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Cleft sentences: What I need is…, It was… that
C1 C1 grammar · lesson 2 of 16
Cleft sentences split one idea into two parts so you can put the spotlight on the most important information. They are very useful for emphasis, contrast and correcting people.
What is a cleft sentence?
A cleft sentence takes a simple sentence and “cleaves” (divides) it into two clauses. The aim is to focus on one part. Compare:
Lucy broke the window. (neutral) → It was Lucy who broke the window. (Lucy, not someone else)
It-clefts: It is / was … that / who
Put the focused element after It is / It was, then add the rest of the sentence with that (or who for people). We often use it-clefts to correct or contrast.
| Focus on | Example |
|---|---|
| Person | It was Omar who found the keys. |
| Thing | It’s the noise that bothers me, not the heat. |
| Time | It was only last year that they got married. |
| Place | It was in Rome that I first tried real pizza. |
| Reason | It was because of the traffic that we missed the start. |
Wh-clefts: What … is / was
Begin with a what-clause as the subject, then use be, then the focused information. This builds up a little suspense and puts the key idea at the end.
What I need is a long holiday.
What surprised me was how calm she stayed.
What we should do is call the manager.
What happened was (that) the train broke down.
What Ali did was (to) rewrite the whole report.
It was Mia who organised the party, not Anna.
It’s not the price that worries me – it’s the quality.
When the focus is an action, use do in the what-clause: What she did was leave early. The verb after was is in the base form (sometimes with to).
Other patterns
Instead of what, we can use words like All, The thing, The reason why, The place where, The person who:
All I want is a bit of peace and quiet.
The reason why he left was the low salary.
The person who helped me most was my teacher.
Common mistakes
✗ What I need it is more time.
✓ What I need is more time.
✗ It was Tom which called you.
✓ It was Tom who called you.
✗ What she did was left the room.
✓ What she did was leave the room.
✗ The thing what annoys me is the noise.
✓ The thing that annoys me is the noise.