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In English it is possible to ask a yes-no question without using “Do you…?” or “Are you…?” and just use the S – V – O form.  When speaking, we indicate that we are asking a question by finishing the sentence with a rising tone:

You’re going home?  I thought you were planning on staying until 10 o’clock.
Grandmother’s out of the hospital?  I didn’t even know she was sick!
Tom got an A on his test?  That’s good news for a change.
You wrote a poem?  Oh, I’d like to hear it, if you don’t mind.

Note:
These type of questions (known as “declarative questions”) are used when:

1. the speaker wants to show interest, or
2. the speaker wants to show surprise.

More examples:

Pack your bags.  We’re going out of town for the weekend.
—We are?  I thought you had too much work to do.
You can stay at my place on vacation, but you’ll have to leave your cat at home.  I have a parakeet, you know.
—You do?  I didn’t know you were a bird lover.
Congratulations!  You got top score in the tournament.
—I did?  Wow, I didn’t think I had played that well.
We’ve sold our house and bought a sailboat.
—You have?  Why?
—We’re going to take a couple of years off and sail around the South Pacific.

English also has tag questions.  A tag question is a short question at the end of a sentence.  We ask tag questions when

1. we are seeking agreement, or
2. we want to confirm that we have correct information.

It’s hot out today, isn’t it?
Tom hasn’t come home yet, has he?

Note:

1. Positive sentences will have a negative tag question, and
2. Negative sentences will have a positive tag question.

Positive sentence, negative tag question:

It’s hot out today, isn’t it?
You ate at an Italian restaurant the other day, didn’t you?
You’ve finished your homework, haven’t you?
Sally’s turned out to be a fine young lady, hasn’t she?
This blue sweater will go well with my sports jacket, won’t it?

Negative sentence, positive tag question:

Tom hasn’t come home yet, has he?
I’ve never seen such a crowd before, have you?
The plants don’t need watering yet, do they?
The bus stop isn’t far off, is it?
Oh no, the train isn’t late again today, is it?

Exercise.  Answer the following questions, using the declarative questions You do? / He doesn’t? / They didn’t? etc.

Example:

Congratulations!  You got top score in the tournament.  — _________  Wow!  ==> Congratulations!  You got top score in the tournament.  —I did?  Wow!

1.    Jack and Jill had a baby boy. — _________  Oh, that’s nice.  I know they had wanted a son.
2.    Speak up.  Bob doesn’t hear very well. — _________  Why doesn’t he just get a hearing aid, then?
3.    I saw Harry last week. — _________  How’s he doing these days?
4.    Mary doesn’t have a car anymore, so you’ll have to pick her up on your way to work. — _________  Oh, I didn’t realize she was that bad off.
5.    I have to go to the dentist. — _________  Didn’t you go just the other month?
6.    Bill and Wanda didn’t go on their second honeymoon after all. — _________  That’s a shame.  I know they had been so looking forward to it.
7.    Sharon just got back from her trip. — _________  Did she have a good time?
8.    I’m sorry, sir, but apparently you and your wife didn’t pay your taxes? — _________  I thought we did.
9.    Have you heard?  The Mississippi bridge collapsed yesterday. — _________  Was anyone hurt?
10.    I didn’t sleep a wink last night. — _________  Why not?

Exercise.  Answer the following questions, using declarative questions like You have? / He will? / She hasn’t? etc.

Example:

Both Tom and Becky were in the hospital. — _________   How awful!  What happened? ==> Both Tom and Becky were in the hospital. —They were?  How awful!  What happened?

1.    Sam will oversee the project for our department. — _________  I didn’t know the boss still trusted him.
2.    I’ve decided to quit my job and become a pop singer. — _________  I don’t think that’s such a wise thing to do.
3.    Boycott the class.  Don’t worry, the teachers won’t flunk everybody. — _________  How can you be so sure?
4.    It’s nearly 6 o’clock, and Jane still hasn’t finished cleaning her room. — _________  I’m going to have to have a talk with that child.
5.    Have you heard?  Mr. Johnson isn’t retiring until next year. — _________  Oh man, that means I’m going to have to have him for trigonometry next semester.
6.    I’m not going to enter my apple pie in the county fair this year. — _________  That’s a shame.  You’d be a cinch to win the blue ribbon.
7.    Sit down and relax.  We have plenty of time before we have to board the plane. — _________  Aren’t you forgetting that we have to go through security, though?
8.    Congratulations, sir – you’re the ninth caller on WXMQ’s morning talk show. — _________  Oh, how embarrassing – I thought I was calling doctor’s office.
9.    We found the cows in Farmer MacGregor’s field.  They weren’t lost, after all.  — _________  I’m glad to hear that.
10.    It’s a good thing we had the car engine inspected.  The fan belt was so worn it was about to break. — _________  I had no idea it was in that bad a shape.

Exercise.  Complete the following sentences using an appropriate tag question.

Example:

Tom hasn’t come home yet, _________? ==> Tom hasn’t come home yet, has he?

1.    The teachers didn’t go on strike, _________?
2.    That sure was a hard test, _________?
3.    I can’t park here, _________?
4.    Karen likes chocolate cake, _________?
5.    I’m trying as hard as I can, _________?
6.    We’re not afraid of ghosts, _________?
7.    The Wilsons are a nice couple, _________?
8.    Tom isn’t six feet tall, _________?
9.    John has a large collection of baseball cards, _________?
10.    I shouldn’t water the plants every day, _________?

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