Collins Cobuild English Grammar (102 page)

5.12
    In a
yes/no
-question, if there is an auxiliary verb, the auxiliary verb comes first, followed by the subject, then the main verb.

Are you staying
here, by any chance?
Will they win
again?
Will they like
my garden?
Can he read
yet?

If there is more than one auxiliary verb, the first auxiliary verb comes at the beginning of the clause, followed by the subject, followed by the other verbs.

Had he been murdered
?
Has it been thrown away
, perhaps?

For information about auxiliaries, see the Reference Section.

5.13
    If there is no auxiliary verb, you put
do
,
does
, or
did
at the beginning of the clause, in front of the subject, followed by the base form of the main verb.

Do you understand
what I’m saying?
Does it hurt
much?
Did you meet
George in France?

Note that if the main verb is
do
, you still put
do
,
does
, or
did
at the beginning of the clause, in front of the subject.

Do they do
the work themselves?
Does David do
this sort of thing often?

be
and
have
as main verbs

5.14
    If the verb is
be
, you do not use
do
. You simply put the verb at the beginning of the clause, followed by the subject.

Are you
okay?
Is she
Ricky’s sister?
Am I
right?
Was it
lonely without us?

If the verb is
have
, you usually put
do
,
does
, or
did
at the beginning of the clause, in front of the subject.

Do passengers have
rights?
Does anyone have
a question?
Did you have
a good flight?

However, when you use
have
in the sense of
own
or
possess
, you do not need to use
do
,
does
, or
did
. You can simply put
have
,
has
, or
had
at the beginning of the clause. This is a slightly formal use.

Have we
anything else we ought to talk about first?
Has he
any idea what it’s like?

If you use
have got
or
has got
in a
yes/no
-question, you put
have
or
has
at the beginning of the clause, followed by the subject, followed by
got
.

Have you got
any brochures on Holland?
Has she got
a car?

Have got
and
has got
are explained in paragraph
3.15
.

Making a statement into a question: question tags

5.15
    You can ask for confirmation that something is true by making a statement in the declarative, then adding an expression such as
isn’t it
? or
was she
? Constructions like these are called
question tags
. Question tags are most often used in spoken English.

forming question tags

5.16
    Question tags are formed using an auxiliary or a form of
be
or
do
, followed by a personal pronoun referring to the subject.

If the main clause is in the affirmative, you use a negative tag. Negative tags are always contracted, except in old-fashioned or very formal English.

It is
quite warm,
isn’t it
?

If the main clause is in the negative, you use an affirmative tag.

You didn’t
know I was an artist,
did you
?

If the main clause of your statement has an auxiliary in it, you use the same auxiliary in the tag.

You will
stay in touch,
won’t you
?

If the main clause has the past simple or present simple form of
be
as the main verb, you use this in the tag.

They are, aren’st they
?

If the main clause does not have an auxiliary or the verb
be
, you use
do
,
does
, or
did
in the tag.

After a couple of years
the heat gets
too much,
doesn’t it
?
He played
for Ireland,
didn’t he
?

Note that the negative tag with
I
is
aren’t I
, even though
am
is the auxiliary or main verb in the main clause.

I’m
controlling it,
aren’t I
?

checking statements

5.17
    If you have an opinion or belief about something and you want to check that it is true, or to find out if someone agrees with you, you can make a statement and add a question tag after it to make it into a question.

If you are making an affirmative statement and you want to check that it is true, you use a negative question tag.

You like
Ralph a lot, don’t you?
They are
beautiful places,
aren’t they
?

If you are making a negative statement and want to check that it is true, you use an affirmative tag.

It doesn’t
work,
does it
?
You won’t
tell anyone else all this,
will you
?

You can also use an affirmative tag if your statement contains a broad negative, a negative adverb, or a negative pronoun.

That
hardly
counts,
does it
?
You’ve
never
been to Benidorm,
have you
?
Nothing
had changed,
had it
?

replying to tags

5.18
    The person you are speaking to replies to the content of your statement rather than to the tag, and confirms an affirmative statement with
yes
and a negative statement with
no
.

‘
It became stronger
, didn’t it?’ –‘
Yes it did
.’
‘
You didn’t know that
, did you?’ – ‘
No
.’

other uses of question tags

5.19
    If you are making a statement about yourself and you want to check if the person you are talking to has the same opinion or feeling, you can put a tag with
you
after your statement.

I think
this is the best thing,
don’t you
?
I love
tea,
don’t you
?

Question tags can also be used to show your reaction to something that someone has just said or implied, for example to show interest, surprise, or anger. Note that you use an affirmative tag after an affirmative statement.

You fell
on your back,
did you
?
You’ve
been to North America before,
have you
?
Oh,
he wants
us to make films as well,
does he
?

When using
let’s
to suggest doing something, you can add the tag
shall we
to check that the people you are talking to agree with you.

Let’s
forget it,
shall we
?

If you are suggesting that you do something and you want to check that the person you are speaking to agrees, you can add the tag
shall I
?

I’ll
call the doctor,
shall I
?

If you are telling someone to do something and you want to make your order sound less forceful, you can do so by adding a question tag. The tag is usually
will you
, but
won’t you
and
can’t you
are also used.

Come
into the kitchen,
will you
?
Look
at that,
will you
?
See
that she gets safely back,
won’t you
?

When you are using a negative imperative, you can only use
will you
as a tag.

Don’t
tell Howard,
will you
?

You can also add an affirmative tag such as
are you
?
to an affirmative statement if you want to show interest in a piece of information.

So, you’re leaving us,
are you
?
He’s a friend of yours,
is he
?

Either
/
or
-questions

5.20
    You sometimes ask a question in which you mention two or more possible answers. You link the possible answers with
or
. For example, you might say
Is he awake or asleep
? or
Do you like your coffee white or black
? You expect the actual answer to your question to be one of the answers you have mentioned.

Words, phrases, and clauses can all be linked in this way.

Questions like these are sometimes called
either/or
-questions.

‘Is it
a boy or a girl
?’ – ‘A beautiful
boy
.’
‘Was it
healthy or diseased
?’ – ‘
Diseased
, I’m afraid.’
‘
Shall we take the bus or do you want to walk
?’ – ‘Let’s
walk
, shall we?’