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My two daughters were watching TV.

The elder girl suddenly said,

" It's stink! Who farted?".

She looked around. Then she looked at her little baby sister.

".....Are you?"


I laughed and told her that she should've said "Did you?" Instead.

I wonder if I was right. I meant "Did you fart?", but it could be " Are you (the one)/hiding/pooping ?".

I want my kids to speak proper English, but English is my second language.

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  • We use 'did' with a past action - "Who farted? Did you?". Nov 16, 2019 at 15:42

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Perhaps the most natural question would be "Was it you [who farted]?". It would not be strange to ask "Did you [fart]?" Since there has been no mention of "hiding" previously it would be hard to understand "Are you" as meaning "are you hiding it?"

Correctness in this kind of context isn't very important. Children will pick up correct English at a young age, providing they get enough contact (especially with other children) Young children make all kinds of "mistakes" in grammar and often their (native English speaking) parents don't correct them, yet somehow Language grows in their minds. So don't worry too much about correcting each perceived error. Especially in very casual contexts (like asking a baby if she has farted)

It would be more normal to say "It stinks" rather than "It's skink" You can use "stink" as a verb.

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