Why do British always use tag questions?

Question

Ok. I know I'm a little bit weird or curious but I've noticed whenever I watch British movies they always use tag questions

for e.g : Are you sure that's a real spell ? Well, it's not very good, is it ? (haha)
It's a lovely day, isn't it?
Oh that would be lovely, wouldn't it?
My brother is on the show, isn't he handsome?

Answer 1

It's just a trait of the language here.



Common reasons we subconsciously slip into it:

- We want to make sure we're not boring them: It involves them a bit.

- We want to show that we're not making bold statements: It softens statements and shows uncertainty.

- Trying to get some kind of answer out of them by naturally seguing into it.



You won't see the confident, assertive characters using tag questions because they're so decided. Using tags is a lot like back-channelling (where people say "uh-huh" "yeah" "mhm" when someone else talks) in that it shows co-operation and serves to make the tone a bit more casual and friendly.



So you'd want to use them when talking with a friend or when asking someone an uncomfortable question but not when you're at that important interview and trying to look like you know what you're talking about. Sometimes they can also be used sarcastically by adding them after an obvious statement ("you don't know what the hell you're talking about, do you?"), which suits the English perfectly.



Dunno why we use them, but they're awesome, aren't they? :)

Answer 2

Are you sure it's just The British movies?! Everyone speaking English can use tag questions. It's just a grammatical use of the English language and doesn't have anything to do with a group of people or just a particular country, at least about tag questions.

Answer 3

I think everyone speaks like that, don't you?



I mean seriously, it seems perfectly normal, doesn't it?

Answer 4

Oh do we?, really?