Cleft sentences

Cleft means ‘divided’. In cleft sentences, one sentence is divided into two parts, each with its own verb.
This adds emphasis to part of the sentence.

John loves Mary. (one verb)

It’s Mary that John loves. (two verbs, emphasises Mary)

The following structures are commonly used to begin cleft sentences.

It + … What + …
It was a … who … What I like about … is …
It was in … that … What they didn’t realize was …
Other structures
The person who …
The place that …
The thing that … is/was …
Something that … is/was …
The reason why … is/was …
The only thing that … is/was …
All that I would … is/was …

Note: We use the singular form after It + … and What + … sentences.

It was my parents I had to thank for this. NOT It were my parents …

What is really annoying are the arguments. NOT What are really annoying …

 We can use Wh- words with cleft sentences. To emphasise the action, we use a form of do.

Jane invested well. →What Jane did was invest well.

emphasising with what, all and it

 To emphasise an action or series of actions, we can use sentences beginning with What.

He dropped the vase. → What happened was (that) he dropped the vase.

 We can use Wh- clauses as introductory phrases.

What I would like to know is where the money went.

 We can use all instead what.

All I’d like to say is that the company appreciates your work.

 Use It + be + that/who to emphasise parts of a sentence.

Karin left her bag on the train. → It was Karin who left her bag on the train. (Karin – not Fatima)
It was her bag that Karin left on the train. (not her umbrella)

It’s because you have such a good sense of humour that I enjoy your company. (emphasising reason)

It was only yesterday that I discovered the documents were missing. (emphasising time)

It was in Paris that they first met. (emphasising place)