WREN & MARTIN's English grammar-10 MCQs on the Usage of "As Soon As" and "No Sooner…Than"
10 MCQs on the Usage of "As Soon As" and "No Sooner…Than"
1. "She left the office as soon as she received the urgent call from her family." — What is the grammatical function of "as soon as" in this sentence?
- A) It is a coordinating conjunction showing contrast
- B) It is a subordinating conjunction of time showing immediate sequence
- C) It is a correlative conjunction showing addition
- D) It is a preposition showing cause and effect
Answer: B) It is a subordinating conjunction of time showing immediate sequence ("As soon as" introduces the subordinate time clause "she received the urgent call" and shows that her leaving happened immediately after — it functions as a subordinating conjunction of time indicating that one action follows another without delay.)
2. "No sooner had he sat down than the telephone began to ring loudly." — What grammatical feature is observed in this sentence?
- A) The subject comes before the auxiliary verb as in a normal statement
- B) The simple past tense is used in both clauses
- C) Subject-verb inversion occurs after "no sooner" when placed at the beginning
- D) "No sooner" always requires the present perfect tense
Answer: C) Subject-verb inversion occurs after "no sooner" when placed at the beginning ("No sooner" placed at the beginning of a sentence triggers subject-verb inversion — "had he sat down" instead of "he had sat down" — this is a rule of fronting that creates emphasis and a formal literary tone.)
3. "As soon as the results are announced, she will inform all the concerned candidates." — What tense rule applies to the use of "as soon as" here?
- A) Both clauses must use the future tense
- B) The subordinate clause after "as soon as" uses the present tense to refer to a future event
- C) Both clauses must use the present perfect tense
- D) The subordinate clause always uses the past tense
Answer: B) The subordinate clause after "as soon as" uses the present tense to refer to a future event ("As soon as" introduces a time clause — "the results are announced" — which uses the present tense even though the event is in the future — this is a key rule that time clauses in English use present tense not future tense to refer to future events.)
4. "No sooner had the match begun than it started to rain heavily on the ground." — What is the function of "than" in this sentence?
- A) "Than" introduces a subordinate clause of reason
- B) "Than" is used to make a comparison between two actions
- C) "Than" introduces the second clause completing the "no sooner…than" structure
- D) "Than" introduces a conditional clause
Answer: C) "Than" introduces the second clause completing the "no sooner…than" structure ("No sooner…than" is a correlative conjunction — "than" is the second part of the pair and introduces the clause describing what happened immediately after — together they express that one action followed another without any delay.)
5. "Please inform me as soon as the package arrives at the delivery address." — What is the function of "as soon as" here?
- A) It is a preposition of time
- B) It is a coordinating conjunction showing addition
- C) It is a subordinating conjunction of time introducing an immediate condition
- D) It is a correlative conjunction showing contrast
Answer: C) It is a subordinating conjunction of time introducing an immediate condition ("As soon as" introduces the time clause "the package arrives" and shows that the informing must happen immediately upon arrival — it functions as a subordinating conjunction of time used in instructions and requests to indicate immediacy.)
6. "No sooner did she step outside than she realised she had forgotten her keys." — What tense is used in the "no sooner" clause and why?
- A) Present perfect tense is used to show a recent action
- B) Simple present tense is used to show a habitual action
- C) Past perfect tense is used to show an action completed before another past action
- D) Simple past tense is used to show a future action
Answer: C) Past perfect tense is used to show an action completed before another past action ("No sooner" takes the past perfect tense — "did she step" in inverted form — to indicate that her stepping outside was completed just before she realised about the keys — the past perfect emphasises the immediacy of the sequence of past events.)
7. "As soon as he had finished his speech, the audience broke into a thunderous applause." — What does the use of the past perfect in the "as soon as" clause indicate?
- A) It indicates that the action in the main clause happened before the subordinate clause
- B) It indicates that both actions happened at exactly the same time
- C) It emphasises that the first action was fully completed before the second action began
- D) It indicates that the action is still continuing at the present time
Answer: C) It emphasises that the first action was fully completed before the second action began ("As soon as he had finished his speech" uses the past perfect to emphasise that his speech was fully completed before the applause began — the past perfect in the time clause stresses the completion of the first action immediately prior to the second.)
8. "No sooner had the news spread than the entire town gathered at the central square." — What does the "no sooner…than" structure emphasise in this sentence?
- A) It emphasises that the two actions happened on different days
- B) It emphasises the long gap of time between the two actions
- C) It emphasises the contrast between the two actions described
- D) It emphasises the immediacy and speed with which one action followed another
Answer: D) It emphasises the immediacy and speed with which one action followed another ("No sooner…than" stresses that the gathering of the town happened almost simultaneously with the spreading of the news — this structure is used specifically to highlight that the second action followed the first with remarkable speed and without any delay.)
9. "She will call you as soon as she reaches the airport and clears the security check." — What rule applies to the use of "as soon as" in this sentence?
- A) Both clauses must use the simple future tense
- B) The time clause after "as soon as" uses the present tense to refer to a future event
- C) The time clause after "as soon as" uses the past perfect tense
- D) Both clauses must use the present perfect tense
Answer: B) The time clause after "as soon as" uses the present tense to refer to a future event ("As soon as she reaches the airport" uses the present tense "reaches" even though the event is in the future — this follows the rule that subordinate time clauses introduced by "as soon as" use the present or present perfect tense to refer to future events.)
10. "No sooner had the curtain risen than the audience fell completely silent in anticipation." — Which of the following sentences correctly uses "no sooner…than" following the same grammatical pattern?
- A) No sooner he arrived than the meeting starts.
- B) No sooner had she spoken than everyone turned to look at her.
- C) No sooner did they left than it began to rain.
- D) No sooner she had finished than she will leave.
Answer: B) No sooner had she spoken than everyone turned to look at her. ("No sooner had she spoken than everyone turned to look at her" correctly follows the pattern — it uses subject-verb inversion after "no sooner," the past perfect tense in the first clause, and the simple past tense in the clause introduced by "than.")
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