[Grammar] Is "right" officially a question tag?

[echelon]

Hello,

In the following sentence, is the word right officially considered (i.e. by grammarians) a question tag?

"She's married, right?"

 

[tedtmc]

No, it is OK in spoken English but not in written English.

not a teacher

 

[echelon]

No, it is OK in spoken English but not in written English.

not a teacher

Thanks for the reply, but please note that I did not ask if it was "ok" in written English.

I asked if grammarians consider the word "right" a Question Tag (such as "isn't it?").

 

[MASM]

Hello,

In the following sentence, is the word right officially considered (i.e. by grammarians) a question tag?

"She's married, right?"

Hello!

I'd say it is not technically a question tag. In this case a question tag would be "isn't she?".
"(Am I) right?" has the same sense, requesting for confirmation, but I'd treat it differently.

 

[echelon]

Let me rephrase the question:

What is the ", right?" part officially called by English grammarians?

Is it called a Question Tag? If not, what could it be?

 

[Raymott]

Let me rephrase the question:

What is the ", right?" part officially called by English grammarians?

Is it called a Question Tag? If not, what could it be?

In the absence of other answers, and given that you want to call it something, "question tag" probably works.
You must realise that English grammar is not "official". That sometimes causes problems because terms like this are conventions, not law.

But these might help:
Tag question - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
QUESTION TAG ? FREE QUESTION TAG information | Encyclopedia.com: Find QUESTION TAG research

 

[echelon]

I know there's no institution creating official rules for the English language. I asked what grammarians think about this.

Preferably respected grammarians who have published credible scientific works in the field of English grammar.

Anybody knows?

 

[Barb_D]

What you have here are people doing their best to get you an answer.

If you find someone who has published a grammatical treatise in a reputable publication and he or she has the time of day for you, then you'll get the answer you seek.

In the meantime, Ray's links were pretty clear to me.

 

[echelon]

What you have here are people doing their best to get you an answer.

Looking back at most of the answers in this thread, I would have to politely disagree... :roll:

 

[~Mav~]

*** NOT A TEACHER ***

I cannot judge how authentic and professional this article and its author are, but I thought it might help you in lack of other relevant results. (I've just googled a little... )

I was delighted to be asked to judge the competition again this year and it turned out to be a fascinating and entertaining 3 days. The quarterfinal rounds were run in British parliamentary style1 so that all the contestants were given the opportunity to take part in 7 different debates. This, of course, was wonderful practice and the debaters all responded with considerable enthusiasm.
[...]
One last point, don't use the word 'right' as a question. To make a statement and then say 'right?' is pointless and an incorrect use of English in the formal setting of a debate.

PS.: Maybe this person is a grammarian or some kind of linguistic genius, but I would trust both Barb and Raymott, if I were you. ;-) They know what they talk about. :up:

 

[tedtmc]

Thanks for the reply, but please note that I did not ask if it was "ok" in written English.

I asked if grammarians consider the word "right" a Question Tag (such as "isn't it?").

Who can be the authority or grammarian for the correctness of colloquial or informal English?
The are other 'tags' like being used like 'eh?' or 'no?'
Who is to say that they are wrong?