Cleft Sentences

Cleft sentences are used to emphasize particular information by dividing a simple sentence into two clauses. The word "cleft" means "split" or "divided." These structures help focus attention on specific elements of a sentence.

Types of Cleft Sentences

1. It-Cleft Sentences

Structure: It + be + emphasized element + relative clause

This is the most common type of cleft sentence.

Basic Examples

• Normal: John bought the car yesterday.
• It-cleft: It was John who bought the car yesterday. (emphasizes John)
• It-cleft: It was the car that John bought yesterday. (emphasizes the car)
• It-cleft: It was yesterday that John bought the car. (emphasizes yesterday)

Emphasizing the Subject

• Normal: The teacher explained the problem.
• It-cleft: It was the teacher who explained the problem.

Emphasizing the Object

• Normal: I need your help.
• It-cleft: It's your help that I need.

Emphasizing Adverbials

• Normal: We met at the conference.
• It-cleft: It was at the conference that we met.

2. Wh-Cleft Sentences (Pseudo-Cleft)

Structure: Wh-clause + be + emphasized element

Using "What"

• Normal: I like your honesty.

• Wh-cleft: What I like is your honesty.

• Normal: He needs a vacation.

• Wh-cleft: What he needs is a vacation.

Using "Where," "When," "How," "Why"

• Normal: We met in Paris.

• Wh-cleft: Where we met was in Paris.

• Normal: She left because she was angry.

• Wh-cleft: Why she left was because she was angry.

• Normal: He solved it by thinking carefully.

• Wh-cleft: How he solved it was by thinking carefully.

3. Reverse Wh-Cleft

Structure: Emphasized element + be + wh-clause

• Normal wh-cleft: What I want is peace.

• Reverse wh-cleft: Peace is what I want.

• Normal wh-cleft: What surprised me was his reaction.

• Reverse wh-cleft: His reaction is what surprised me.

Advanced Cleft Structures

All-Cleft

Uses "all" for emphasis:

• All I want is a quiet life.
• All we need is more time.
• All that matters is your happiness.

The Thing/Person + Relative Clause

• The thing that bothers me is his attitude.
• The person who helped me was my neighbor.
• The reason why I'm late is traffic.

Nominalizations

• The fact that he lied upset everyone.
• The way that she speaks is very clear.
• The place where we stayed was beautiful.

Tense Agreement in Cleft Sentences

The tense of "be" in cleft sentences usually matches the tense of the original sentence:

Present

• Normal: I like coffee.
• It-cleft: It is coffee that I like.

Past

• Normal: She bought a dress.
• It-cleft: It was a dress that she bought.

Present Perfect

• Normal: We have finished the project.
• It-cleft: It is the project that we have finished.

Negative Cleft Sentences

It-Cleft Negatives

• It isn't money that makes people happy.
• It wasn't John who broke the window.

Wh-Cleft Negatives

• What I don't like is his arrogance.
• What we haven't done is check the results.

Using Different Relative Pronouns

Who vs. That (for people)

• It was Mary who/that called you.
• It was the doctor who/that examined me.

Which vs. That (for things)

• It was the book which/that I borrowed.
• It was this restaurant which/that we chose.

Omitting Relative Pronouns

When the relative pronoun is the object, it can be omitted:

• It was the movie (that) we watched.
• It was this song (that) I heard on the radio.

Emphasis and Intonation

In spoken English, cleft sentences create natural stress patterns:

• It was JOHN who called. (strong stress on John)
• What I NEED is sleep. (strong stress on need)

Common Uses

1. Contrast and Correction

• "Did Tom call?" → "No, it was John who called."
• "You need a car." → "What I need is a bike."

2. Providing New Information

• It was in 1969 that humans first landed on the moon.
• What made the difference was their teamwork.

3. Expressing Strong Opinions

• What I can't stand is people being late.
• It's honesty that I value most.

Formal vs. Informal Usage

Formal Writing

• It is precisely this approach that we recommend.
• What requires immediate attention is the budget deficit.

Informal Speech

• It's you I want to talk to.
• What I'm saying is we need to leave now.

Common Mistakes

1. Wrong word order

• Incorrect: It was who John called you.
• Correct: It was John who called you.

2. Missing relative pronoun when required

• Incorrect: It was the book I need.
• Correct: It was the book that I need.

3. Wrong tense agreement

• Incorrect: It is yesterday that he came.
• Correct: It was yesterday that he came.

4. Overusing cleft sentences

Use cleft sentences for emphasis, not in every sentence.

Interactive Practice Exercises

Transform these sentences into cleft sentences to add emphasis. Type your answers and get instant feedback: