English grammar for CEF-Level C1: Inversion (2)

 Thẩm Tâm Vy, August 2018 GRAMMAR POINTS CEF – LEVEL C 1 
ENGLISH GRAMMAR FOR CEF – LEVEL C1 
INVERSION (2) 
Inversion after negative adverbials 
 In this lesson, we will learn to use inversion in structures that use negative adverbials 
to give emphasis. 
 Inversion occurs when broad negative adverbs or other negative adverbials are put 
at the beginning of a clause for emphasis. This structure is used in formal speech and 
writing to show something is surprising or original in some way. 
Never 
 - Never have I experienced such suffering. 
Barely 
 - Barely had the film ended when everyone got up to go. 
Seldom 
 - Seldom has hard work been so rewarded. 
Rarely 
 - Rarely has so much money been wasted by an individual. 
Only once 
 - Only once have I declined their invitation. 
No sooner... than 
 - No sooner had I seen the man than he disappeared. 
Scarcely 
 - Scarcely had he got up when someone started hammering at the front door. 
Little 
 - Little did he realize what would happen to him. 
Not once 
 - Not once did they think to ask how I was. 
Not in a 
 - Not in a thousand years would I agree to marry you. 
Remember! 
 Inversion also occurs in formal speech and writing after adverbials preceded by only. 
 - Only with exceptional luck will you win anything. 
 - Only when the music stopped did Suefinally stop dancing. 
PRACTICE 
I. Match the sentence halves. 
1. Never has there been a ..... 
2. Seldom have I encountered ..... 
3. No sooner had Carla woken ..... 
4. Rarely did a day go by ..... 
5. Not once did he think to ask ..... 
6. Scarcely had we sat down when ..... 
 [a] he launched into a torrent of accusations. 
 [b] when I was not reminded of Larry. 
 [c] for our opinion on the matter. 
 [d] such despair in one so young. 
 [e] than she insisted on calling Max again. 
 [f]better time to invest in gold. 
II. Complete the sentences by writing one word in each gap. 
realize - express - achieve - seen - fall - entered 
1. Rarely have I ................. such a magnificent floral display. 
2. Never in his life would he..................such success again. 
3. Only once did she..............short of her own high standards of honesty. 
4. Not once did he.................any doubts about his course of action. 
5. Barely had he..............the room when Olivia started shouting wild accusations at him. 
6. Little did we...............what difficulties lay ahead of us. 
III. Put each sentence into the correct order. 
1. did we suspect / had the document / all along / . / Little / that she had 
 ............................................................................................................... 
2. Only after / . / spot the repair / was it / careful examination / possible to 
 ............................................................................................................... 
3. was the problem / the armed forces / . / than within / more evident / Nowhere 
 ............................................................................................................... 
4. her colleagues / had she / Rarely / to this extent /. / had to rely on 
 ............................................................................................................... 
5. this disease / children with / . / so many / had I seen / Never before 
 ............................................................................................................... 
6. when chaos / Barely had / in the hall / broke out / . / the speaker finished 
 ............................................................................................................... 
IV. Decide if the pairs of sentences have the same meaning. 
1. A. Never had I been so frightened in my life. 
 B. I had never been so frightened before.  
2. A. Rarely has there been a more popular prime minister. 
 B. Prime ministers are usually unpopular.  
3. A. Only with a great deal of effort did we complete the work. 
 B. We made a great deal of effort and completed the work.  
4. A. No sooner had I mended the chair than Michael broke it again. 
 B. Michael broke the chair just before I mended it again.  
5. A. I usually dined alone in the evenings. 
 B. Seldom was there an evening when I dined alone.  
6. A. I only locked up for the night after the last people had left. 
 B. Only when the last people had left did I lock up for the night.  
V. Which sentences are correct? 
1. Nowhere were the documents to be found.  
2. Not only I did all the shopping, but I had to cook dinner too.  
3. Barely the music had finished when the fighting began.  
4. He never did a day's work in his life, and neither did his father.  
 Thẩm Tâm Vy, August 2018 GRAMMAR POINTS CEF – LEVEL C 1 
5. Never there were two people less suited to parenthood.  
6. Little did we know what would happen next.  
VI. Write the missing words in sentence B so that it means the same as sentence A. 
1. A. I have never felt so sick in my life. 
 B. Never in my life..............................sick. 
2. A. You will only succeed with a lot of hard work. 
 B. Only with a lot of hard work.............................. 
3. A. He would not hurt his mother in a million years. 
 B. Not in a million years..............................mother. 
4. A. There weren't any windows in the room either. 
 B. Neither..............................room. 
5. A. I had hardly finished my dinner when he called. 
 B. Hardly..............................when he called. 
6. A. She didn't thank us once. 
 B. Not once 
KEY 
I. 
1. [f] 2. [d] 3. [e] 4. [b] 5. [c] 6. [a] 
II. 
1. seen 2. achieve 3. fall 4. express 5. entered 6. realize 
III. 
1.Little did we suspect that she had had the document all along. 
2.Only after careful examination was it possible to spot the repair. 
3.Nowhere was the problem more evident than within the armed forces. 
4.Rarely had she had to rely on her colleagues to this extent. 
5.Never before had I seen so many children with this disease. 
6.Barely had the speaker finished when chaos broke out in the hall. 
IV. 
1. Yes 2. No 3. Yes 4. No 5. No 6. Yes 
V. 
1. Yes 2. No 3. No 4. Yes 5. No 6. Yes 
VI. 
1. have I felt so 2. will you succeed 
3. would he hurt his 4. were there any windows in the 
5. had I finished my dinner 6. did she thank us 
INVERSION (3) 
Inversion after as and than 
In this lesson, we will learn to use inversion in structures that compare or show 
similarity between two different things. 
Inversion after as 
 As can be followed by an auxiliary verb (or the verb to be) which is inverted with the 
subject. The structure indicates a similarity between the two things compared in the 
sentence. For example, 
 - ‘The sitting room was found to be filthy, as was the kitchen.’ focuses on the fact that 
both rooms were similarly dirty. 
 - Our neighbours refused to pay the money, as did we once we knew the plumber was 
overcharging. 
 - James is going to go to the local school, as will Harry when he’s old enough. 
Inversion after than 
 Than can be followed by an auxiliary verb (or the verb to be) which is inverted with 
the subject. 
 The structure indicates a comparison between things or people. For example, 
 - People living in the countryside have fewer leisure opportunities than do those living 
in the city focuses on the comparison between the two groups of people. 
 - The stars of US films are often better known than are the stars of our own, home-
grown cinema. 
 - Delegates attending my afternoon session will have a shorter lunch break than will 
those attending Mr Wilson’s session. 
PRACTICE 
I. Match the sentence halves. 
1. Learning in a class is, for me, far more effective 
2. A printed dictionary is nicer to use 
3. Learning my third and fourth languages seemed easier 
4. Tired and stressed students remember less 
5. Books that have very tiny print seem harder to understand 
6. Doing my shopping at the supermarket is more time-consuming 
 [a] than do those with larger type. 
 [b] than doing it online. 
 [c] than do those that are more relaxed. 
 [d] than did learning my second, 
 [e] than an online version, I think. 
 [f] than learning independently. 
II. Find the wrong or extra word in each sentence. 
1. Henry always gave his children stunning birthday presents, as they did his mother and 
father. 
2. Bus ticket prices will rise in the new year, as will rise train and underground prices. 
 Thẩm Tâm Vy, August 2018 GRAMMAR POINTS CEF – LEVEL C 1 
3. Pedro and Nina have just started as going dancing on a Friday night, as have their 
friends Mike and Tanya. 
4. The vegetables we get from Mr Tyson's shop are more fresher than those we buy 
anywhere else. 
5. Facial expressions can communicate more feelings than can express words. 
6. My sister has got a boyfriend at the University of Hong Kong, as has got my friend, 
Natasha. 
III. Choose the correct word. 
1. The train station is usually very busy in the mornings, as / than is the bus station. 
2. Klaus is passionate about painting, as / than is his father. 
3. Tom followed the leader, as was / did the rest of the climbing group, up the south side 
of the peak and finally to the top. 
4 The books on the tables in the centre of the shop sell much more quickly than do / sell 
those on the shelves. 
5. I'd like to offer you many congratulations on your engagement, as had / would 
everyone else in my family. 
6. The people who had arrived earliest got a much better view of the performance than 
did / had the rest of us. 
IV. Write the correct form of the verb in brackets to complete each sentence. 
1. Children who..................(eat) healthily generally behave better in school than do 
those with unhealthy diets. 
2. Katy..................(have) a natural ability to run fast, as does her brother. 
3. House prices in the east of the country....................(increase), as did those in the 
south. 
4. Johnnie had.................(know) Jorge for ten years, as had Jim, before they set up a 
business together. 
5. Travelling has..................(teach) me much more than has reading thousands of books. 
6. I ................... (still wait) for my results, as is everyone who took the exam on 20 May. 
V. Complete the sentences by writing one word in each gap. 
1. The horse escaped through the open gate, as............the cows. 
2. Athletes need to eat a lot more carbohydrates than...........people who exercise little. 
3. Simon thought that the hotel was superb, as..............most people who stayed there. 
4. My great aunt Janie looks more like me than.............anyone else in my family 
5. His latest thriller will in the future be recognized as a masterpiece, as..........his three 
earlier works. 
6. Teri's got much more self-confidence than............many people of our age. 
VI. Which sentences are correct? 
1. Children attending the morning swimming classes will have longer sessions than will 
those in the afternoon.  
2. The names of French wines are still better known than do the wines of most other 
nations.  
3. Some of the singers at the festival were worse than were those at my five-year old 
daughter's school concert!  
4. The ferry left on time, than did the train and the bus that I had to take to get to 
the meeting.  
5. Gerald will be pleased with the outcome of our discussion, as will Harry, I think.  
6. After the interview Jane was sure, as did her interviewer, that she would be the right 
person for the job.  
VII. Are the highlighted words correct or incorrect in the sentences? 
1. The front door was open, as was  the outer door. 
2. After the operation, your hand will feel tight, as will do  your lower arm. 
3. Indoor plants need more light and water than do  the same plants outdoors. 
4. When asked who was responsible, Lucia remained silent, as did  the others. 
5. Doctors are better equipped to make these decisions as are  the patients. 
6. Frozen foods retain more nutrients than do retain those  which are tinned. 
KEY 
I. 
1. [f] 2. [e] 3. [d] 4. [c] 5. [a] 6. [b] 
II. 
1. Henry always gave his children stunning birthday presents, as did his mother and 
father. 
2. Bus ticket prices will rise in the new year, as will train and underground prices. 
3. Pedro and Nina have just started going dancing on a Friday night, as have their 
friends Mike and Tanya. 
4. The vegetables we get from Mr Tyson's shop are fresher than those we buy anywhere 
else. 
5. Facial expressions can communicate more feelings than can words. 
6. My sister has got a boyfriend at the University of Hong Kong, as has my friend, 
Natasha. 
III. 
1. as 2. as 3. did 4. do 5. would 6. did 
IV. 
1. eat 2. has 3. increased 4. known 5. taught 6. 'm still waiting or am still waiting 
V. 
1. did 2. do 3. did 4. does 5. will 6. have 
VI. 
1. Yes 2. No 3. Yes 4. No 5. Yes 6. No 
VII 
1. as as  2. as will do your lower arm X => as will 
3. than do  4. as did  5. as are X => than are 
6. than do retain those X => than do those