The correct option to complete the sentence "The managing director did not pay his staff last month ....?" is
D. did he.
Step-by-Step Explanation:
- Understanding the Sentence Structure:
- The sentence begins with a statement: "The managing director did not pay his staff last month." This is a negative statement.
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The second part of the sentence is a question tag, which is a short question added to the end of a statement to confirm or check information.
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Forming Question Tags:
- In English, when a statement is negative, the question tag that follows is usually positive. Conversely, if the statement is positive, the question tag is negative.
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Since the statement is negative ("did not pay"), the question tag must be positive.
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Analyzing the Options:
- A. didn't he: This option is incorrect because it is also negative. It would be appropriate if the statement were positive (e.g., "The managing director paid his staff last month, didn't he?").
- B. had he not: This option is incorrect because it uses a different tense (past perfect) and is also negative. It does not fit the structure of the original statement.
- C. is not it: This option is incorrect because it does not match the tense of the main verb "did." The phrase "is not it" is not a proper question tag for a past tense statement.
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D. did he: This is the correct option. It is a positive question tag that matches the past tense of the main verb "did" in the statement.
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Why Option D is Correct:
- The question tag "did he" is in the same tense as the main verb "did" in the statement. It confirms the information in a positive form, which is appropriate given that the statement is negative.
Summary of Why Other Options are Incorrect:
- A. didn't he: Negative question tag for a negative statement.
- B. had he not: Incorrect tense and negative form.
- C. is not it: Incorrect tense and does not fit the context.
Revision Summary:
- Question tags are used to confirm information and must match the statement's polarity (negative/positive).
- A negative statement requires a positive question tag.
- The correct question tag for "did not" is "did he."
- Always ensure the tense of the question tag matches the main verb in the statement.