Cleft Sentences: It Is/Was... That/Who

Cleft sentences are special grammatical structures that "cleave" (split) a simple sentence into two clauses in order to emphasize a particular piece of information. Instead of saying "John broke the window," you can say "It was John who broke the window" to emphasize that John — not someone else — was responsible. Cleft sentences are a hallmark of sophisticated English and appear frequently in academic writing, journalism, formal speech, and everyday conversation when emphasis is needed. This guide covers the three main types of cleft sentences — it-clefts, wh-clefts, and reverse clefts — with comprehensive examples and practice exercises.

What Are Cleft Sentences?

A cleft sentence takes a single piece of information from a simple sentence and puts it into a prominent position by restructuring the sentence into two clauses. The word "cleft" comes from the verb "cleave," meaning to split. By splitting the sentence, the speaker or writer draws the listener's or reader's attention to the element they want to highlight.

Consider the simple sentence: "Maria recommended this restaurant." This sentence contains three pieces of information: (1) the person (Maria), (2) the action (recommended), and (3) the object (this restaurant). Using cleft structures, you can emphasize any of these elements depending on what is most important in your communicative context.

It-Cleft Sentences

The it-cleft is the most common and versatile cleft structure. It begins with "It is/was" followed by the emphasized element, then "that" or "who" introducing the rest of the information.

Structure

It + is/was + emphasized element + that/who + rest of sentence

Emphasizing the Subject (Person)

Emphasizing the Object

Emphasizing Time

Emphasizing Place

Emphasizing Reason

Wh-Cleft Sentences (What-Clefts)

Wh-cleft sentences (also called pseudo-cleft sentences) use a "what" clause to set up the background information, followed by "is/was" and the emphasized element. They are common in both spoken and written English.

Structure

What + subject + verb + is/was + emphasized element

Reverse Wh-Clefts

A reverse wh-cleft puts the emphasized element first and the "what" clause second. This creates a slightly different emphasis pattern and is very common in spoken English.

All-Clefts and The Thing/Place/Reason Clefts

Besides "what," other words can introduce cleft-like structures for specific types of emphasis.

All-Clefts

The thing/place/reason Clefts

What Can Be Emphasized?

Element	Original	Cleft
Subject	Tom broke the vase.	It was Tom who broke the vase.
Object	I lost my keys.	It was my keys that I lost.
Time	We met in 2019.	It was in 2019 that we met.
Place	She was born in Tokyo.	It was in Tokyo that she was born.
Reason	He quit because of stress.	It was because of stress that he quit.
Action	I need to rest.	What I need to do is rest.

Tense in Cleft Sentences

The tense of the "it is/was" part usually matches the time of the original event. For past events, use "It was..." For present or general statements, use "It is..." The verb in the "that/who" clause typically matches the tense of the original sentence.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Mistake 1: Forgetting "That" or "Who"

Mistake 2: Using "What" in It-Clefts

Mistake 3: Double Subject in Wh-Clefts

Practice Exercises

Exercise 1: Rewrite as Cleft Sentences

Answers

Summary

Cleft sentences are powerful English structures that split a simple sentence into two clauses to emphasize a specific piece of information. It-clefts ("It is/was... that/who") can emphasize subjects, objects, times, places, and reasons. Wh-clefts ("What... is/was...") emphasize actions, ideas, and things. All-clefts ("All I want is...") and noun-clefts ("The reason is...") provide additional emphasis patterns. These structures are essential for sophisticated writing, clear argumentation, and natural conversation where you need to draw attention to the most important element of your message. By mastering all types of cleft sentences, you gain a versatile tool for controlling emphasis and information flow in your English communication.