Answering Negative Questions

This conversation is a great example of a very common mistake students make when answering questions: 

Student: "Hello Teacher, I can't come to class today because I feel sick" 

Me: "Okay Thao, so we are not studying tonight, right?"

Student: "Yes"

Me: "We are studying?"

Student: "No" 

Me: "..............khong hieu!!"

This happens all the time and it's because the Vietnamese and foreigners answer questions differently. In English, if someone asks you a question in the negative form and you agree, your answer must be negative as well. Let's look at the conversation again:

Student: "Hello Teacher, I can't come to class today because I feel sick" 

Me: "Okay Thao, so we are not studying tonight, right? 

Student: "No"

Me: "Ok, see you next time."

Student: "Goodnight teacher" 

"We are not studying English tonight, right?" is a negative question because it has the negative particle "are not". Other negative particles include: don't, won't, can't, shouldn't, couldn't, wouldn't. If you hear any of these in a question and you agree with the question you must answer no. 

Let's look at two more examples:

1.     Question:"You didn't finish your homework?"

        Correct Answer: "No, I didn't finish my homework" or "Yes, I did finish my homework" 

2.     Question: "Don't you like donuts?"

        Correct Answer: "No, I don't like donuts" or "Yes, I do like donuts" 

We can say "Yes, I do" or "No I don't" but we can NEVER say "Yes, I don't" 

English speakers often ask questions in negative forms so remember to answer correctly. Practice every day and you will get better. 

You can check out my Facebook page "Business English Class" for more help on learning English. See you next time.