Select the sentence that best joins the two sentences given below:
The hawker set down his basket of jamuns. The children of the lane surrounded him at once.
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 3
The correct answer is Option (3) → No sooner had the hawker set down his basket of jamuns than the children of the lane surrounded him.
The two actions happened one right after the other. The hawker put his basket down, and at that very moment the children gathered round him. No sooner ... than shows that the second action came immediately after the first. When the sentence begins with “No sooner”, the helping verb comes before the subject: “had the hawker set down”.
Why the Other Options are Incorrect?
Option 1: No sooner the hawker had set down his basket of jamuns than the children of the lane surrounded him. — Incorrect. After “No sooner” at the start, the helping verb must come before the subject: “had the hawker”, not “the hawker had”.
Option 2: No sooner had the hawker set down his basket of jamuns when the children of the lane surrounded him. — Incorrect. “No sooner” always goes with “than”, never with “when”.
Option 4: The children of the lane had no sooner surrounded the hawker than he set down his basket of jamuns. — Incorrect. It changes the order of the actions. The hawker put his basket down first, and then the children came.