Cleft Sentences: 2 Types of Cleft Sentences + Clear Examples

What is a cleft sentence? What is an example of a cleft sentence? What are the types of cleft sentences?

A cleft sentence is a sentence that divides a message into two parts, using relative clauses or it clauses. The cleft sentence focuses attention on new, more important, or contradictory information.

Cleft sentences examples

• I have some good friends. Yet, it’s my older brother that I talk to if I have a problem. (Contradiction)
• What I do if I have a problem is talk to my older brother. (New information)

Note that ‘it’s my older brother that I talk to if I have a problem’ is a cleft sentence example.

Cleft sentences can be used in writing as well as speaking. This post deals with different types of cleft sentences.

1. It cleft sentences (it clauses):

In a cleft sentence with it clauses, the speaker emphasizes the information in the clause with it.

• It is you that I love.
• It was Elena who won the prize.
• It was my father who motivated me to study harder.
• It’s the weekend when I usually go to the gym.
• It’s the mountains where I love to camp.
• It’s my classmates that I cooperate with to do school projects.
• It is him that is always making noise in class.

In a cleft sentence with an it clause, we can use who instead of that when we refer to a person.

We use a singular form of the verb be when there is a plural noun in the cleft sentnce.

We use an object pronoun (him) after it + be.

2. Wh cleft sentences

Wh clefts show that one part of a sentence is more important than the other part. Wh clefts, also called Pseudo-cleft sentences, have three principal cleft structures:

Structure 1: A what-clause + be + focus (Cleft sentences with what…)

Let’s use the following sentence to apply this structure.

Tom took an English exam at the language center yesterday.

• What Tom took yesterday at the language center was an English exam. (The focus is on the object)
• When Tom took an English exam was yesterday. (The emphasis is on the adverb of time)
• Where Tom took an English exam yesterday was at the language center. (The focus is on the adverbial of place)
• What Tom did yesterday at the language center was taking an English exam. (The focus here is on the verb)

Structure 2: Focus + be + what-clause

• An English exam was what tom took yesterday at the language center. (The focus is on the object)
• Yesterday was when Tom took an English exam at the language center. (The emphasis here is on the adverb of time)
• The language center was where Tom took an English exam yesterday. ( The focus is on the adverbial of place)
• Took an English exam was what Tom did yesterday at the language center. (The emphasis here is on the verb)

In cleft structures 1 and 2, the emphasis (focus) is on the same thing even though changing the word order.

Structure 3: That + be + wh-word

• That is why I missed my classes yesterday.
• That’s what we did all day long.
• That’s how I see it.

3. All-clefts

Another type of cleft sentences is all-clefts. All is sometimes used instead of what whithout any change in meaning.

• What I liked was the food.
• All I liked was the food.
• What I want for my birthday is an English-English dictionary.
• All I want for my birthday is an English-English dictionary.
• An English-English dictionary is all I want for my birthday.

Can you start a sentence with also? Find the answer here.