Questions, Answers, Negatives

Revise types of questions and have practice doing the exercises.

There are four main types of questions in English:

  • general or Yes / No-questions;
  • alternative  or Or-questions;
  • special or Wh-questions (a – to all memebers of the sentence except subject, b – questions to the subject or Who-questions);
  • disjunctive or Tag-questions.

There are also  negative questions:

  • general: Isn’t his house near here? Wasn’t he a pilot? Didn’t the doctor tell you?
  • special: Why didn’t the Dutch inhabit Australia?

Exercise 1. Form the general (Yes/No) questions.

Example: My brother likes skating. – Does my brother like skating?

  1. He translated a lot of letters into English.
  2. I had an early morning call at seven o’clock.
  3. Little children like to ask many questions.
  4. Their classes will last till four o’clock tomorrow.
  5. I’ve already done this task.
  6. She spends a lot of time on her English.
  7. My children are at college.
  8. They had supper at seven o’clock.
  9. I am going to play tennis in the evening.
  10. They were writing when I came.
  11. She can play the guitar very well.
  12. There are many people in the library now.
  13. Brazil won the football World Cup in 1994.
  14. He has already read a lot of English books.
  15. They have classes at 9 every day.

Exercise 2. Form the alternative questions to the words in bold.

Example: My brother likes skating. (3)

  • Does my brother like skating or skiing?
  • Does your or his brother like skating?
  • Does your brother or Pete like skating?
  1. The film was exciting.(2)
  2. Thousands of people visited the exhibition. (2)
  3. He watches TV every day. (3)
  4. They can go to the country on Friday. (3)
  5. She has painted the walls. (3)

Exercise 3. Change the general questions into indirect ones. Begin your sentences with Do you know, I wonder or Tell me please.

Example: Has he seen this movie before? – Do you know if/whether he has seen this movie before? Tell me please if/whether he has seen this movie before. I wonder if/ whether he has seen this movie before.

  1. Is it common to give a waiter a tip?
  2. Does he want to come round this evening?
  3. Did you go out last night?
  4. Are single-parent families becoming more common in Ukraine?
  5. Is there anything you are very proud of?
  6. Does she live in the flat above you?
  7. Do they watch satellite TV or cable TV?
  8. Does the Internet influence our daily life?
  9. Did you go to a nursery school?
  10. Have the police questioned a number of people about the crime?
  11. Are trains more reliable than buses?
  12. Has he arranged his meeting for tonight?
  13. Are there lots of historical monuments in Vienna?
  14. Is there a great mix of people in Paris?
  15. Did he book a room at the hotel?

Exercise 4. Form the negative questions.

Example: She took part in the performance. – Didn’t she take part in the performance? OR : Did she not take part in the performance?

  1. I went to the cinema with my friends.
  2. They usually go to bed very early.
  3. They had finished work by 5 o’clock.
  4. She will be studying at this time tomorrow.
  5. There was an old bridge here.
  6. He came home very late.
  7. She understands Spanish a little.
  8. They have a three-room flat.
  9. He has been to the USA lately.
  10. They are going to build a new house.
  11. Your son loves music.
  12. We are going to the theatre today.
  13. There will be a lot of people at the lecture today.
  14. We studied at college together.
  15. His friends liked the film very much.

Exercise 5. Form the tag questions.

Example: She has already come. – She has already come, hasn’t she?

  1. They will return in a month.
  2. Let’s buy a loaf of bread.
  3. Open the window.
  4. I am late.
  5. There is a theatre in the centre of the city.
  6. She has never been to the zoo.
  7. I am right.
  8. Don’t go there.
  9. Peter and Ann know English well.
  10. He didn’t do his homework.
  11. Let’s go to the country.
  12. There were no mistakes in his dictation.
  13. She won’t be playing the piano at twelve.
  14. They can’t speak German at all.
  15. She knows him.

Exercise 6. Correct the mistakes if any.

  1. Don’t forget to bring the book, will you?
  2. There aren’t any apples left, are they?
  3. He is sure to come, doesn’t he?
  4. Let’s come a bit earlier to have better seats, don’t we?
  5. It isn’t raining now, is it?
  6. You and I talked to him last week, didn’t you?
  7. He won’t be leaving tomorrow, will he?
  8. She hasn’t been afraid of anything, hasn’t she?
  9. They have got two children, do they?
  10. The boys don’t have classes today, do they?
  11. I  am to blame, aren’t I?
  12. We like to swim in the swimming-pool, do we?
  13. Nobody has come, don’t they?
  14. Please turn off the light, don’t you?
  15. He has never come back, hasn’t he?

Exercise 7. Put the words into the correct order (you must get special questions).

  1. time, his, always, who, in, is, lessons, for?
  2. going, what, her, about, he, week, is, to, in, write, to?
  3. about, did, speak, in, last, what, week, class, you?
  4. this, you, read, how, month, books, have, many?
  5. people, the, to, at, prefer, sometimes, do, study, why, library?
  6. many, France, he, been, how, to, times, has?
  7. kind, brave, we, of, call, people, what, do?
  8. draws, which, them, well, of?
  9. today, have, the, what, radio, heard, on, news, you?
  10. USA, states, in, there, the, many, are, how?

Exercise 8. Correct the mistakes if any.

  1. How often you have your English classes?
  2. What you do at English lessons?
  3. What you prepared for your lesson?
  4. Who were absent from the previous lesson?
  5. How many points you got for your exam?
  6. Who do you usually go home with?
  7. What countries the USA borders on?
  8. When did the briefing take place?
  9. Who knows this district well?
  10. Who did phone yesterday?
  11. How long you have been studying English?

Exercise 9. Form the special questions to the words in bold (the number of questions is given in brackets).

Example: He went to the theatre. (3) – Who went to the theatre? What did he do? Where did he go?

  1. My working day lasts eight hours. (3)
  2. They discussed a lot of articles on economics last weekend. (6)
  3. I have read this book in the original. (3)
  4. They were watching TV when I came. (4)
  5. I was absent because I was ill. (2)
  6. It took me two hours to get there. (2)
  7. They are going to travel by car. (3)
  8. I always speak English to him. (3)
  9. She will do the work in two days’ time. (3)
  10. I taught him to swim. (3)

Exercise 10. Change the special questions into indirect ones. Begin your sentence with Do you know, I wonder, or Tell me please.

Example: What does the boss want? – Do you know what the boss wants? Tell me please what the boss wants.

  1. How long does take him to get there?
  2. When did he meet her for the first time?
  3. Who objects to Sunday work?
  4. What is his date of birth?
  5. Whose book is it?
  6. When will the next conference take place?
  7. How well does she play the piano?
  8. Why are they buying a new house?
  9. How long will the interview last?
  10. What kind of chocolate tastes best?
  11. Where did they spend their vacation?
  12. Who does he know from group 3?
  13. How much does it cost to repair a bicycle?
  14. How long have you known the Browns?
  15. Whose bag is on the table?

Exercise 11. Open the brackets and translate into English short replies with So … or Neither / Nor …

Example: He knows English – (Она тоже.) – So does she.
She is not going there. – (Они тоже.) – Neither / Nor are they.

  1. I am dead with hunger. (Мы тоже.) –
  2. We are very grateful to him. (Я тоже.) –
  3. My brother can’t draw. (Мой тоже.) –
  4. We’ll be meeting in the hall. (Они тоже.) –
  5. My father always gives me good advice. (Мой тоже.) –
  6. She did not go to the country because the weather was awful. – (Он тоже.) –
  7. My sister’s son has made much progress in English lately. – (Наш тоже.)
  8. We’ll soon join them. – (Мы тоже.)
  9. I am not at all upset. – (Я тоже.)
  10. They enjoyed themselves at Jane’s party. – (Мы тоже.)
  11. I never watch TV. – (Я тоже.)
  12. She has to get up early. – (Они тоже.)
  13. He hasn’t got a car. – (Она тоже.)
  14. He is on the phone now. – (Мы тоже.)
  15. Nick can afford to buy a new house. – (Анна тоже.)

Exercise 12. Show your disagreement (see the example).

Example: I did not like the film. – Didn’t you? I did. He wants to go to the country. – Does he? I don’t.

  1. I feel tired.
  2. He is eager to go to Great Britain.
  3. She has never been to the Netherlands.
  4. I don’t like chemistry.
  5. I am fond of the last book by this writer.
  6. He is shocked with the news.
  7. I like jogging in the morning.
  8. He hasn’t done the work yet.
  9. We can play tennis well.
  10. We can’t stay here any longer.