Master confusing words with ease
Hardly than vs. Hardly when
Hardly than
/ˈhɑːrdli ðæn/Examples:
She had hardly taken a seat than the meeting began.He had hardly left the room than she burst into tears.Hardly had she spoken than her phone rang again.
Synonyms:
This word has no synonymsAntonyms:
This word has no antonymsHardly when
/ˈhɑrd.li wɛn/Examples:
I had hardly settled when the phone rang.She had hardly arrived when it started to rain.We had hardly begun when they called us back.
Synonyms:
Antonyms:
Ways to tell them apart:
- Hardly than is incorrect and not used in English, while hardly when is part of a longer phrase used to describe two very close events.
- Remember hardly when is used in the structure hardly...when or scarcely...when to show that as soon as one thing happens, another does closely after.
- The correct structure involves an inversion after hardly, meaning that the auxiliary verb comes before the subject.
- Focus on hardly when in sentences to express the quick succession of events.
- Than usually follows comparative adjectives, not hardly.
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