Identify the part containing a grammatical or structural error:
No sooner he had arrived than the meeting started.
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: A
Explanation
The sentence begins with the negative adverbial phrase "No sooner." In English grammar, when a sentence starts with a negative or restrictive adverb, inversion must occur. This means the auxiliary verb must come before the subject.
Incorrect: No sooner he had arrived...
Correct: No sooner had he arrived...
Inversion: The structure should follow the pattern: No sooner + auxiliary verb (had/did) + subject + main verb.
Correlative Conjunction: "No sooner" is always paired with "than," which is used correctly in the latter part of your sentence ("...than the meeting started").
Alternative Form: You could also use "did" for a similar meaning: "No sooner did he arrive than the meeting started."