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ESL forum >
Ask for help > question tag for (I am) sentence
question tag for (I am) sentence
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halimah129
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question tag for (I am) sentence
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Dear friends: I wonder wht the question tag for the sentence "I am very beautiful, ....................?" Is it "am I not?" or "amn �t I?" I really need your help. Thanks alot. |
23 Dec 2010
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sona21
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"aren�t I ?" or " ain�t I ?" |
23 Dec 2010
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zailda
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2 possible answers: "am I not?" or "aren �t I"?
And the latter is the most common.
"Ain�t I?" is substandard, isn�t it? |
23 Dec 2010
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edrodmedina
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I concur with zailda.
Wikipedia
Although ain �t is seldom found in formal writing, it is frequently used in more informal written settings, such as popular song lyrics.
Ain �t is obligatory in some fixed phrases, such as "You ain �t seen nothing yet". |
23 Dec 2010
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zailda
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"You ain �t seen nothing yet" wouldn �t be accepted as an answer at the branch of school I work, because the use of ain �t (unless it was a test based on "substandard" English or slang) and the use of the double negative (ain �t and nothing). |
23 Dec 2010
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edrodmedina
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"You ain �t seen nothin yet" is a popular phrase meaning that what is to come is even better. If you say "You haven �t seen anything as yet" it doesn �t qiute have the same meaining. |
23 Dec 2010
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yanogator
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Yes, Ed was giving a colloquial expression. The entertainer Al Jolson used to use it frequently.
To go back to the original question, "am I not" is correct, but extremely formal, and "aren �t I" is the usual way of completing the sentence.
Bruce |
23 Dec 2010
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zailda
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Yep, I �ve heard it in "Natural Born Killers". (Ed�s sentence) |
23 Dec 2010
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kaz76
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In Scotland, we usually say the amn �t I form. However, we teach students both forms. I think maybe amn �t I was actually used before becoming aren �t I. |
23 Dec 2010
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alien boy
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Etymologically speaking, "ain �t" used to be the correct formal contraction of "am not" until around about the 19th century...
Scottish English still retains many interesting older forms of English that were determined as non-standard by grammarians (primarily form London & thereabouts or America). Many of these grammarians decided upon rules based upon socio economic & political lines!
Cheers,
ab |
24 Dec 2010
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