A generalized question tag in English

Abstract

In several (colloquial) varieties of English around the world, the tag question is reduced to a single generalized invariant tag ‘isn't it?’. This is used irrespective of the general structure and semantic content of the matrix or main, superordinate clause that embeds it. Linguists started debating seriously on the actual use of tag questions in English since the early 1960s and 70s. The debates then were particularly focused on the use of tags on (elliptical) imperatives, with many concluding that the auxiliary in the imperative main clause is an elliptical will that serves as the source of input for the tag that is appended (Katz & Postal, 1964; Postal, 1966). Arbini (1969) discussed the putative parallel between tag imperatives and tag questions, and other early discussions on tags include Bolinger (1967), Huddleston (1970), and Klima (1964). The present discussion looks to a different direction. As already implied, it focuses on the emergence of isn't it? as a generalized invariant tag.

“Her sentence is correct, isn't it?”: Regulative discourse in English medium classrooms

“…Research on varieties of English around the world shows that English tag questions are commonly reduced to the generalized invariant tag, isn't it? (Achiri-Taboh, 2015). In British English, a source language of many World Englishes, the tag has become standardized and is used across age groups and social contexts, in contrast to a parallel form, innit, widely in used in colloquial London dialect (Torgersen & Gabrielatos, 2009) and primarily by adolescents (Palacio Martínez, 2014).…”

The Discourse Particle nàa in Cameroonian Colloquial English

“…This is evidenced by the fact that such constructions always trigger a response as question tags normally do, and the response is usually of the required type. Note that general question tags are quite commonly used in standard varieties of English -see Achiri-Taboh (2015) for instance.…”

“…One fact that corroborates my conjecture here is that even when people get to use real question tags, it is usually only the general tag 'isn't it?' that is used across the entire inflectional paradigm of English question tags (see Achiri-Taboh, 2015).…”

The Assertive Clause Hypothesis, Performative Sentences and the Adjacency Condition on Question Tags

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AbstractThis article is a continuation of my recent work (Achiri-Taboh, 2015) in which I have examined isn't it? as a generalized invariant tag (GIT) used throughout the inflectional paradigm of question tags appended to declarative anchor clauses in different spoken varieties of English around the world.

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