Echo Questions
Welcome to the fascinating (and rather fun) world of echo questions—those little responses that sound like you’re just repeating someone, but with a twist of curiosity, surprise, or doubt!
In everyday English—especially in spoken conversations—we often use echo questions to show we’re interested, shocked, confused, or simply didn’t catch what the other person said. And no, it’s not about being a parrot 🦜—it’s about being an active, polite, and expressive listener!
What are echo questions?
An echo question is a repetition of part (or all) of what someone else has just said, often to show surprise, interest, doubt, or to check information. You’re literally “echoing” what the other person said—but in the form of a question.
Types of echo questions
-
Auxiliary verb echo questions
The most frequent are auxiliary verb echo questions. You repeat the auxiliary/modal verb and pronoun, and finally add a question intonation.
| Statement | Echo question |
| She can drive. | Can she? |
| They have finished. | Have they? |
| He was joking. | Was he? |
| You didn’t tell me. | Didn’t I? |
Examples:
A: Have you heard that Jill’s moving to Australia.
B: Is she? That’s amazing!
A: Jake and Rob weren’t invited to the party.
B: Weren’t they? That’s a bit strange.
A: I can swim the lake.
B: Can you? I didn’t know that! That’s great.
-
Do/does/did echo questions
This is used when the first sentence doesn’t have an auxiliary verb (present simple and past simple)
| Statement | Echo question |
| You like it. | Do you? |
| He plays the piano. | Does he? |
| They saw the film. | Did they? |
Examples:
A: She speaks five languages.
B: Does she? That’s impressive!
A: I go jogging every morning.
B: Do you? Good for you.
-
“Wh-” echo questions
These are commonly used when you don’t understand something or want clarification. You repeat part of the sentence with a wh-word (what, where, when, who, why, how).
| Statement | Echo question |
| I saw Claire at the station. | You saw who? |
| We’re meeting them at nine. | You’re meeting them when? |
| Bob went to Greece. | He went where? |
Examples:
A: I’ve got to meet Dan.
B: You’ve got to meet who?
A: She’s moving next month.
B: She’s moving when?
A: He bought a Komondor.
B: He bought a what?
-
One-word echo questions
One-word echo questions are used for surprise or confirmation. You simply repeat the important word with rising intonation.
Examples:
A: She’s an archaeologist.
B: Archaeologist? That’s neat!
A: I’m learning Japanese.
B: Japanese? That’s tricky, isn’t it?
A: He won £5,000 on a scratch card.
B: £5,000? No way!
Usage summary table
| Type | Structure | Purpose | Example |
| Auxiliary | [aux/modal] + pronoun? | Surprise, interest | “He was late.” → Was he? |
| Do/does/did | Do/Does/Did + pronoun? | React to basic statements | “She works here.” → Does she? |
| Wh- echo question | Repeat part with “who/what/where” etc. | Ask for clarification | “He called Sam.” → He called who? |
| Word echo | Repeat one word only | Shock, surprise | “He’s a vet.” → Vet? |
Tone & intonation tips
You should use rising intonation at the end. It’s preferable to make a facial expression and include a tone of emotion (e.g. surprise, confusion, excitement). Generally speaking, echo questions are more polite than saying “What?” or “Huh?”
Bonus Examples in Conversation (British English Style)
Conversation 1:
A: I’m off to Morocco next week.
B: Are you? Lucky thing!
Conversation 2:
A: He’s never eaten fish and chips.
B: Has he not? That’s mad.
Conversation 3:
A: She failed her driving test again.
B: Again? Oh no…
Conversation 4:
A: I ran into the Prime Minister at the station.
B: You did what?
Common Mistakes
| Mistake | Correction | Why? |
| She likes it. → Likes she? | Does she? | Use “does” because there’s no auxiliary. |
| They went home. → Went they? | Did they? | “Went” is past simple → use “did”. |
| He’s ill. → He is? | Is he? | Auxiliary should come first. |
Do the quiz to perfect your knowledge:
If you really want to learn English but don’t know how to do it and where to start, don’t hesitate to contact us. Book an online English lesson with one of our certified and experienced English teachers and take a test and consultation! Tap the banner to learn more!
Discover more from My Lingua Academy
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
0 Comments