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Unit 41. Great Film, wasn't It?

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Question Tags

Unit 41; Part A

Question tags are short questions added to the end of a statement,usually to produce a response from a hearer. We use a falling tone forquestion tags when we expect the hearer to acknowledge that what wehave just said is correct, for example, when we are giving our opinion:
         They didn't PLAY very well , DID they ?
         GREAT FILM , WASn't it
?

We use a rising tone when we invite the hearer to say whether what wehave just said is correct or not, for example, when we are not certainthat something is true:

         JapanESE , ISn't it ?
         NOT on a DIet again , ARE you ?


Notice that question tags are ofen used afer statements where the subject or subject and verb have been left out.

Unit 41; Part B

Question tags usually have a falling tone when the statement is obviously correct:
           You're not WELL , ARE you ?
           HOT
, ISn't it ?

We also use a falling tone when we want the hearer to admit thatsomething they may not have accepted before is, in fact, correct:

           TOLD you I was RIGHT , DIDn't I ?
           WRONG again
, WEREN'T you

Question tags can also follow exclamations, and these tags usually have a falling tone:

           what a riDICulous thing to SAY , WASn't it ?

Unit 41; Part C

When both the statement and the question tag are positive, the question tag usually has a rising tone:
             Came by CAR , DID you ?
             You've FINished
, HAVE you ?

This pattern is sometimes used to be critical or sarcastic. These sentences often begin with 'So ...' or 'Oh, ...':

            So you THINK you're CLEVer , DO you ?

Question tags (usually will you, can't you, won't you, would you, or shall we)can be added to imperative sentences. These tags usually have a risingtone and are ofen used to soften a request or command:   

            Let's get the EARlier train , SHALL we ?
            TAKE care of THESE
, WOULD you ?
42.1.jpg

 



Exercises

flag.jpgDo you think the question tags in this conversation are likely to have a rising tone (put in the box) or a falling tone ()?
42.2.jpgKey.A: I said it would be worth the effort, didn't I? ↓
B:  Hmm.
A:  You're not tired, are you? ↑
B:  Exhausted. Give me some water, will you? ↑
A:  Not very fit, are you? ↓ Still, not much further.
B:  But we re at the top, aren't we? ↑
A:  Just another kilometre to go. We can't turn round now, can we? ↓
B:  Of course we can. Let's go back now, shall we? ↑ Please.

A: Wonderful view from up here, isn't it?
B:  Great.
A: I said it would be worth the effort, didn't I? ___
B:  Hmm.
A:  You're not tired, are you? ___
B:  Exhausted. Give me some water, will you? ___
A:  Not very fit, are you? ___ Still, not much further.
B:  But we re at the top, aren't we? ___
A:  Just another kilometre to go. We can't turn round now, can we? ___
B:  Of course we can. Let's go back now, shall we? ___ Please.

Now listen and check your predictions. 
flag.jpgListen and decide whether the question tags in S's responses have a rising tone (put in the box) or a falling tone ().
Key.1 ↑
2 ↑
3 ↓
4 ↓
5 ↑
6 ↓
7 ↑

Example: A: Great race. B: She ran well, didn't she?
1    A: I can do that easily. B: Oh, you can, can you? ___
2    A: We'll have to wait ages for the bus. B: But they come every ten minutes, don't they? ___
3    A: What a boring lecture. B: Yes, dull, wasn't it? ___
4    A: Shame about the colour. B: What a hideous shade of purple, isn't it? ___
5    A: Where do you want these boxes? B: Put them over there, would you? ___
6    A: I think there's something wrong with the printer. B: You broke it, didn't you? ___
7    A: Can I get a discount on these tickets? B: You're a student, are you? ___

Now listen again. Press 'pause' before each B part and read it aloud.Then press 'play' again and compare your pronunciation with whatfollows.

flag.jpgSuggest an appropriate question tag to complete B's responses. Thenread them aloud, using either a rising or falling tone on the tag asappropriate.
Key.(Speaker A = Jamaica)
The most likely tag with the more likely tone is given. These are used on the recording.
1 aren't they ↑ (↓ is also possible, but less likely)   
2 wasn't it ↓   
3 will there ↑ (↓ is also possible, but less likely)
4 are you ↓
5 could (or can/will/would) you ↑

Example: A: Did you see the eclipse yesterday?
              B: Fantastic,      wasn't it      ?
1    A: Don't forget your gloves.
      B: They're yours, ________________?
2    A: He could have been killed crossing the road like that.
      B: What a stupid thing to do, ________________?
3    A: Try to come early to get a good seat.
      B: There'll be a lot of people, ________________?
4    A: What a terrible noise.
      B: You're not a rock music fan, ________________?
5    A: Where shall I leave you?
      B: Drop me in front of the station, ________________?

Now listen and check your answers.

Follow up:Many other languages have question tags, although in some a singlequestion tag is used rather than the large number found in English.Think about the intonation of question tag(s) used in your firstlanguage. Does it follow a similar pattern to that described in thisunit for English question tags?

 
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