Tag question
- Định nghĩa câu hỏi đuôi (Tag question)
Ex:
She is beautiful, isn’t she? (Cô ta đẹp nhỉ?)
He isn’t a doctor, is he? (Anh ta không phải là bác sĩ đấy chứ?)
Phần mệnh đề trước dấu phẩy, hay còn gọi là phần mệnh đề chính, có thể ở cả 2 thể khẳng định và phủ định. Dựa vào thể của phần mệnh đề chính, ta có thể xác định được thể của phần đuôi.
1.1. Các thì hiện tại
TO BE
Clause, am/is/are (+ not) + S?
Ex: They aren’t students, are they?
He is playing the guitar in his room, isn’t he?
Động từ thường
Clause, do (+ not) + S?
Ex: He comes to school, doesn’t he?
Your parents don’t want you to go with me, do they?
1.2. Các thì quá khứ
TO BE
Clause, was/were (+ not) + S?
Ex: They were studying in their room at 7 o’clock last night, weren’t they?
She wasn’t fond of hanging out with her friends, was she?
Động từ thường
Clause, did (+ not) + S?
Ex: Your parents came home late, didn’t they?
The cat didn’t eat anything yesterday, did it?
1.3. Các thì hoàn thành
Clause, has/have/had (+ not) + S?
Ex: The dog hasn’t come back home yet, has it?
The baby has been sleeping for 4 hours, hasn’t he?
1.4. Các thì tương lai
Clause, will (+ not) + S?
Ex: You will come to my birthday party, won’t you?
He won’t go to the cinema with me, will he?
1.5. Động từ khuyết thiếu
Clause, modal verb (+ not) + S?
Ex: You can climb a tree, can’t you?
They shouldn’t meet her, should they?
- CÁC TRƯỜNG HỢP ĐẶC BIỆT
Bên cạnh các trường hợp phổ biến, câu hỏi đuôi cũng có những trường hợp đặc biệt mà ta cần ghi nhớ để tránh nhầm lẫn. Sau đây là những trường hợp mà các em cần lưu ý.
1/ Câu dùng I AM, câu hỏi đuôi là AREN’T I, I AM NOT thì câu hỏi đuôi là AM I.
Ex: I am a translator, aren’t I?
I am not sick, am I?
2/ Câu dùng LET’S, câu hỏi đuôi là SHALL WE?
Ex: Let’s go outside, shall we?
3/ Câu có chủ ngữ là những đại từ bất định như EVERYONE, EVERYBODY, ANYBODY, ANYONE,… thì câu hỏi đuôi sẽ có chủ ngữ là THEY.
Ex: Everyone speaks English, don’t they?
Someone isn’t here, are they?
4/ Câu có chủ ngữ là NOTHING, NO ONE, NOBODY: Mặc dù câu ở mệnh đề chính ở dạng khẳng định nhưng phần hỏi đuôi sẽ ở dạng khẳng định, do các từ này vốn đã mang nghĩa phủ định. Đặc biệt, với NO ONE, NOBODY thì phần hỏi đuôi sẽ là THEY. Với NOTHING thì phần hỏi đuôi sẽ là IT.
Ex: Nothing is special, isn’t it?
5/ Câu chứa các trạng từ phủ định như NEVER, SELDOM, HARDLY, LITTLE, FEW,… phần hỏi đuôi sẽ ở dạng khẳng định.
Ex:She hardly eats bread, does she?
6/ Câu có cấu trúc IT SEEMS THAT… thì mệnh đề chính sẽ là mệnh đề đứng sau THAT, phần hỏi đuôi sẽ áp dụng quy tắc như bình thường.
Ex: It seems that it is going to rain, isn’t it?
It seems that you don’t want to go with me, do you?
7/ Nếu câu có chủ ngữ là một mệnh đề, một danh ngữ, động từ dạng TO V thì phần hỏi đuôi sẽ dùng IT là chủ ngữ.
Ex: What I am hearing is very interesting, isn’t it?
Singing helps us reduce stress, doesn’t it?
To play video games doesn’t entertain us much, does it?
8/ Nếu câu ở phần mệnh đề chính là câu mệnh lệnh thì phần hỏi đuôi sẽ là “will you?”
Ex: Do sit down, will you? (Anh sẽ ngồi chứ?)
Don’t make noise, will you? (Các em sẽ không làm ồn, đúng không nhỉ?)
9/ Nếu câu ở mệnh đề chính là câu điều ước thì phần hỏi đuôi sẽ dùng MAY.
Ex: She wishes she would become beautiful, may she? (Cô ta ước cô ta sẽ trở nên xinh đẹp, phải không nhỉ?)
10/ Nếu chủ ngữ của mệnh đề chính là ONE thì phần hỏi đuôi sẽ có chủ ngữ là ONE/YOU.
Ex: One can play this song, can’t you? (Một bạn nào đó có thể chơi bài này, đúng không?)
11/ Nếu câu ở mệnh đề chính có chứa MUST:
– MUST chỉ sự cần thiết thì phần hỏi đuôi dùng NEEDN’T.
Ex:I must work a lot to meet the deadline, needn’t I? (Tôi phải làm việc thật nhiều để kịp hạn nộp, đúng không?)
– MUST chỉ sự cấm đoán thì phần hỏi đuôi dùng MUST (+ NOT).
Ex:They must come home late, mustn’t they?
He mustn’t date her, must he?
– MUST chỉ sự dự đoán ở hiện tại: tùy vào động từ theo sau MUST mà ta chia động từ ở phần hỏi đuôi cho phù hợp.
Ex: He must come early, doesn’t he?
The child must be very good, is he?
12/ Nếu câu ở mệnh đề chính là câu cảm thán (WHAT A/AN…, HOW…, SUCH A/AN…) thì danh từ trong câu cảm thán sẽ là chủ ngữ chính của câu, từ đó ta sẽ biến đổi danh từ sang đại từ thích hợp để làm chủ ngữ trong phần hỏi đuôi.
Ex: What a lovely kitten, isn’t it?
How a handsome boy, isn’t he?
13/ Nếu có cấu trúc dạng: S + động từ tình thái (feel, think, expect,…) + clause, ta có hai trường hợp chia câu hỏi đuôi tùy vào chủ ngữ.
– TH1: Chủ ngữ là “I” thì phần hỏi đuôi sẽ được chia theo mệnh đề phụ trong câu. Khi đó, ta áp dụng các quy tắc chia câu hỏi đuôi như bình thường.
Lưu ý: Khi các động từ này ở dạng phủ định thì phần hỏi đuôi sẽ chia ở dạng khẳng định. Tuy nhiên, chủ ngữ ở phần hỏi đuôi sẽ là chủ ngữ của mệnh đề phụ.
Ex: I believe the fairies exist, don’t they?
I don’t think she can do it, can’t she?
– TH2: Nếu chủ ngữ là danh từ/đại từ khác “I”, thì phần hỏi đuôi sẽ được chia theo mệnh đề có chứa các động từ trên và áp dụng các quy tắc chia phần hỏi đuôi như bình thường.
Ex: They expect she will come soon, don’t they?
My mother doesn’t think I am fine, does she?
14/ Nếu câu ở mệnh đề chính có chứa HAD BETTER hoặc WOULD RATHER, ta coi HAD, WOULD là trợ động từ và chia phần hỏi đuôi như bình thường.
Ex: You had better go to school early, hadn’t you?
You hadn’t better stay up late, had you?
They’d rather play video games, wouldn’t they?
BÀI TẬP
Exercise 1. Choose the best option to complete these following sentences.
1.Tom invited us to come to his party, __________?
- hadn’t he B. couldn’t he C. wasn’t he D. didn’t he
- There was an exciting football match on TV last night, _________?
- wasn’t it B. was not there C. wasn’t there D. was it
- – Who teaches you English? –Mr. Black_________.
- is B. teaches C. does D. do
- I am not too fat, __________?
- aren’t I B. do I C. am I D. are I
- I’m wrong, _________?
- am not B. aren’t I C. are not D. amn’t
- Someone discovered penicillin in 1928, _________?
- hadn’t he/she B. didn’t he/she C. didn’t someone D. wasn’t he/she
- You stayed home last night, _________?
- had you B. would you C. didn’t you D. did you
- The poor don’t have many things to eat, _________?
- do we B. do they C. do you D. do I
- The teacher asked you if you finished your homework that day, __________?
- hadn’t he B. didn’t he C. didn’t you D. hadn’t he
- You were driving home when you saw Lan, _________?
- didn’t you B. weren’t you C. wouldn’t you D. hadn’t you
- You are thirsty, __________?
- don’t you B. aren’t you C. are you D. are not you
- Nam wishes he had worked hard last year, __________?
- hadn’t Nam B. hadn’t he C. doesn’t Nam D. doesn’t he
- Not only the women but also the men _________ watching this programme.
- like B. has liked C. is liking D. likes
- Neither the students nor the teacher ___________ raincoats.
- taking B. takes C. are taking D. take
- You had had breakfast before you went to school yesterday, ___________?
- hadn’t you B. didn’t you C. wouldn’t you D. weren’t you
- _________ ten minutes earlier, we would have got better seats.
- If we had not arrived B. Had we arrived C. Did we arrive D. If we arrived
- Only when you grow up, __________ the truth.
- did you know B. will you know C. you would know D. you will know
- You could ride a bicycle when you were five, ___________?
- hadn’t you B. didn’t you C. weren’t you D. couldn’t you
- There have been many achievements since the country carried out economic reforms, ________?
- don’t there B. haven’t they C. haven’t there D. don’t they
- People who exercise frequently are healthier than those who ____________.
- exercise B. do C. don’t D. are
Exercise 2: Add suitable tags.
- Everybody’s gone home, _____________?
- Nobody here speaks French, _____________?
- Nobody phoned, ______________?
- We never drink coffee, _____________?
- That’s no excuse, _____________?
- Let’s go for a walk, _____________?
- Nothing ever changes, _____________?
- I hardly smoke anymore, _____________?
- Nobody saw us, _____________?
- Sean never goes to bed until really late, _____________?
- Let’s go to Mexico this summer, ______________ ?
- The sun hardly shone all summer, _____________?
- Somebody called me , _____________?
- It’s never too late , _____________?
- There’s no homework, _____________?
Exercise 3: Choose the sentence which contains NO errors.
1.
- Nobody called for me while I was in conference, did they?
- This meal was delicious, isn’t it?
- All this is too much for me to carry by myself. Give me a hand, do you?
- Your daughter is in Thailand at the moment, wasn’t she?
2.
- You couldn’t recommend a good place to have a quick meal, could you?
- You’ve never come to this park before, did, you?
- It’s cold today, so wear warm clothing, are you?
- You weren’t paying attention to me, are you?
3.
- You won’t mind if I am a little late in getting there, do you?
- She’s very artistic, doesn’t she?
- You’ve never been to Quebec, haven’t you?
- It’s hot in here. Open a window, will you?
4.
- You know how to drive a car, can’t you?
- Nothing can’t go wrong, can it?
- He shouldn’t smoke here, should he?
- This job makes us really tired, isn’t it?
5.
- They always look happy together, don’t they?
- Those are new glasses, are they?
- There was some confusion about who would do what, isn’t there?
- These gloves don’t belong to you, don’t they?
6.
- Your English have improved a lot during the last couple of months, haven’t it.
- You’ve never eaten this kind of food before, haven’t you?
- As a student, you used to work part-time at a coffee shop, didn’t you?
- You used to be in the same history class as me, weren’t you?
7.
- Male African elephants weigh more than male Indian elephants, aren’t they?
- Nothing is the matter, isn’t it?
- You know how to operate this machine, can’t you?
- Their new house is on Oak Avenue, isn’t it?
8.
- You like to listen to classical music, aren’t you?
- It’s your turn to take the dog for a walk, doesn’t it?
- You haven’t finished reading that novel yet, haven’t you?
- You didn’t forget to bring your wallet, did you?
9.
- We can pick up a carton of milk on the way home, can’t we?
- Nobody is absent today, aren’t they?
- This pie looks delicious, isn’t it. It’s making my mouth water.
- That’s a new pair of boots, are they?
10.
- We don’t have a vocabulary quiz on Monday, are we?
- It’s a nice day. Let’s go to the beach, shall we?
- You wouldn’t lie to me, won’t you?
- It’s already 7:00. They will be here soon, will they?