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Is "Does" or "Did" dropped when it occurs at the beginning of a sentence?

English Language & Usage Asked by Prachiti Prakash Prabhu on August 14, 2020

I watch a lot of American shows and I noticed that the actors tend to drop "does" or "did" from the dialogue when a sentence begins with it. For example:

Does she have a name? becomes She have a name?

Did you do it? becomes You do it?

Not sure if this is a common occurrence in other cultures as well. I wanted to know if this is a general rule in english to verbally drop the "does" or "did" when a sentence begins with it.

One Answer

I have to disagree with Weather Vane: a statement to indicate the interrogative is used in British English in the way you describe.

22:30 GMT: The post is heavily edited at this point in view of the comments by Hot Licks and the OP, Prachiti Prakash Prabhu.

In

1 Does she have a name? becomes She have a name? / 2 Did you do it? becomes You do it?

the verb in each of the the second versions is an infinitive, but that differs only from the present active in the present third person and past tenses (and not with all of those.) Even with the past tenses, these can be replaced by the historical present.

Further confusion is created by a present tense interrogatively toned statement.

I think the first example is still possible as the do/did can be de-emphasised to extinction.

As an examples I have heard

“You smoke?”(usually said by someone who wants to be given a cigarette) for “Do you smoke?”

A: “You smoke?”

B: “No.”

A: “Your mate – he smoke?”

B: No.

"He smoke?" does not sound particularly natural.

But, in a game of cards, involving a kitty:   A: “You put in?”-> Have/Did you put in?

B: “Yes.”

A: “Your mate – he put in?”-> Have/Did he put in?

B: “Yes”.

This sounds OK as “put” can be taken as the past tense, or the infinitive.

Answered by Greybeard on August 14, 2020

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