hardly...when / no sooner...than
Have these both structures the same meanings? Do you native speakers use both in the same context or is each one use for a specific moment?
What I mean is... does it matter when to use one and another?

Thank you!

Question

hardly...when / no sooner...than
Have these both structures the same meanings? Do you native speakers use both in the same context or is each one use for a specific moment?
What I mean is... does it matter when to use one and another?

Thank you!

Answer

I think "no sooner... than" implies a more immediate occurrence than "hardly... when", but other than that, there is no big difference and they're pretty interchangeable.

E.g. "No sooner had I started eating than the doorbell rang." makes me think they had sat down, and perhaps lifted their fork to take a bite, when the doorbell rang.
"I had hardly started eating when the doorbell rang." makes me think they had sat down and eaten a little, though not much, when the doorbell rang.