Select the most appropriate option that can substitute the underlined segment in the given sentence.

Hardly we had boarded the train when it started to move.

Question

Question

This question was previously asked in

SSC CGL 2023 Tier-I Official Paper (Held On: 21 Jul 2023 Shift 2)

Answer 1

The correct answer is "had we boarded".

Key Points

If the second event occurs immediately after the first, we can express that idea using the structure: "hardly...when."
In this structure hardly introduces the event that occurred first.
The sentence is in past perfect tense, which requires the auxiliary verb "had".
When we begin a sentence with a negative word, we put the auxiliary verb before the subject.
- Thus, "had" will be used before the subject "we."
"Hardly" is an adverb of time, indicating that the action of boarding the train happened just before another action (the train starting to move).
The correct sentence structure is "Hardly had we boarded the train when it started to move."

Hence, the correct answer is option 4.