How to use short answers in English (me too, me neither…)
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ME TOO
Look at the following examples:
- “I’m tired.” “Me too / So am I”. (Orally, ‘me too’ can be said but is more familiar.)
- “She can play the piano.” “So can he!”.
- “We have visited London.” “So have we.”
In the present and in the past, there is no auxiliary in the affirmative starting sentence. The auxiliaries of these two times are then used: do (in the present) and did (in the past).
- “My brother loves coffee.” “So do I!”
- “Paul ate a cookie.” “So did she!”
NEITHER
When the starting sentence is negative, the neither + auxiliary + subject structure is used:
- “I’ve never been to Italy.” “Neither have I.”
- “We shouldn’t smoke” “Neither should I.”
- “Sarah isn’t very fat.” “Neither is her mother.”
Orally, we can also say ‘Me neither’ (but it’s more familiar).
I DON’T / I AM
Look at the following example:
- “I love pizzas.” “I don’t.”
When the sentence is negative, the affirmative form is used in the contradiction response. Remember to focus on the ‘I’ when speaking!
- “I’m not tired.” “I am.”
HOW TO SAY ‘YES, IT’S TRUE’, ‘YES / NO INDEED’
When the sentence is affirmative and there is no auxiliary, the affirmative form and the auxiliary do are used:
- “They succeeded.” “So they did.”
When the sentence is negative and there is for example the auxiliary have (or another auxiliary), the negative form is answered with the same auxiliary.
- “They haven’t reached a compromise.” “So they haven’t.”
⚠️ We can also say: (Yes) you’re right. / (Yes,) that’s true. / (No,) indeed.
⚠️ Do not confuse the order of the auxiliary!
Compare the following two sentences:
- “I succeeded”. So did he.”
- “He succeeded. ” “So he did.”
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