CLEFT

SENTENC
ES
CLEFT SENTENCES
Cleft sentences are used to help us focus on a
particular part of the sentence and to
emphasize what we want to say by
introducing it or building up to it with a kind
of relative clause.
Cleft Sentences are particularly
useful in writing where we
cannot use intonation for
purposes of focus or emphasis,
but they are also frequently
used in speech.

Cleft: from the verb cleave.

Cleave: Divided into two.
Cleft structures include: the reason why, the
thing that, the person/people who, the place
where, the day when and what-clauses which are
usually linked to the clause that we want to
focus on with is or was.

For example: The place where I study is

far from here.
Cleft sentences focus on one constituent of
the original sentence, placing it after it
was (or it is).

Declarative: Bruce studied English at Oxford

Cleft: It was Bruce who studied English at

Oxford
 Focus:
On the Subject: Bruce

Focus on the Direct Object: English:

• It was English what Bruce studied at

Oxford
 TYPES OF CLEFT SENTENCES

1. It-cleft: It is Nick for whom we are looking.

2. Wh-cleft: What he wanted to buy was a Ford.

3. Reversed wh-cleft/Pseudo-cleft: A Ford is what

he wanted to buy.

4. All-cleft: All he wanted to buy was a Ford.

 Examples
A:
I don’t know what to cook for them? I
don’t know what they like.

B: What they like is smoked salmon.

 Examples

A: Sammy ate the pizza.

B: It was Sammy who ate the

pizza.
 Examples

A: You broke the window. 

B: → It was you who broke the

window.
 Examples
A: He wanted to buy an IPhone.

B:  → What he wanted to buy was an IPhone.  

What he wanted was to buy an IPhone.
 Let’s practice!
Unscramble the following sentence:

is/ what/ need/ rest/ a / good/ I /

 Let’s practice!
Unscramble the following sentence:

What / understand / how / she / don’t / I /

is / got / promoted /
 Let’s practice!
Unscramble the following sentence:

/ Nick / was / ate / who / It / the /

sandwich /
 Let’s practice!

1. I washed all the clothes except the 2. I just need ten minutes to finish this
blouse. task.

The only thing All ……………...ten minutes to finish

………………………… the blouse. this task.
THANKS!
 References http
://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/grammar/learnit
/learnitv149.shtml

http://www.grammaring.com/cleft-sentences
http://www.sil.org/linguistics/GlossaryOfLinguisticTerms/What
IsACleftSentence.htm

http://www.ucl.ac.uk/internet-grammar/function/cleft.htm