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I have a sentence:

No sooner did we get to our car than the thunderstorm began.

Is it okay to use did we get? It sounds very natural for me, but I am not sure whether or not such grammar construction is allowed. So is it right to write this way instead of we got?

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  • Not only is it OK, but No sooner we got would actually be incorrect. I'm not sure I know the name for the actual kind of construction used here, though.
    – stangdon
    Mar 8, 2017 at 15:00

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No sooner did we get ...

In modern English the use of the verb to do plus another verb is used as a way of avoiding having to reverse the normal subject-verb order of a sentence.

The alternative 'No sooner got we ...' is archaic, it occurs in Shakespearean English.

So, in Modern English whenever the normal subject-verb-object would be changed by an adverbial clause or by a question the verb to do is used to avoid this and maintain the normal order.

Do you understand?

As opposed to:

Understand you?

No longer do we use this word order

As opposed to:

No longer use we this word order.

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  • So, is this right: No sooner did we get to our car than the thunderstorm began.?
    – some1 here
    Mar 8, 2017 at 19:43
  • <<In modern English the use of the verb to do plus another verb is used as a way of avoiding having to reverse the normal subject-verb order of a sentence.>> Hence, "No sooner did we get to our car than the thunderstorm began." is wrong and "No sooner we got to our car than the thunderstorm began." is right. Did I get the point?
    – some1 here
    Mar 8, 2017 at 19:55
  • No sooner did we get to our car .... is correct.
    – Chris M
    Mar 8, 2017 at 22:16
  • However, 'As soon as we got to our car the thunderstorm began' works.
    – Chris M
    Mar 8, 2017 at 22:20
  • Look out for the word than.
    – Chris M
    Mar 8, 2017 at 22:22

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