Question Tags with Negative Words Exercises

Words like nobody, nothing, never, nowhere, hardly, and barely have negative meaning even though they do not contain "not." Because the statement is already negative in meaning, the question tag must be positive. "Nobody came to the meeting, did they?" "Nothing happened, did it?" "You never eat breakfast, do you?" This catches many learners by surprise.

The pronoun in the tag depends on the negative word. Nobody, no one, somebody, someone use they (singular they): "Nobody told you, did they?" Nothing uses it: "Nothing is impossible, is it?" With never, hardly, barely, seldom, rarely, the tag pronoun matches the statement subject: "She never calls me, does she?" "You almost never go out, do you?" Recognising these hidden negatives and using positive tags is essential for B1-B2 level accuracy. This pattern is frequently tested in Cambridge B2 First and IELTS grammar sections, where examiners specifically look for correct polarity reversal with negative words.