当主语在谓语前出现时叫顺序(the natural order)。在某些情况下，我们可以把谓语成分放在主语前面，这种词序叫做倒装( the inverted order)。

倒装分两种：配合语法条例的倒装，叫"grammatical inversion";配合强调语势的叫"emphatic inversion".语法上的倒装句是强制性的，包括下列 7 种：

⒈疑问句，如：

● can you do it?

● how old are you?

● when did you know him?

● why did you elect him as captain?

● which of these apples do you prefer?

但疑问代词做主语时，不必倒置，如：

● who is your english teacher?

● what happened last night?

⒉表示"愿望"的句子，如：

● may god bless you.

● long live the king!

⒊"there"引导的句子，如：

● there are many cars on the road.

● there stand some big trees near the river.

● there is a security guard outside the bank.

⒋感叹句，如：