Question :
Select the correct option: No sooner _____ the articles about the findings published than critics began questioning their legitimacy.
Option :
- was
- had
- been
- have
Correct answer : b)
Explanation :
The correct answer is option b, i.e. had.
Introduction:
This is a question based on the structure of the correlative expression “No sooner…than”.
Context:
The sentence describes that the moment articles were published, critics immediately began questioning them.
Analysis of the given options:
was: Incorrect; “No sooner” requires inversion with had + past participle.
had: Correct; follows the structure No sooner had + subject + past participle + than.
been: Incorrect; cannot function as the auxiliary verb here.
have: Incorrect; does not fit the required inverted past perfect structure.
Correct Structure:
No sooner had + subject + past participle + than + clause
Correct Sentence:
No sooner had the articles about the findings been published than critics began questioning their legitimacy.
The phrase “No sooner…than” is used to show that one action happened immediately after another. It is commonly followed by the past perfect tense in the first clause and the simple past tense in the second clause.