Question Tag: "few," "little," "hardly," "scarcely," "rarely," "seldom," and "barely"

Have you ever noticed that some words in the English language have a negative meaning? 

Words like "few," "little," "hardly," "scarcely," "rarely," "seldom," and "barely" all have negative connotations, and when we add a question tag to a sentence that contains one of these words, we have to consider it negative.

But what's interesting is that when we add a question tag to a sentence with one of these negative words, the tag is actually positive. 

For example, consider the sentence, 
"There were few people at the party, were there?" 

The word "few" has a negative connotation because it means there were not many people at the party. 
However, the question tag "were there?" is positive because it seeks agreement from the listener.

Similarly, if we take the sentence 
"I can hardly believe my eyes, can I?"

The word "hardly" suggests that the speaker is finding it difficult to believe what they are seeing, but the tag "can I?" seeks agreement from the listener, turning the tag into a positive statement.

This phenomenon happens because the question tag is meant to seek agreement from the listener, regardless of whether the sentence itself is positive or negative. So, when we add a tag to a sentence with a negative word, the tag becomes positive to seek agreement.

In conclusion, it's fascinating to see how language works and how the placement of words in a sentence can affect its overall meaning. Even something as small as a question tag can completely change the tone and interpretation of a sentence.

question tags using the negative words "few," "little," "hardly," "scarcely," "rarely," "seldom," and "barely":

  1. There are few people here, _____? a) are they? b) aren't they? c) were they? d) weren't they?

  2. He had little time to complete the task, _____? a) had he? b) didn't he? c) did he? d) does he?

  3. She can hardly believe her luck, _____? a) can't she? b) can she? c) couldn't she? d) could she?

  4. Scarcely anyone passed the exam, _____? a) did they? b) didn't they? c) were they? d) weren't they?

  5. They rarely go to the movies, _____? a) do they? b) don't they? c) did they? d) didn't they?

  6. Seldom do we get such an opportunity, _____? a) do we? b) don't we? c) did we? d) didn't we?

  7. Barely a day goes by without some kind of drama, _____? a) does it? b) doesn't it? c) did it? d) didn't it?

Answers:

  1. b) aren't they?
  2. a) had he?
  3. a) can't she?
  4. a) did they?
  5. a) do they?
  6. a) do we?
  7. b) doesn't it?
Prof. Kesari 
Maharashtra, India.