How to use 是吗、对吗、好吗
⋯⋯是吗 / 对吗 / 好吗 ?
A statement can become a request for confirmation when followed by a short tag containing 吗. The tag has its own checking word, such as 是, 对, or 好. This lets the speaker present a full idea first and then ask the listener to respond to that idea.
是吗 commonly checks or reacts to information, while 对吗 asks whether something is correct. 好吗 asks for agreement with a proposal or request. The appropriate choice follows the speaker's purpose. English may translate several of these with “right?” or “OK?”, but they are not interchangeable in every setting. Intonation can also make a tag sound curious, insistent, or surprised.
Examples with pinyin and English
这样做， 对吗？
Do it like this, right?
你们见过， 对吗？
You’ve met, right?
他们昨天都没去， 是吗？
They didn't go yesterday, right?
你没来过， 是吗？
You haven't been here, right?
我们去你家， 好吗？
Let's go to your place, OK?
What to remember
- Keep the tag after the full clause.
- Use 对吗 for checking correctness.
- Use 好吗 for accepting a proposal.
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Source and editorial notes
Explanation rewritten for Laowai. Examples are adapted from the Laowai English grammar curriculum, with editorial corrections where needed. The original curriculum credits AllSet Learning’s Chinese Grammar Wiki as used with permission. Read the retained source credits.
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