Some odds

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Hi. I have done some tests and the keys really have addled me a little bit. Can we discuss it? I will underline my answers which contradict to the keys.

'I'm going to have to cancel this evening. I'm still at work' . 'Oh, things are still really hectic, are/aren't they?' But the key says I'm wrong.

'Do you know if/whether the victim had been staying in this hotel immediately prior to the attack'. Shouldn't we use whether instead of if in indirect speech?

'Honestly, I can't trust you to do anything. You can't have lost your passport. Could you tell me where [did] you put it after the holiday?' I think without did it goes well, doesn't it?

''Have you seen my new puppy? He's worth 250 pounds.' 'He's lovely. He is a pedigree then, isn't he/is he?

I love sseing Robbie live. He is such a good dancer. Yes, isn't he?' An odd construction. ''Is he?' will be better, I guess.

Thank you in advance.

Delmobile · Accepted Answer

I'm a native speaker but not a grammarian, but I will try to help.

1) "Are they?" means the speaker is asking whether things are still hectic or not. His friend has said he's still at work; the speaker assumes that things must still be hectic but does not know for sure. This does seem the more correct of the two choices, especially with the "oh," another interrogative, in front of the question. If the speaker had said, "Yeah, things are still really hectic..." then "aren't they" would be more correct; the speaker would be agreeing that things are crazy and understands why his friend has to cancel.

2) "If" is correct here. Here's an eHow that lays out "whether" and "if" usage pretty well: http://www.ehow.com/how_2122453_use-whether-if.html (The instructions to "say it aloud and see if it sounds funny" won't be very valuable to a non-native speaker, though [:)])

3) Is the key telling you that "did" is necessary? I agree, it sounds weird. I would not say "did" in this example.

4) I've never heard "is a pedigree," only "has a pedigree." Like the first example, whether the negative is used depends on if the speaker already knows the information or not. Although the first speaker has just said the dog is worth a lot of money, the second speaker is making sure that it is in fact pedigreed: "He has a pedigree then, has he?" (By the way, this is a very BE-sounding sentence to me.)

5) This is yet another example of the "does the speaker know the information" thing. The first person has said that Robbie is a good dancer. The second speaker says "Yes..." which indicates that she already agrees that yes, Robbie IS a good dancer, and emphasizes her agreement by adding, "isn't he" at the end of her sentence.

Fandorin · Answer

Thank you for replying.

Delmobile4) I've never heard "is a pedigree," only "has a pedigree."

It was my typo.

Delmobile1) "Are they?" means the speaker is asking whether things are still hectic or not.

But the question tag "aren't they" actualizes the same, doesn't it?

Delmobile(By the way, this is a very BE-sounding sentence to me.)

Yes, to me too. It reminds me of Tim Roth, using so much "then, eh and question tags".

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