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Inversion
What is it?
Inversion involves changing the normal word order of sentences for stylistic reasons, usually in order to emphasise, sound dramatic or increase formality. There are different types of inversion. This page concerns inversion after a negative or limiting adverb.
- Never will I take another exam!
Negative or limiting adverbs
Negative and limiting adverbs are a group of adverbs which limit the meaning of a verb or make it negative. Examples are never, rarely, hardly, not often, etc.
- Never is he late for work.
- Rarely did she have car trouble.
- Hardly had I left the house when...
- Not often do the children stay up this late.
How
To invert a sentence move the adverbial to the beginning of the sentence and invert (swap) the subject and auxiliary verb:
- I will never dance.
- Never I will dance.
- Never will I dance.
No auxiliary verb
In cases where the tense does not use an auxiliary verb in the affirmative, such as the present simple or the past simple, one must be added.
- 'I rarely wake up on time.' becomes: Rarely do I wake up on time.
- 'He hardly came to school.' becomes: Hardly did he come to school.
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