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English Grammar Guide

Questions & Negatives

A1 Questions & Negatives

Section titled “ Questions & Negatives”

Statements are easy: I like tea. But the moment you want to ask “Do you like tea?” or say “I don’t like coffee” — English summons helper verbs (do, does, did) and rearranges word order. Mandarin? Slap 吗 (ma) on the end for yes/no questions, or put 不 (bù) / 没 (méi) before the verb for negatives. Same word order. Every time. This page is where Mandarin speakers learn that English is… not that chill.

Before this, know:
Present SimplePast SimpleBasic Sentence Structure (SVO)

The helper verb system — why English needs do/does/did

Section titled “The helper verb system — why English needs do/does/did”

In Mandarin, the verb itself often carries negation or gets a question particle:

你喜欢茶。 (Nǐ xǐhuān chá.) — You like tea. 你喜欢茶吗？ (Nǐ xǐhuān chá ma?) — Do you like tea? 我不喜欢咖啡。 (Wǒ bù xǐhuān kāfēi.) — I don’t like coffee.

Same word order. Three moods. English can’t do that — it needs a helper verb (also called auxiliary verb) to ask questions and make negatives in Present Simple and Past Simple:

Tense Helper (question) Helper (negative)
Present Simple Do / Does don’t / doesn’t
Past Simple Did didn’t

The main verb stays in base form after the helper. The helper carries the tense/person marking.

Yes/No questions — Do / Does / Did

Section titled “Yes/No questions — Do / Does / Did”

Present Simple questions

Section titled “Present Simple questions”
Subject Question form Example
I / You / We / They Do + subject + base verb Do you like tea?
He / She / It Does + subject + base verb Does she like tea?
Yes/No Question — Present Simple

Do/Does + Subject + base verb + …?

Do you speak English?

Article Noun Verb Adjective Preposition

Does he live in Beijing?

Article Noun Verb Adjective Preposition

Past Simple questions

Section titled “Past Simple questions”

Did for everyone — I, you, he, she, it, we, they:

Yes/No Question — Past Simple

Did + Subject + base verb + …?

Did you go to the party yesterday?

Article Noun Verb Adjective Preposition
You like pizza?
Do you like pizza?
Yes/no questions need Do/Does at the start — not just rising intonation on a statement.
Does she likes coffee?
Does she like coffee?
After Does, base verb with no -s: like, not likes.
Did you went home?
Did you go home?
After Did, base verb: go, not went.

Short answers — yes/no without repeating everything

Section titled “Short answers — yes/no without repeating everything”

English short answers repeat the helper verb, not the main verb:

Question ✅ Short answer ❌ Wrong
Do you like tea? Yes, I do. Yes, I like.
Does she work here? No, she doesn’t. No, she doesn’t work.
Did they go? Yes, they did. Yes, they went.
Short answers — the pattern
Present Simple

Do you like coffee? → Yes, I do. / No, I don’t.

Does he play guitar? → Yes, he does. / No, he doesn’t.

Past Simple

Did you finish? → Yes, I did. / No, I didn’t.

Did she call? → Yes, she did. / No, she didn’t.

Do you like tea? — Yes, I like.
Do you like tea? — Yes, I do.
Short answer repeats the helper verb (do), not the main verb.

Wh-questions — who, what, where, when, why, how

Section titled “Wh-questions — who, what, where, when, why, how”

Wh-questions ask for specific information. The question word replaces the missing piece.

The question words

Section titled “The question words”
Word Asks about Example
Who person (subject) Who called you?
What thing / action What do you want?
Where place Where do you live?
When time When did you arrive?
Why reason Why did she leave?
How manner / method How do you get to work?
Which choice from options Which color do you prefer?
How much/many quantity How much does it cost?

Formation — two patterns

Section titled “Formation — two patterns”

Pattern 1: Wh-word is NOT the subject (most common)

Wh-word + Do/Does/Did + Subject + base verb

Where do you live?

Article Noun Verb Adjective Preposition

What did she say?

Article Noun Verb Adjective Preposition

Pattern 2: Wh-word IS the subject (no do/does/did needed)

Who/What + verb (normal statement order)

Who called you?

Article Noun Verb Adjective Preposition

(Who = the person who called = subject. No helper needed.)

Where you live?
Where do you live?
Wh-question with non-subject wh-word → need do/does/did: Where do you live?
What did she said?
What did she say?
After did, base verb: say, not said.
Who did call you?
Who called you?
When who is the subject, no did: Who called you?

Negative sentences — don’t / doesn’t / didn’t

Section titled “Negative sentences — don’t / doesn’t / didn’t”

Present Simple negatives

Section titled “Present Simple negatives”
Subject Negative Example
I / You / We / They don’t + base verb I don’t like coffee.
He / She / It doesn’t + base verb She doesn’t like coffee.
Negative — Present Simple

Subject + don’t/doesn’t + base verb

I don’t understand this question.

Article Noun Verb Adjective Preposition

Past Simple negatives

Section titled “Past Simple negatives”

Didn’t for everyone + base verb:

Negative — Past Simple

Subject + didn’t + base verb

They didn’t come to the party.

Article Noun Verb Adjective Preposition

Be-verb questions and negatives — the exception

Section titled “Be-verb questions and negatives — the exception”

Be (am/is/are/was/were) doesn’t use do/does/did. It handles its own questions and negatives:

Statement Question Negative
You are tired. Are you tired? You aren’t tired.
She is happy. Is she happy? She isn’t happy.
They were late. Were they late? They weren’t late.

Is she a teacher?

Article Noun Verb Adjective Preposition
Does she is a teacher?
Is she a teacher?
With be, invert the verb directly — no do/does: Is she.
She doesn't is happy.
She isn't happy.
Be-verb negative → isn't, not doesn't is.

Question + negative combos

Section titled “Question + negative combos”

You can combine question and negative forms:

Don’t you like coffee?

Article Noun Verb Adjective Preposition

→ “Don’t you like coffee?” = surprised that you don’t. Not an insult. Just checking.

Didn’t she call you yesterday?

Article Noun Verb Adjective Preposition

→ “Didn’t she call you?” = I thought she did. Confirming.

Common errors — the greatest hits

Section titled “Common errors — the greatest hits”

Missing helper verb in questions

Section titled “Missing helper verb in questions”
What you want?
What do you want?
Insert do: What do you want?
Where she lives?
Where does she live?
She → does: Where does she live?

Wrong helper (do vs. does vs. did)

Section titled “Wrong helper (do vs. does vs. did)”
Do he like pizza?
Does he like pizza?
He → Does, not Do.
Does you understand?
Do you understand?
You → Do, not Does.

Double verb marking

Section titled “Double verb marking”
She doesn't likes him.
She doesn't like him.
Helper carries the -s. Main verb = base form.
I didn't saw him.
I didn't see him.
Didn't + base verb see.

Using “not” alone

Section titled “Using “not” alone”
I not understand.
I don't understand.
Need don't, not bare not.

Quick reference — all forms at a glance

Section titled “Quick reference — all forms at a glance”
Present Simple Past Simple
Statement I work. / She works. I worked. / She worked.
Question Do I work? / Does she work? Did I work? / Did she work?
Negative I don’t work. / She doesn’t work. I didn’t work. / She didn’t work.
Short yes Yes, I do. / Yes, she does. Yes, I did. / Yes, she did.
Short no No, I don’t. / No, she doesn’t. No, I didn’t. / No, she didn’t.
Questions & Negatives — Master Cheat Sheet

Yes/No (Present): Do/Does + S + base verb?

Yes/No (Past): Did + S + base verb?

Wh- (non-subject): Wh-word + Do/Does/Did + S + base verb?

Wh- (subject = who/what): Who/What + verb + …?

Negative (Present): S + don’t/doesn’t + base verb

Negative (Past): S + didn’t + base verb

Be questions: Am/Is/Are/Was/Were + S + …?

Try this right now

Section titled “Try this right now”

Take five statements about your day. Turn each into:

  1. A yes/no question
  2. A negative sentence
  3. A wh-question

Check every one for the correct helper verb. Say them aloud. If you catch yourself skipping do/does/did, you’re building the habit.

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