Question Tags: ..., Isn't It?
The little question on the end of an English sentence — how to build it, and what intonation does to its meaning.
Question tags are everywhere in spoken English, and they follow a mechanical rule that is easy to learn and easy to get slightly wrong.
The basic rule: opposite polarity
Positive sentence → negative tag. Negative sentence → positive tag.
It's cold today, isn't it? It isn't cold today, is it? You've finished, haven't you? You haven't finished, have you?
Which auxiliary?
Repeat the auxiliary from the sentence. If there isn't one, use do / does / did.
| Sentence | Tag |
|---|---|
| She is ready | isn't she? |
| They have left | haven't they? |
| He can swim | can't he? |
| You like it | don't you? |
| She works here | doesn't she? |
| They went home | didn't they? |
The irregular ones worth memorising
- I am late, aren't I? (not amn't I)
- Let's go, shall we?
- Open the window, will you? (after an imperative)
- Nobody called, did they? (words like nobody, no one, someone take they)
- Nothing happened, did it?
Careful with hidden negatives. Words like never, hardly, rarely, nobody already make the sentence negative, so the tag stays positive:
He never calls, does he?
Intonation changes the meaning
This is the part that matters in real conversation.
- Falling intonation → you are not really asking. You expect agreement.
Lovely day, isn't it? ↘ (small talk — just say yes)
- Rising intonation → a genuine question. You are not sure.
You locked the door, didn't you? ↗ (I actually want to know)
Answering a falling tag as though it were a real question makes the conversation stall.
Test yourself
The quiz below covers the mechanics and the irregulars.