Answer the following question below and choose the option that best completes the gap(s) We stood up when the principal came in..........?

Analyze the question The sentence "We stood up when the principal came in..........?" needs a question tag. The tag must agree with the main clause in tense, subject and auxiliary verb.

Concept: Question tags

• A positive statement takes a negative tag, and a negative statement takes a positive tag.
• The tag repeats the auxiliary verb of the main clause. If there is no auxiliary (as with simple past tense), use did/didn't (the "do" form in the correct tense).
• The tag's pronoun must match the subject of the main clause.

Step-by-step solution

1. The main clause is "We stood up". It is positive and in the simple past tense.
2. The subordinate clause "when the principal came in" does not decide the tag. The main clause does.
3. A positive statement needs a negative tag.
4. The simple past uses "did", so the negative tag is "didn't".
5. The subject "We" becomes the pronoun "we" in the tag.
6. The tag is therefore "didn't we?"

Checking the other options

• A. isn't it: wrong, because "is" is present tense and "it" does not match "we".
• C. not so: not a grammatical question tag in English.
• D. did us: wrong, because it is not negative and "us" is an object pronoun, not a subject pronoun.

Correct answer: B. didn't we

Full sentence: We stood up when the principal came in, didn't we?

Tip: To find a tag, look at the main clause only. Flip positive to negative (or negative to positive), keep the same tense, and use a subject pronoun. If there is no helping verb, use do/does/did.