Question Tags in English Grammar (पुच्छप्रश्न) – A Complete Bilingual Guide
Learn how to add the right question tag to any statement, with clear rules, special cases, Marathi meanings and example sentences.
What is a Question Tag? A question tag is a short question added at the end of a statement, like “isn’t it?” or “don’t you?”. We use it to check information or to ask the listener to agree.
(इंग्रजी व्याकरणात, पुच्छप्रश्न म्हणजे विधानाच्या शेवटी जोडलेला छोटा प्रश्न, जसे “isn’t it?” किंवा “don’t you?”. माहितीची खात्री करण्यासाठी किंवा ऐकणाऱ्याची सहमती मिळवण्यासाठी त्याचा उपयोग होतो.)
1. The Basic Rule (मूळ नियम)
English Rule: A positive statement takes a negative tag, and a negative statement takes a positive tag. The tag is always short: helping verb + pronoun + ?
मराठी नियम: होकारार्थी विधानाला नकारार्थी पुच्छप्रश्न लागतो आणि नकारार्थी विधानाला होकारार्थी पुच्छप्रश्न लागतो. पुच्छप्रश्न नेहमी छोटा असतो: सहायक क्रियापद + सर्वनाम + ?
Examples (उदाहरणे):
- You are a student, aren’t you?
- She can swim, can’t she?
- They are not ready, are they?
- He won’t come, will he?
Example Sentence: It is hot today, isn’t it?
(आज खूप गरम आहे, नाही का?)
2. Use the Same Helping Verb (तेच सहायक क्रियापद)
English Rule: Use the helping verb that is already in the statement (is, are, was, can, will, has…). If the statement has no helping verb, use do, does or did according to the tense.
मराठी नियम: विधानात जे सहायक क्रियापद आहे (is, are, was, can, will, has…) तेच पुच्छप्रश्नात वापरा. विधानात सहायक क्रियापद नसेल, तर काळानुसार do, does किंवा did वापरा.
Examples (उदाहरणे):
- You like tea, don’t you?
- She plays the guitar, doesn’t she?
- They went home, didn’t they?
Example Sentence: Your brother works in Pune, doesn’t he?
(तुझा भाऊ पुण्यात काम करतो, नाही का?)
3. Always Use a Pronoun (नेहमी सर्वनाम)
English Rule: The tag always uses a pronoun (he, she, it, they…), never the noun from the statement.
मराठी नियम: पुच्छप्रश्नात नेहमी सर्वनाम (he, she, it, they…) वापरतात; विधानातील नाम पुन्हा वापरत नाहीत.
Examples (उदाहरणे):
- Ravi is late, isn’t he? (not isn’t Ravi?)
- The children were happy, weren’t they?
- The bus has left, hasn’t it?
Example Sentence: Priya can speak English, can’t she?
(प्रिया इंग्रजी बोलू शकते, नाही का?)
4. Special Cases (विशेष नियम)
English Rule: Some statements follow their own rules. These are the ones asked most often in the SSC exam.
मराठी नियम: काही वाक्यांना वेगळे नियम लागतात. परीक्षेत हेच प्रश्न सर्वाधिक विचारले जातात.
| If the statement has… | The tag uses… | Example |
|---|---|---|
| I am | aren’t I? | I am right, aren’t I? |
| Let’s | shall we? | Let’s play, shall we? |
| A command (Open, Sit, Close…) | will you? | Open the window, will you? |
| never, hardly, seldom, no, nobody, nothing | positive tag | She never comes late, does she? |
| There is / There are | isn’t there? / aren’t there? | There are 30 students in the class, aren’t there? |
| everyone, someone, nobody | they | Nobody called, did they? |
| everything, nothing, this, that | it | That is your bag, isn’t it? |
Common Mistake for Marathi Speakers (मराठी भाषिकांची सामान्य चूक)
Marathi speakers often add “isn’t it?” to every sentence, because in Marathi we simply say “ना?” or “हो ना?” at the end. In English the tag must match the statement. Not “You are coming tomorrow, isn’t it?” but “You are coming tomorrow, aren’t you?”
(मराठीत आपण प्रत्येक वाक्याच्या शेवटी फक्त “ना?” किंवा “हो ना?” म्हणतो, म्हणून अनेकजण प्रत्येक इंग्रजी वाक्याला “isn’t it?” जोडतात. इंग्रजीत पुच्छप्रश्न विधानाशी जुळला पाहिजे. “You are coming tomorrow, isn’t it?” नव्हे, तर “You are coming tomorrow, aren’t you?”)
Summary Table: Question Tags (तक्ता)
| Statement | Tag | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Positive, with a helping verb | Negative, same verb | She is tall, isn’t she? |
| Negative | Positive | He can’t swim, can he? |
| No helping verb | do / does / did | They live here, don’t they? |
| I am | aren’t I | I am late, aren’t I? |
| Let’s | shall we | Let’s start, shall we? |
| A command | will you | Sit down, will you? |
Test Your Understanding — Question Tags Quiz
तुमची समज तपासा! Answer all 10 questions and see your score at the end.
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