INVERSION – 2

After ONLY + Time Expression

A. Only + prepositional phrases of place or time
Cấu trúc:
 Only + in/on/at/etc + Noun → Inversion
Ví dụ:
 You should only use this exit in an emergency.
→ Only in an emergency should you use this exit.
 It is only hot enough to sit outside in summer.
→ Only in summer is it hot enough to sit outside.
B. Only + by + V-ing / Noun
Cấu trúc:
 Only + by + V-ing + Inversion
 Only + by + Noun + Inversion
Ví dụ:
 You can learn by asking questions.
→ Only by asking questions can you learn.
 The only way you can become a good athlete is by training hard every day.
→ Only by training hard every day can you become a good athlete.
C. Only after + V-ing/Noun/clause
Cấu trúc:
 Only after + V-ing/Noun + Inversion
 Only after + clause + Inversion
Ví dụ:
 They felt unsafe until they crossed the border.
→ Only after they crossed the border did they feel safe.
 We were only allowed to enter the building after a rigorous security check.
→ Only after a rigorous security check were we allowed to enter the building.
D. Only when + clause
Cấu trúc:
 Only when + clause + Inversion
Ví dụ:
 A country cannot be prosperous if it is not independent.
→ Only when a country is independent can it be prosperous.
 You can enter the cinema only when you have tickets.
→ Only when you have tickets can you enter the cinema.
E. Only if + clause
Cấu trúc:
 Only if + clause + Inversion
Ví dụ:
 Children are only admitted into the cinema to see the film if they are over 18.
→ Only if children are over 18 are they admitted into the cinema to see the film.
F. Only because + clause
Ví dụ:
 A student may leave the room only if a teacher has given permission.
→ Only if a teacher has given permission may a student leave the room.
 Everybody thinks I am satisfied only because I don’t complain.
→ Only because I don’t complain does everybody think I am satisfied.
G. Only once (in my life)
Ví dụ:
 I have only regretted not going on with my studies once in my life.
→ Only once in my life have I regretted not going on with my studies.
 He arrived on time only once that week.
→ Only once did he arrive on time that week.
H. Only then / Only now
Ví dụ:
 It was only then that she realized I loved her.
→ Only then did she realize I loved her.
  It is only now that I am more desperate for love.
→ Only now am I more desperate for love.
I. Only later
Ví dụ:
 The facts were not made public until later.
→ Only later were all the facts made public.
J. Only in this way
Ví dụ:
 I find it easier to work in this way.
→ Only in this way do I find it easier to work.
K. Only recently / Only yesterday / Only last week, etc.
Ví dụ:
 She only recently returned from abroad.
→ Only recently did she return from abroad.
 He only yesterday did she email her.
→ Only yesterday did she email her.
 He only last week did he make up with her.
→ Only last week did he make up with her.
L. Only by chance
Ví dụ:
 Issac Newton discovered gravity only by chance.
→ Only by chance did Issac Newton discover gravity.
NOTE 1: No inversion is used in the following cases
Cấu trúc:
 It was only + … + that + S + V
Ví dụ:
 It was only when the police phoned me that I found out about the meeting.
 It was only later that all the facts were made public.
 It was only after posting the letter that I remembered I had forgotten to put on a stamp.
  It is only if you pay cash that you will get the car.
 It is only then that we can decide what to do next.
 It is only in Italy that you can find this special kind of ice cream.
NOTE 2: When ONLY refers to the state of being the only one, there is no inversion.
Ví dụ:
 Only Mary realised that the door was not locked.
 Only Pete inherited a fortune from his grandfather.
BÀI TẬP

1. The spy only revealed many top secrets about the FBI then.
→ .................................................................
2. I didn’t realize who he was until later.
→ .................................................................
3. If you read in poor light, you will damage your eyesight.
→ .................................................................
4. I was certain after checking three times.
→ .................................................................
5. He isn’t going to get married until he is 35.
→ .................................................................
6. I didn’t realize he was your brother until I saw the photograph.
→ .................................................................
7. Jameson had discovered where the birds were nesting only by chance.
→ .................................................................
8. He managed to unlock the door by trying again and again.
→ .................................................................
9. They didn’t understand the fuss until they saw the evidence for themselves.
→ .................................................................
10. It was only while I was young that I enjoyed that city.
→ .................................................................
11. The only way you can hope to succeed is by trial and error.
→ .................................................................
12. She didn’t realize she had forgotten the tickets until she got to the theatre.
→ .................................................................
13. It was only after she drove the distance that she realized she was tired.
→ .................................................................
14. John didn’t get round to business until he had finished eating.
→ .................................................................
15. It was only after Jack phoned that I remembered the appointment.
→ .................................................................
16. I’ll eat only if you don’t eat anyone else’s food.
→ .................................................................
 17. It is not until David came in that I smiled.
→ .................................................................
18. I felt so hungry because I was starving.
→ .................................................................
19. You can find penguins only in the Arctic.
→ .................................................................
20. Alice and Charles did not decide to move until after the birth of their second child.
→ .................................................................
21. The workers only called off the strike after a new body was offered.
→ .................................................................
22. He delayed the book until he had done a lot of research.
→ .................................................................
23. I did realize she had forgotten her keys.
→ .................................................................
24. The police did not discover the file until later.
→ .................................................................
25. It was only when I saw the thief that I panicked.
→ .................................................................
26. I was homeless because I had no money.
→ .................................................................

INVERSION – 3
HARDLY – BARELY – SCARCELY
SELDOM – RARELY – LITTLE – FEW
NO SOONER … THAN
HARDLY / BARELY / SCARCELY … WHEN
PART 1. After (VERY) SELDOM – (VERY) RARELY – ONLY RARELY
a. That delicate girl rarely goes out at night.
b. She has seldom seen him so angry.
c. Very seldom can a movie hold my attention like this one.
d. Only rarely has an accident occurred.
e. Seldom in the history of the world have so many governments collapsed at once.
PRACTICE 1
1. They rarely spend much money on entertainment.
 Rarely
2. He has rarely seen such a high standard of performance in an amateur production.
 Rarely
3. A day seldom goes by without someone ringing up to complain about the product.
  Seldom
4. She has rarely traveled more than fifty miles from her village.
 Rarely
5. I have seldom left town during the past few years.
 Seldom
6. I seldom think about my job almost every day.
 Seldom
PART 2. After HARDLY, BARELY and SCARCELY
2A. Hardly / Barely / Scarcely + inversion
a. He hardly ever goes to bed before midnight.
 Hardly ever does he go to bed before midnight
Hardly ever = almost never
Hardly any = almost no/ almost none
Hardly anything = almost nothing
b. He hardly (ever) sees her parents these days.
c. He scarcely sees her parents these days.
d. Barely did Robin and his men avoid being caught by the Sheriff of Nottingham’s soldiers.
2B. Hardly, Scarcely and Barely are all used to say that something has just begun, happened,
etc.
Hardly, scarely, barely = only just

S + had + HARDLY/ SCARELY/ BARELY + V3 + WHEN/ BEFORE + S + V2/ed

 Inversion

HARDLY/ SCARELY/ BARELY _ HAD + S + V3 + WHEN/BEFORE + S + V2/ed

d. The thought had barely come to me before / when it was gone again.
e. We had hardly begun our walk before / when it began to rain.
f. The men had scarcely started training before / when they were sent into battle.
INVERSION ko dùng được trong các trường hợp

HARDLY/ SCARELY/ BARELY + a day/week/ a month/… + go by/ pass without + N//

Sb/ sth + Ving// When S + Vnegative
Ex:
PRACTICE 2
1. He can hardly believe it.
 Hardly
2. They were scarcely able to hear the music.
 Scarely
3. The council rarely allows appeals against its decision.
 Hardly ever
 Hardly any appeals
4. They invited very few guests to their wedding.
 Hardly
5. There are very few rivers left unpolluted in the world.
 Hardly
6. I write to him almost every day.
 Hardly
7. I think about changing my job almost every day.
 Seldom
 Hardly
8. He had scarcely put the phone down when the doorbell rang.
 Hardly
9. We’d only just started the performance when the lights went out.
 Hardly
10. As soon as we had finished dinner, the thunderstorm broke.
 Hardly
11. Invitations were sent as soon as the date was chosen.
 Hardly
12. Just after the play started, there was a power failure.
 Hardly
 13. The judge was taken ill just after the trial proceedings began.
 Hardly
14. Soon after the ship left port, a violent storm developed.
 Hardly
PART 3. After “NO SOONER … THAN …”
NO SOONER + had – S – V3 + THAN + simple past
a. Right after his arrival, things went wrong.
b. No sooner had he arrived than things went wrong.
c. We had only just closed the door when the doorbell rang.
d. No sooner had we closed the door than the doorbell rang.
e. They got out of their car and almost immediately heard a deafening explosion.
f. No sooner had they got out of their car than they heard a deafening explosion.
g. I set foot in the house and at the same moment the fire alarm went off.
h. No sooner had I set foot in the house than the fire alarm went off.
PRACTICE 3
1. The telephone rang right after they left the office.
 No sooner
2. As soon as the secretary sat down, the phone rang.
3. The plane had only just landed when the storm broke.
4. The driver stopped in a lay-by and almost immediately fell into a deep sleep.
5. Everyone complained the moment the announcement was made.
6. Immediately after his appointment to the post, the new editor fell ill.
7. The office had only just phoned me when I found out about the meeting.
8. I realised I had left my keys inside the instant that I shut the door.
9. As soon as he was promoted, he started behaving arrogantly.
10. It wasn’t long before the bus company increased their prices for a second time.
PART 4. After “LITTLE”
a. She doesn’t understand how much suffering she has caused.
b. They little suspected that the film was going to be a success.
PART 5. After phrases with “FEW”
 IN / ON … (VERY) FEW + NOUN + Inversion
a. You don’t find such helpful assistants in many shops here.
 Little
b. She doesn’t know much about electrical engineering.
 Little
c. After children, parents have little realization of how much she has sacrificed for them.
d. Such a major operation has proved completely successful in very few cases.
 In very few cases
e. You don’t find such exquisite hand-made suits in many shops here.
 In few shops
f. There aren’t many other books which explain this problem so well.
 In few other