Question Formation: Yes/No, WH- and Tag Questions

Question formation is the way we arrange words to ask something. A yes/no question checks information, a WH- question asks for a detail, and a tag question adds a short check to a statement. Start with the examples below, then try the three-question interactive quiz.

Yes/no questions: rules and examples

Yes/no questions are also called closed or polar questions. They invite a yes or no response, although people often give more information. The usual pattern depends on the verb.

• Be: Put be before the subject. “The room is ready” becomes “Is the room ready?” No extra do is needed.
• Another auxiliary: Move the first auxiliary before the subject. “They have finished” becomes “Have they finished?” “She has been waiting” becomes “Has she been waiting?”
• A modal: Put can, will, should or another modal before the subject. “You can join us” becomes “Can you join us?”
• Present simple: Use do or does with an ordinary main verb. “He works here” becomes “Does he work here?”
• Past simple: Use did plus the base verb. “They arrived early” becomes “Did they arrive early?”

After does or did, the main verb stays in its base form: “Does she know?” and “Did she go?” The auxiliary already shows the grammatical change. Do not write “Does she knows?” or “Did she went?”

With possession, “Do you have a pen?” is standard in both British and American English. “Have you got a pen?” is another common pattern. Contrast these with auxiliary have in “Have you finished?”

Short answers to yes/no questions

• Are you ready? — Yes, I am. / No, I’m not.
• Does Noor work here? — Yes, she does. / No, she doesn’t.
• Did the guests arrive? — Yes, they did. / No, they didn’t.
• Can they join us? — Yes, they can. / No, they can’t.

For these short answers, match the auxiliary or modal to the question and change the subject pronoun as needed. “Are you ready?” is answered with “I am,” not “you are,” when you speak about yourself.

WH- questions: ask for specific information

Use who for a person, what for a thing or action, which for a choice, whose for possession, where for a place, when for a time and why for a reason. How asks about manner or combines with words such as much, many and long.

For many direct questions, place the question word before the yes/no structure: “Do you study?” becomes “Where do you study?” “Will the class start?” becomes “When will the class start?” “Is she waiting?” becomes “Why is she waiting?”

Subject questions are different

When who or what is the subject, do not add do, does or did just to form an ordinary affirmative question.

• Subject: “Who called you?” asks which person made the call.
• Object: “Who did you call?” asks which person received your call.
• Subject: “What happened?” asks about the event itself.

Compare “Maya called Arun.” Who called Arun? replaces Maya, the subject. Who did Maya call? replaces Arun, the object. This contrast is more useful than memorising a rule that every question needs do.

Tag questions: check or confirm information

A tag adds a short question after a statement. For the usual confirmation pattern, a positive statement takes a negative tag, and a negative statement takes a positive tag. Match the auxiliary and subject pronoun.

• She is your neighbour, isn’t she?
• You have finished the task, haven’t you?
• They don’t work here, do they?
• Ravi called yesterday, didn’t he?
• I’m next, aren’t I?
• Let’s start, shall we?

A falling tone often suggests that the speaker expects agreement; a rising tone can show a more genuine check. This is a common pattern, not an absolute rule for every tag. Same-polarity tags, such as “You like this, do you?”, can occur as reactions, with their meaning shaped by tone and context.

Indirect, negative, echo and rhetorical questions

Indirect questions: After an introduction such as “Can you tell me,” use statement order in the embedded question: “Can you tell me where the class starts?” For a yes/no question, use if or whether: “Do you know whether the class has started?” The outer question keeps its normal question order.

Negative questions: “Didn’t you receive the message?” may express surprise or check an expectation. Answer according to the facts: “Yes, I did” means you received it; “No, I didn’t” means you did not.

Echo questions: A listener may repeat information to check it: “You paid how much?” Such conversational patterns explain why a sentence with statement order is not automatically wrong in every context.

Rhetorical questions: These make a point instead of seeking an actual answer. If a speaker looks at an overflowing bin and says “Could this room be any messier?” without expecting a reply, the question is rhetorical. Context determines the purpose.

Three quick corrections

Try each correction before opening its answer. Then use the interactive quiz on this page for mixed practice.

1. Make a neutral direct question

Correct “Where you are going?”

2. Keep the base verb

Correct “Did she bought a ticket?”

3. Use statement order inside an indirect question

Correct “Can you tell me where does he live?”

Keep practising

Write a yes/no question, a WH- question and a confirmation tag about the same situation. For a class, try: “Does the class start at six?”, “When does the class start?” and “The class starts at six, doesn’t it?”

Take the three-question quiz, continue with daily English practice or explore the free learning app.

Grammar references: British Council’s question forms and question tags. Examples and exercises here are written for English Skill Studio.