3. 1. WHATâS INVERSION?
⢠Inversion implies a change in the normal word
order of a sentence.
⢠Normal statement word order is
SUBJECT+VERB
⢠Inversion is the word order in questions, but we
can also use it for emphasis in statementsfor emphasis in statements:
âHe was late and he didnât apologiseâ
âNot only was he late, but he didnât apologiseâ
4. SUBJECT-AUXILIARY INVERSION
⢠We invert the auxiliary/modal verb and subject after these phrases:
NEGATIVE AND RESTRICTIVE EXPRESSIONSNEGATIVE AND RESTRICTIVE EXPRESSIONS
⢠Under no circumstances will our team play the final at Wembley.
⢠Not only did the team get thrashed, but one player was also sent off
and wonât play the final.
⢠Never before his retirement was Maradona out of shape.
⢠No sooner had the defender touched him than he dived to provoke a
penalty.
⢠Not a single free kick did the referee give, despite the numerous
fouls.
NONO PHRASES
UNDER NO
CIRCUMSTANCES
AT NO TIME
ON NO OCASSION
NO SOONER ⌠THAN
ON NO CONDITION
NOT/ONLYNOT/ONLY
NOT UNTIL MUCH LATER
NOT UNTIL
ONLY THEN, ONLY AFTER,
ONLY IF/ ONLY WHEN
NOT ONLY âŚ, BUT (ALSO)
NOT + OBJECT
ADVERBSADVERBS
HARDLY, SELDOM,
RARELY, SCARCELY
LITTLE
NEVER, NEVER BEFORE
5. CLAUSES BEGINNING WITH âNEITHER / NOR/ SOâCLAUSES BEGINNING WITH âNEITHER / NOR/ SOâ
⢠My husband is totally uncoordinated and so am I.
⢠She would never give up trekking, and neither would
her boyfriend.
⢠I couldnât finish the race nor could my other team
mates.
⢠(express agreement)
A: I have never been to New York.
B: Neither have I.
A: Thatâs why Iâm really looking forward to it!
B: So am I!
6. CLAUSES BEGINNING WITHCLAUSES BEGINNING WITH MAYMAY
(STRONG WISH)(STRONG WISH)
May he live to regret that decision!
May your dreams come true.
7. SUBJECT-VERB INVERSION
⢠We occasionally invert a main verb and subject
after prepositional phrases, adverbs of place and
adverbs of time. We can use a form of the verb
to be or verbs of place and movement before the
subject:
ď Here lies the body of our beloved Frank.
ď All along the wall climbed a beautiful white cat.
ď For the first hour the teams seemed evenly matched.
Then came the turning point as Ed scored.
(we donât use inversion when the subject is a pronoun)
8. SOSO + ADJECTIVE ++ ADJECTIVE + THAT CLAUSETHAT CLAUSE
⢠So interesting was the match that nobody
left before the last whistle.
SUCHSUCH + NOUN PHRASE ++ NOUN PHRASE + THAT CLAUSETHAT CLAUSE
⢠Such was the intensity of the match, that both
deserved to win.
9. INVERSION IN CONDITIONALINVERSION IN CONDITIONAL
SENTENCESSENTENCES
ď Had he scored the penalty, they might have won the match.
ď Were he doped, he would be disqualified.
ď Should you sprain your ankle, contact your physiotherapist.
FIRST CONDITIONALFIRST CONDITIONAL
To make the first conditional more formal and the conditional a little less
likely, we can omit IF and use SHOULD before the subject.
SECOND & THIRD CONDITIONALSECOND & THIRD CONDITIONAL
For a more formal or literary style, we can omit IF and use inversion.
10. INVERSION IN CONDITIONALINVERSION IN CONDITIONAL
SENTENCESSENTENCES
ď Had he scored the penalty, they might have won the match.
ď Were he doped, he would be disqualified.
ď Should you sprain your ankle, contact your physiotherapist.
FIRST CONDITIONALFIRST CONDITIONAL
To make the first conditional more formal and the conditional a little less
likely, we can omit IF and use SHOULD before the subject.
SECOND & THIRD CONDITIONALSECOND & THIRD CONDITIONAL
For a more formal or literary style, we can omit IF and use inversion.