It did not take long before Janice got over her cold.

[Chicken Sandwich]

From Cambridge Certificate of Proficiency in English 1:

Complete the second sentence so that it has a similar meaning to the first sentence, using the word given.

Janice soon recovered from her cold.

get

It did .... her cold.

My version, 'It did not take long before Janice got over her cold.' Does this sound natural?

Or do you prefer, 'It did not take long for Janice to get over her cold' or 'It did not take Janice long to get over her cold' as the answer key suggests?

 

[Raymott]

From Cambridge Certificate of Proficiency in English 1:



My version, 'It did not take long before Janice got over her cold.' Does this sound natural?

Or do you prefer, 'It did not take long for Janice to get over her cold' or 'It did not take Janice long to get over her cold' as the answer key suggests?

The second and third are correct.
We normally say that it takes a certain time for something to happen, not that it takes a certain time before something happens.