Question

Identify the correct version of the given sentence-
No sooner she left the room than her baby started to cry.
a) No change
b) No sooner had she left the room than her baby started to cry.
c) No sooner she left the room then her baby started to cry.
d) No sooner had she left the room then her baby started to cry.

Answer 1

Hint: Conjunctions play a very vital role in such types of questions. They are words that link other words, phrases, and clauses together.

Complete answer:
The structure of the given sentence has ‘no sooner' in it. It is used to talk about something that happens immediately after something else. When no sooner comes at the beginning of a sentence, we use inverted word order. In any inverted word order, the helping verb comes before the main subject of the sentence. The conjunction ‘no sooner...than' is also sometimes used to denote simultaneous actions. The given sentence depicts that as soon as she left the room, her baby started to cry immediately after the action of leaving her. These two activities are taking place simultaneously. Any real-time difference between them is not mentioned.
Now, let us examine all the given options to find out the correct answer :
Option ‘a’ – This is an incorrect option because changes have to be made in the given sentence as the helping verb ‘had’ is missing in the given sentence.
Option ‘b’ – This is the correct option as the sentence is grammatically correct, and also has the usage of ‘had’ in it.
Option ‘c’ – This option is not at all correct because ‘then’ is never used with 'no sooner'. Then is used to refer to a time period. Only ‘than' has to be used with no sooner.
Option ‘d’ – This option is also incorrect as ‘then’ is used. Then indicates ‘in that case’. The meaning of the sentence can change after the usage of then.
As we have analyzed all the given options, we can easily figure out the correct answer. Here, the correct version of the given sentence is – No sooner had she left the room than her baby started to cry. So, the correct answer is “Option b”.

Note:
Pay attention to the minor difference between ‘than’ and ‘then’. The interchanging of these two words may lead to a drastic change in the meaning of the given sentence.