t it?
4. We should tell him, shouldn’t we?

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Exercise 5
Explain to students that in affirmative present simple and past simple questions, there is no
auxiliary so we have to add it. This is easy to do if we remember how to make the sentence
negative.

Answer key:
1. She loves him, doesn’t she?
2. We had a nice house, didn’t we?
3. They work hard, don’t they?
4. You saw the new film, didn’t you?

Exercise 6
Students match the beginning of the question to the tag.

Answer key:
1e, 2d, 3b, 4a, 5f, 6c

It’s a good idea to stop at this point and do some quick drills to check students have learnt these
forms. Tell students to cover their papers. Go round the class using the questions from the
worksheet. Give the stem of the question and ask students to provide the tag. Add more
examples if necessary and listen carefully for good intonation.

Exercises 7 and 8
Ask students to complete the questions. Put students in pairs and ask them to practise the
questions. One person reads the stem and the second person adds the tag. Check on the
intonation to see if the questions are real or not.

1. It’s a beautiful day, isn’t it?

2. We need some milk, don’t we?
3. You haven’t been to London, have you?
4. She drives to work, doesn’t she?
5. David won’t like it, will he?
6. It won’t be a problem, will it?
7. They played well, didn’t they?
8. Your mother doesn’t speak English, does she?
9. He always plays tennis on Sundays, doesn’t he?
10. She hadn’t told him, had she?
11. I’m so stupid, aren’t I? (Unusual form – to make pronunciation possible)
12. Question tags aren’t easy, are they?

Follow up:
Tags can be great fun so it’s nice to finish with a game. Split the class into 2. Dictate the stems of
questions (suggestions below). In teams ask the students to write the correct tag.

She hates me…

It’s cold…
We can’t go now…
They didn’t catch the train…
You left early…
He hasn’t been home yet…
I haven’t lost…
He’s had a bad dream…
They made a mistake…

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