To get information, it is important to correctly formulate the question. There are 5 types of different questions in English. One of them is a separation one, which is asked in order to clarify something or to make sure one is right.
What are the separation questions in English for?
Tag questions (or questions with a ponytail) are an integral part of everyday speech. In Russian, they correspond to the phrases “aren’t”, “aren’t they”, “yes”, added at the end of the sentence. Sometimes the tail of the separation question in English does not translate into Russian at all. This is relevant for requests, reminders to do something, including with a negative connotation, for example:
- Don't phone me again, will you? ("Do not call me more").
- Close the window, would you? (“Please close the window”).
Classic versions of questions with a tail allow you to ask your interlocutor about something, get an affirmative or negative question. At the same time, the separation questions in the English language differ from general questions in the way of education, intonation and purpose. But the answers to them may coincide.
- It's bitter cold today, isn't it? - Yes, it is. ("Today it is very cold, isn't it? - Yes.")
- You have done your homework, haven't you? - No, I haven't. (“You did your homework?” “No”).
If in the second case it was possible to ask a general question, although this would be less polite, then in the first case it is inappropriate: the speaker himself knows very well what the weather is like.
How are tag questions formed?
The first thing to learn in education of this type of question is that if the phrase is affirmative, the tail will be negative and vice versa. Simply put, if the verb had no negation before the decimal point, it would appear after the decimal point. And if the negative particle not is next to the verb, it will disappear in the second part of the question.
Of course, the separation questions in the English language are built taking into account the temporal form of the predicate. This is easiest to understand on the forms of the verb to be. It should also be noted that any noun acting as a subject is replaced in the tail with a similar personal pronoun.
- George is a doctor, isn't he? ("George is a doctor, isn't he?")
- Your parents were in Spain last summer, weren't they? (“Your parents were in Spain last summer, right?”)
- Mary will be ten in two weeks, won't she? ("Mary will turn 10 in 2 weeks, won't she?")
When a predicate has a semantic verb (read, sleep, drive), you first need to determine the time of the sentence. It will help to make endings (-s in the present tense in the forms 3 singular; -ed in the correct verbs in the past tense). If the verb is difficult to identify, it means that in the sentence it is used in 2 or 3 form, you need to look for it in the table of irregular verbs.
For the negative tail in the present tense, the auxiliary verb do or does; in the past tense, respectively, did.
Another nuance that allows you to quickly master the separation question in English is to pay attention to the number of words in the predicate before the comma. If there is only one verb (but it is not a form of the verb to be), then do / does / did helper is needed in the tail (as in the examples above). If the verbs are two or three, a ponytail will form with the first of them. The latter case includes both complex tenses (future, present long, past long, all completed tenses), and the use of modal verbs. The same is true for the negative first part, when the tail is positive. For instance:
- This businessman has made a lot of money, hasn't he?
- Your brother can climb a tree faster than others, can't he?
- You aren't going for a walk today, are you?
- His sister doesn't like basketball, does she?
Difficult use cases
These include the imperative, sentences with a negative adverb or pronoun, some exceptions. Faced with them, you need to substitute a specific verb into the tail, which does not always correspond to the predicate from the first part.
In the imperative mood, sentences begin immediately with the verb, including with Let ' s or negative Don' t , they are addressed to the interlocutor / s, therefore, the pronoun you will always be in the tail, and in the case of Let's - we . For instance:
- Listen to your teacher attentively, will you? (“Listen carefully to the teacher”).
- Don't be late, will you? ("Do not be late").
- Let's go out tonight, shall we? ("Let's go somewhere today").
The pronouns nobody, none, few, not many, nothing, little, neither, hardly any, scarcely any have a negative meaning, which means that in sentences with them after the decimal point the verb will be in the affirmative form, as well as in the predicate itself (rule one denial). The presence of one of the negative adverbs ( never, seldom, scarcely, rarely, nowhere, hardly, barely ) likewise requires a positive conclusion to the question.
Turnovers starting with There ... keep this word in the tail after the auxiliary verb. Finally, after I am at the beginning of the sentence, aren't I required?
The role of intonation
The exact meaning depends on the intonation with which the dividing question is asked. If at the end of the question the voice rises, the speaker is not sure of the information and wants to get an answer. If the intonation is descending, a simple confirmation of the voiced thought is required, often such questions are asked in order to support the conversation.
How are answers to separation questions constructed?
Before giving a response, we have to analyze the question itself, without the tail: the positive or negative first part requires different response formulas. A simple option, when the speaker uses the affirmative form of the predicate, requires the same Yes and No as in the answers to the general question. Next is the pronoun corresponding to the subject matter and the auxiliary verb.
It’s a little harder to answer the dividing questions in English when the first part is negative. Agreeing with the speaker, the answer must begin with Yes; disagreeing - with No. Next is the pronoun and auxiliary verb. For instance:
- Karen is a good tennis player, isn't she? - Yes, she is (consent).
- We can take a car, can't we? - No, we can't (disagreement).
- He didn't return the book, did he? - No, he didn't (consent).
- It doesn't rain often here, does it? - Yes, it does (disagreement).
It is impossible to ignore, studying English, separation questions. Exercises, for example, from the textbooks of R. Murphy and constant practice will help to overcome the difficulties associated with this grammatical phenomenon.