These questions ask you to recognise why a speaker uses a negative question, build its word order, or give a short answer that matches a stated fact. Keep formation and meaning as two separate decisions.
Choose the auxiliary, then follow the facts
First decide whether the situation is neutral or whether the speaker expected something and is checking it with surprise. A negative question suits the second purpose: a traveller who expected an early train might ask, “Hasn't it left yet?”
| Signal | Form to use |
|---|---|
| A lexical verb in the present or past simple | Use do, does or did, add not, and keep the main verb bare: “Didn't Arun lock the shed?” |
| Be, a modal, or have in a perfect form | Move that auxiliary before the subject; do not add do: “Isn't the soup warm?” and “Couldn't Jo stay?” |
| A contracted negative question | Put the contracted auxiliary before the subject: “Won't the lights switch on?” |
| A full negative question | Use auxiliary plus subject plus not plus the remaining verb phrase: “Did Priya not send the note?” |
| A short answer | Ignore the negative wording and check the fact. A true positive fact takes yes plus a positive auxiliary; a false positive fact takes no plus a negative auxiliary. Repeat the auxiliary used by the question. |
For example, suppose Sam can skate. The clear reply to “Can't Sam skate?” is “Yes, he can.” If Sam cannot skate, the clear reply is “No, he can't.” The opening word and the auxiliary point in the same direction, so the listener does not have to guess what a bare yes or no means.
Where mistakes come from
- Do is added beside be or a perfect auxiliary. These verbs already carry inversion and negation, so a second auxiliary produces forms such as does plus be or do plus have plus a participle instead of the required negative question.
- A full form copies contracted order and puts not before the subject. Without a contraction, keep the subject between the auxiliary and not; moving not forward gives the wrong standard pattern.
- The main verb keeps its past or third-person ending after do. Tense and agreement are already carried by did or does, so the following lexical verb must be bare.
- The reply follows the negative wording instead of the stated fact. Pair yes with a positive auxiliary when the positive proposition is true, and no with a negative auxiliary when it is false; do not cross the two signals or replace the auxiliary with a lexical verb.
Try it
A supervisor believed the report had already been filed and is now surprised that it is missing. Which question best expresses that expectation?
- Will you file the report?
- Do you file the report?
- Did you file reports?
- Haven't you filed the report?
Select all sentences that use standard word order for a full, non-contracted negative question.
- Did the nurse not call the pharmacy?
- Does not the scanner read this label?
- Was the gate not locked at noon?
- Could the invoice not be located?
Transform "You did not reserve the conference room" into a contracted negative question. Replace [You did not] to complete: "___ reserve the conference room?"