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Learning Objectives

2 minutes reading
✓
Construct accurate question tags (e.g., haven't you?, isn't it?) to verify facts and check agreement
✓
Employ "echo questions" to isolate and confirm specific details like numbers, dates, or names
✓
Reformulate complex instructions using summarizing phrases ("So, what you mean is...") to prove comprehension
✓
Differentiate between genuine questions (rising intonation) and confirmation checks (falling intonation)
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Key for this lesson

Moving from passive listening to active verification using specific grammatical tools and discourse markers. The tone should be collaborative, attentive, and precise.

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Grammar / Communication Explanation

4 minutes reading
Question Tags for Confirmation

Check if You Are Right

We add a mini-question at the end of a statement to check if we are right or to ask for agreement.

Positive Statement → Negative Tag
Negative Statement → Positive Tag

The Auxiliary: Must match the main verb tense.

  • Present Simple (be): "You are the manager, aren't you?"
  • Present Simple (other verbs): "You work in Sales, don't you?" (Use do/does)
  • Past Simple: "They sent the file, didn't they?" (Use did)
  • Modals: "We can start, can't we?"
Echo Questions

Repeat to Confirm

Used when you didn't hear a specific detail or are surprised by it. You repeat the key word with a rising question intonation.

Speaker A: "We need to cut the budget by 50%."

Speaker B (Echo): "By 50%?"

Summarizing Phrases (The "Recap")

Before ending a conversation, use these to ensure alignment:

✅ "So, just to confirm..."
✅ "If I understood you correctly,..."
✅ "Let me just read that back to you."
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Learning Tip

Question tags with falling intonation sound like you already know the answer and are just confirming. Rising intonation sounds like a genuine question.

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Context & Usage Examples

5 minutes reading

Professional Contexts

👥 Team Discussion (Tag): "We're meeting in the main boardroom today, aren't we?"
📦 Client Service (Recap): "So, just to confirm, you'd like the delivery split into two separate shipments?"
📋 Instructions (Reformulation): "If I understand correctly, I need to finish the draft before I contact the design team?"
🤝 Negotiation Check (Tag): "You wouldn't accept a lower offer, would you?"
💻 IT Support (Echo): "Speaker A: The error code is 404-B. Speaker B: 404-B? Got it."

Everyday Contexts

🍽️ Social Arrangements: "You eat seafood, don't you? I'm booking the restaurant now."
✈️ Travel: "The flight is delayed by two hours? Two hours?"
🌧️ General Fact Check: "It hasn't rained this much since 2010, has it?"
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Correct Examples & Common Mistakes

6 minutes reading
1

The "Isn't It" Universal Tag

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"You are coming to the party, isn't it?"

"Isn't it" only works if the subject is "it"

✓
"You are coming to the party, aren't you?"

You must match the subject (You → are → aren't)

2

Tense Mismatch

✗
"He left early, doesn't he?"

Tense mismatch: "left" is past, "doesn't" is present

✓
"He left early, didn't he?"

"Left" is past tense, so the tag must use the past auxiliary "did"

3

Intonation Confusion (Checking vs. Asking)

✗
"The meeting is at 2 PM, isn't it? ⤴" (Rising pitch)

Sounds like you don't know - a genuine question

✓
"The meeting is at 2 PM, isn't it? ⤵" (Falling pitch)

Sounds like you are just confirming what you already believe (99% sure)

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Listening Activity

6 minutes

Context: A call between a Supplier (Mark) and a Logistics Manager (Sarah). They are trying to resolve a shipping error.

🎵 Audio: Mark and Sarah discuss shipping
Ready
0:00 / 0:00
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Speed:

Sarah: Hi Mark, thanks for picking up. I'm looking at the order manifest for the Delta Project.

Mark: Hi Sarah. Is there an issue with the quantities?

Sarah: A slight confusion. The manifest says 500 units, but your email mentioned a split delivery.

Mark: Ah, right. Let me clarify that. We are shipping 500 units total.

Sarah: 500 total? Okay.

Mark: Yes. But we're sending 200 now and 300 next week. That works for you, doesn't it?

Sarah: Well, actually, we need at least 250 immediately.

Mark: 250? So, what you're saying is the initial batch is too small?

Sarah: Exactly. We have a deadline on Tuesday. You can increase the first shipment, can't you?

Mark: I'll have to check with the warehouse. Just to confirm, if we send 250 today, you're happy to wait for the rest until next Friday?

Sarah: Yes, that would be perfect. You'll email me the confirmation, won't you?

Mark: I'll do it right now.

Question 1: Which specific detail does Sarah "echo" to ensure she heard it right?

💡 Hint: Listen for when Sarah repeats a number back to Mark.

Question 2: Mark asks: "That works for you, doesn't it?" Does he expect a "Yes" or a "No"?

💡 Hint: Positive statement + negative tag = expectation of agreement.

Question 3: How does Mark rephrase Sarah's problem to show he understands?

💡 Hint: Listen for "So, what you're saying is..."

Question 4: Sarah uses a question tag at the end ("...won't you?"). Why?

💡 Hint: She wants to ensure he sends the email.
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Interactive Quiz

4 minutes

Choose the most appropriate option for each clarification situation:

1

You want to check if a colleague has the key. Which sentence is grammatically correct?

A You have the key, don't you?
B You have the key, haven't you?
C You have the key, isn't it?
2

Your boss gives you complex instructions. You want to summarize them to ensure you understood. You say:

A Repeat that.
B So, just to recap, I need to prioritize the budget report first?
C You said the budget report, didn't you?
3

Which tag completes this sentence correctly?
"We haven't received the feedback yet, ______?"

A haven't we?
B have we?
C did we?
4

A client says: "We need the red version, not the blue." You are surprised because they usually buy blue. You say:

A The red version?
B Red, isn't it?
C You want red, don't you?
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Practice Exercises

7 minutes

Exercise A: Tag Team (Gap Fill)

Complete the sentences with the correct question tag.

1.

You are the new project lead, _________?

💡 Hint: "You are" (positive) → negative tag with "are"
2.

She didn't sign the contract, _________?

💡 Hint: "didn't" (negative) → positive tag with "did"
3.

We should leave by 5:00 PM, _________?

💡 Hint: "should" (positive modal) → negative tag with "should"
4.

The CEO hasn't arrived yet, _________?

💡 Hint: "hasn't" (negative) → positive tag with "has"
5.

It costs $200, _________?

💡 Hint: "costs" (present simple, positive) → "doesn't" + subject "it"

Exercise B: The Clarification Loop (Matching)

Match the vague statement (1-3) with the best clarification response (A-C). Type the letter for each.

Statements:

1. "The figures look wrong."

2. "I need it ASAP."

3. "Change the design."

Clarification Responses:

A. "So, to clarify, do you mean the color scheme or the layout?"

B. "When you say 'wrong', do you mean the calculation or the data source?"

C. "Just to confirm, does 'ASAP' mean by close of business today?"

Exercise C: Rewrite for Clarity

Rewrite the direct statement into a polite confirmation check using the prompt given.

1.

Statement: You will send the agenda.
Prompt: You will send the agenda, _________?

💡 Hint: "will" (positive) → negative tag "won't"
2.

Statement: I want to check if the meeting is mandatory.
Prompt: The meeting is mandatory, _________?

💡 Hint: "is" (positive) → negative tag "isn't"
3.

Statement: You said 15%. I want to make sure.
Prompt: Did you say _________?

💡 Hint: This is an echo question - repeat the key detail
🗣️

Speaking Practice

4 minutes
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Preparation for Class

Use these tasks to prepare for speaking practice with your teacher.

💼 Task 1: Controlled - The Tag Drills

The teacher/partner reads a statement. You must immediately add the correct tag.

  • "It's cold today." → "...isn't it?"
  • "You called him." → "...didn't you?"
  • "They can't come." → "...can they?"
🤝 Task 2: Guided - The Food Order

You are ordering lunch for the team (Sandwiches). Your partner plays the deli staff.

  • Order 3 types of sandwiches.
  • The staff member repeats it back wrong.
  • Use Echo Questions ("Ham? No, I said lamb") and Clarifying Phrases ("No, just to be clear, I need...") to correct them.
  • End with a tag to check the delivery time ("It'll be here by 12, won't it?").
🎤 Task 3: Free - The End of the Meeting

You have just finished a meeting about a new marketing plan. Summarize the three main action points for your colleagues to make sure everyone agrees. Use phrases like:

  • "So, before we finish, let me recap..."
  • "We agreed on X, didn't we?"
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3 Key Takeaways

1. Tags: Use Question Tags (..., didn't you?) to check information you think you already know.
2. Echoes: Repeat single words/numbers with rising intonation to check surprising or unclear details ("Friday?").
3. Recapping: Always summarize key points at the end of a call using "So, just to confirm..." to avoid errors.

Signal Words/Phrases

💬 If I understood correctly...
💬 What you mean is...
💬 ..., right? (Informal but common tag for "correct?")

Study Tips

1️⃣ The "Right?" Diet: Many learners say "Right?" for every tag. Stop doing this. Practice using the correct auxiliary (isn't it, don't you, haven't we) for one week.
2️⃣ Active Listening: In your next meeting, do not just say "Okay" when someone gives you a task. Force yourself to say: "Just to confirm, you want me to..."
3️⃣ Radio Echo: Listen to an interview (podcast/radio). Notice how often the interviewer repeats the last few words the guest said to encourage them to continue or to clarify. Try to mimic this.
Module 2 Quiz →