Inversion

1. A number of adverbial expressions can be put at the beginning of the sentence for
greater emphasis. Any adverbial expression that is directly negative or which suggests a
negative will be compulsorily followed by an inversion with an auxiliary verb. Some positive
openings, however, also have this inversion, especially those beginning to such. This
inversion is a useful way of breaking up the usual subject verb object word order, but, in
general, its effect is rather literary and it should not be over-used. The following are the
commonest expressions which, if placed at the beginning, must be followed by an inversion.

At no other time No sooner than Scarcely ever

At no time Not a single word (unless it is Scarcely when
By no means the subject of the sentence) Seldom
Even less Not a soul (unless it is the So (unless it qualifies the
Hardly ever subject of the sentence) subject)
Hardly when Not a word (unless it is the So great
In no circumstances subject of the sentence) Still less
In no country, town, etc Not as Such
In no way Not infrequently To such a degree
In none of Not often To such a point
In such a desperate situation Not only (unless it qualifies To such an extent
In vain the subject) To such extremes
In/to such a plight Not otherwise To such lengths
In/to such straits Not till Under no roof
Least of all Not until Very rarely
Little Nowhere Very seldom
Much less On no account Well/with good reason/ with
Neither, nor (when used quite every justification
separately) Only (unless it qualifies the
Never subject)
No longer Rarely

Not a single word did he say for the whole hour.

Not often do you see snakes in England.
Never had she seen anything like it before.
No sooner had he said it than he wished he had not done so.
Not until a long time afterwards did I realize that he was mixed up whit that gang.
In no way am I responsible for what has happened.
In no country will you be offered stranger coffee than in England.
To such straits was he reduced by his extravagance that he took to begging.
Well may you say that it is too late to do anything about it now.
Only on very rare occasions does he give you a word of praise.
He doesnt even like her; still less is it his intention to marry her.
She didnt like it and neither did I.
But:
Only a few people understood what he was saying.
Not a soul came to that political meeting.
Not a single word that he said entitles you to make that accusation.

Language II
 Inversion
2. There is, however, another type of inversion which does not use an auxiliary verb. This is
even more literary than the first kind and is found after certain kinds of adverbial phrases. It
must certainly not be used indiscriminately by foreign students.
It is possible only with a verb of movement or position, and this verb is almost always in the
Simple Present or Simple Past. The verb to be is also used with this kind of inversion, after a
superlative:

Best of all was the Christmas pudding.

In front of me lay the whole valley like an untouched paradise on earth.
After the war came the problem of rehabilitation.
Through the fog loomed an eerie castle.
Most picturesque of all are the street vendors.
Away into the distance stretched ridge after ridge of snow-clad peaks.
Last but not least walked my grandfather bearing a large bird-cage.

3. Sometimes adverbs are put at the beginning to dramatise actions. In this case, the verb
must be a verb of movement in either the Simple Past, the Simple Present or the Imperative.
There is an inversion (type 2) unless the subject is a pronoun:

Off you go!

Round we went.
In you get!
Away went the coach and horses at full speed.
Down fell a clutter of cartons and boxes.
Up went a mountain of luggage on to the racks.

Language II
 Inversion
Exercises

a) Put the verb in brackets into the right form, using inversions (type 1).

1. To such an extent her dad temper (get) on his nerves that he is filing a
petition.

2. Hardly he (come) into the room when he saw someone disappearing

through the French window.

3. Very seldom one (come) across snakes in England.

4. In none of this books Dickens (show) grater understanding of the human

heart than in Bleak House.

5. Only after I had known him for some time I (begin) to appreciate his real
worth.

6. On no account I ever (believe) a word he says.

7. Not as critic but as a close friend I (urge) you to reconsider your decision.

8. In such a plight he (find) himself that he was at his wits end what to do.

9. Not a soul I (meet) as I rambled over the Downs.

10. At no time in the history of mankind women (have) grater opportunities for
following careers than they have now.

11. In none of his novels Hardy (give) vent to his pessimism so openly as in
Jude the Obscure.

12. With every justification he (be) called an incompetent bungler.

Language II
 Inversion

b. Put the italized expressions at the beginning of the sentence. It may be

necessary to make minor alterations to them and to the rest of the sentence to
make the sentence grammatically correct. Many sentences require an inversion
(either type I or II), but not all of them.

1. The pirate ship lay far out to sea.

2. That can happen to you nowhere else in the world.

3. He would go on working in any circumstances.

4. The car sped round the bend.

5. I have very rarely seen such a strikingly beautiful person.

6. He didnt say a single word all afternoon.

7. I dont think he would like it anyway.

8. I wouldnt offend you on any account.

9. You have seen it already perhaps?

10. The children scrambled into the coach.

11. The Flea Market was the most fascinating part of the town.

12. He little thought that he would one day see his name in all the headlines.

13. I havent seen that kind of tree anywhere else in England.

Language II
 Inversion

14. John goes to the theatre only on very rare occasions.

15. Jane Austen is undoubtedly one of the foremost English novelists.

16. The tall figure of a man loomed out of the swirling mist.

17. Let us have your ideas by all means.

18. We found ourselves in such a desperate situation that we had to shoot our way
out.

19. He is called a fool with good reason.

20. It is not by any means true that all English people know their own language well.

21. A pheasant rose out of the brushwood ahead of me.

22. He had not been treated so abominably in any city he had previously visited.

23. I have told him not to do that on innumerable occasions.

24. You shouldnt panic in any circumstances.

25. The throbbing beat of drums came through the silence of the jungle.

26. I have received complaints about you on numerous occasions.

Language II
 Inversion
27. A great pile of plates and dishes fell down with a resounding crash.

28. The director did not realize what was going on until his attention was drawn to
certain irregularities.

29. The mass of luggage went up the backs of the sturdy porters.

30. The success of the scheme has been such that the same principle is to be applied in
other cases.

Language II