Page 249 - Advanced English Grammar in Use

I n v e r s i o n ( 2 )

Inversion after negative adverbials
In formal and literary language in particular, we use negative adverbials at the beginning of a
clause. The subject and verb are inverted:
• after the time adverbials never (before), rarely, seldom; barely/hardly/scarcely...when/before;
no sooner...than:
• Seldom do we have goods returned to us because they are faulty, (not Seldom we do...)
• Hardly had / got onto the motorway when I saw two police cars following me.
• after only + a time expression, as in only after, only later, only once, only then, only when:
• She bought a newspaper and some sweets at the shop on the corner. Only later did she
realise that she'd been given the wrong change.
• Only once did / go to the opera in the whole time I was in Italy.
• after only + other prepositional phrases beginning only by..., only in..., only with..., etc.:
• Only by chance had Jameson discovered where the birds were nesting.
• Mary had to work at evenings and weekends. Only in this way was she able to complete the
report by the deadline.
• after expressions with preposition + no, such as at no time, in no way, on no account, under/in
no circumstances:
• At no time did they actually break the rules of the game.
• Under no circumstances are passengers permitted to open the doors themselves.
• after expressions with not..., such as not only, not until, and also not + object:
• Not until August did the government order an inquiry into the accident.
• Not a single word had she written since the exam had started.
• after little with a negative meaning:
• Little do they know how lucky they are to live in such a wonderful house.
• Little did / then realise the day would come when Michael would be famous.

Notice that inversion can occur after a clause beginning only after/if/when or not until:
• Only when the famine gets worse will world governments begin to act.
• Not until the train pulled into Euston Station did Jim find that his coat had gone.

Inversion after 'so + adjective... that'; 'such + be...that'; 'neither.../nor...'
B
Compare these pairs of sentences:
• Her business was so successful that Marie was able to retire at the age of 50. or
• So successful was her business, that Marie was able to retire at the age of 50.
• The weather conditions became so dangerous that all mountain roads were closed, or
• So dangerous did weather conditions become, that all mountain roads were closed.
<j>We can use so + adjective at the beginning of a clause to give special emphasis to the adjective.
*When we do this, the subject and verb are inverted.
We can use such + be at the beginning of a clause to emphasise the extent or degree of
something. The subject and verb are inverted. Compare:
• Such is the popularity of the play that the theatre is likely to be full every night, or
• The play is so popular that the theatre is likely to be full every night.
We invert the subject and verb after neither and nor when these words begin a clause:
• For some time after the explosion Jack couldn't hear, and neither could he see.
• The council never wanted the new supermarket to be built, nor did local residents.

Negative adverbials So.. .that = Inversion (1) =