"No sooner had I begun ..."

Odessa Dawn · Jan 19, 2013

Barb_D said:
The rule is not that random. Whenever you have a negative phrase start your sentence, you invert.

Scarcely had I started when...
Never will you find...
Rarely had he seen...
Not only is this...

"No sooner had I begun to make small comments on their dysfunctional patterns than Jed blurted out his displeasure to me."

Is no sooner a negative phrase? I ask you this question since the subject and verb being reversed.

bhaisahab · Jan 19, 2013

Odessa Dawn said:
"No sooner had I begun to make small comments on their dysfunctional patterns than Jed blurted out his displeasure to me."

Is no sooner a negative phrase? I ask you this question since the subject and verb being reversed.

I am not familiar with the thread you are quoting from. Please provide a link to it.

Odessa Dawn · Jan 19, 2013

Here is the link that you are asking for: https://www.usingenglish.com/forum/ask-teacher/172379-how-use-not-only-but-also-could.html - post #4

Chicken Sandwich · Jan 19, 2013

***** NOT A TEACHER *****

Odessa Dawn said:
Is no sooner a negative phrase? I ask you this question since the subject and verb being reversed.

No. No sooner had... than is a set phrase.

6 no sooner had/did ... than used to say that something happened almost immediately after something else : No sooner had he sat down than the phone rang.
(Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English)

bhaisahab said:
I am not familiar with the thread you are quoting from. Please provide a link to it.

If you click on that blue icon next to Barb_D, you will be redirected to the thread. It's a feature I discovered some time ago.

5jj · Jan 21, 2013

Chicken Sandwich said:
No. No sooner had... than is a set phrase.

In the sense that Barb used it, it is a negative phrase/expression.

"No sooner had I begun ..."

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