It's Important, Isn't It?
Question Tags
Most questions in English use this structure:
(Question Word) + Auxiliary + Subject + Verb Form + (objects) + ?
Example:
How often do you recycle your waste goods?
Question Tags
Question tags are used to confirm information that the speaker knows, or believes to know. This conversational form is used to check that the speaker has understood something.
Form questions tags by making a statement followed by a comma and the OPPOSITE (positive -negative, negative - positive) form of the matching auxiliary verb in the same tense.
Example:
He doesn't track all allocations, does he?
He hasn't filled this job order, has he?
They will outsource our assembly lines to China, won't they?
This list shows question tags for a number of tenses.
Present Simple:
He hasn't filled this job order, has he?
Present Continuous:
Past Simple:
Jack didn't purchase an assemble-to-order product, did he?
Present Perfect:
He hasn't been working on the assembly line for long, has he?
Future with 'Will':
They will outsource our assembly lines to China, won't they?
Request with 'Would':
It wouldn't pass a laboratory test, would it?
Special Notes:
Use question tags in order to do the following:
- To confirm information
- To continue a conversation
Sometimes, question tags are used sarcastically or in a joking manner. This type of usage depends on the context and the speaker's tone of voice.
Exception: When using the verb 'to be' as the auxiliary verb in a question tag with the subject I (rhetorical) use the form "am I?".
Example:
I'm not going to be late, am I?
I'm not involved in that sale, am I?