English Grammar - Sentence Structure and Transformation

English Grammar
English Grammar - Sentence Structure and Transformation

Choose the most suitable option to replace the highlighted part of the sentence: No sooner had I reached the station when the train departed.


Options:

  1. than the train departed
  2. then the train departed
  3. when the train had departed
  4. than did the train depart

Right Answer: than the train departed

'No sooner' is one half of a fixed correlative pair and must always be followed by 'than', never by 'when' or 'then'. The original sentence therefore contains a standard error. Replacing the highlighted portion with 'than the train departed' produces the correct construction: No sooner had I reached the station than the train departed. Option two confuses the conjunction 'than' with the adverb 'then'. Option three keeps the wrong conjunction 'when'. Option four adds the inverted 'did the train depart', but inversion belongs only in the first clause after 'No sooner', not after 'than'. Hence option one is correct.

This question is part of English Grammar - Sentence Structure and Transformation, which has 14 practice questions with answers.

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