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I heard the sentence below while watching sitcom 'Fraiser' season4 episode1.

Oh, well, don't I feel silly bringing over this thousand-piece jigsaw puzzle.

I'm so curious why this sentence ends with a period, not with a question mark. I searched many grammar books to find the answer but I couldn't figure out.. I'd appreciate if you could help me with this curiosity.

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    The short answer is that question marks are usually used with questions. Not all sentences with interrogative syntax are questions.
    – user3395
    Jul 6, 2018 at 18:26
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    Is this from subtitles? I spot minor errors in subtitles/closed captioning all the time. They are made so that deaf and hard-of-hearing people can understand the show and are not carefully proofread like a book.
    – user71659
    Jul 6, 2018 at 18:41
  • yeah, I extracted this from subtitle. Thank you all for the tip !
    – msomangs
    Jul 6, 2018 at 22:44

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This is not really a question, it just looks like one. Or , if you prefer, it is a question which the speaker does not expect anyone to answer.

You cannot even call it a rhetorical question. With a rhetorical question the person asking the question does not expect you to give them an answer, but they do expect you to think about the question and answer it to yourself.

As @Tᴚoɯɐuo said earlier, this is better understood as being an exclamation that the speaker feels that they have done something silly. Or perhaps it is someone who can see the funny side of something which they have done that is mildly embarrassing.

However, I am curious about your question. If you only heard the sentence, how do you know that it did not have a question mark?

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  • "If you only heard the sentence, how do you know that it did not have a question mark?" --- from a TV show script site Frasier Series 4 episode 1
    – Michael Harvey
    Jul 6, 2018 at 22:11
  • my expression mistake. sorry..I should've used the word 'extract' instead of 'heard'.
    – msomangs
    Jul 6, 2018 at 22:49
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That is more of an exclamation of chagrin than an actual question. It means

"I feel silly..."

Compare:

Aren't you the lucky one!

to which the lucky one might reply

And don't I know it!

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