Grammar: ✨ Grammar Essentials: 🧩 Parts of Speech & 🏗️ Sentence Structure (Advanced) (B2) - Lesson 10: Cleft Sentences for emphasis (It is/was... that/who...; What I need is...)

✨ Lesson 10: Cleft Sentences for Emphasis

As you become more advanced in English, you can learn new sentence structures to add emphasis¹ and style to your communication. A Cleft Sentence² (from the word 'cleft', which means 'split') is a way of breaking a simple sentence into two parts to highlight³ a specific piece of information.

Type 1: The "It-Cleft"

We use "It is..." or "It was..." to focus on one part of the sentence, like the subject, object, place, or time.

Structure: It + is/was + [Emphasized Part] + that/who + [Rest of Sentence]

Simple Sentence: "Sokha bought a new motorbike yesterday."

Let's emphasize different parts:

• Emphasizing the person: "It was Sokha who bought a new motorbike yesterday." (Not Dara).
• Emphasizing the thing: "It was a new motorbike that Sokha bought yesterday." (Not a bicycle).
• Emphasizing the time: "It was yesterday that Sokha bought a new motorbike." (Not last week).

Type 2: The "What-Cleft" (or Wh-Cleft)

We use a clause beginning with "What" to emphasize the action or the object of a sentence. This is very common in speech to clarify⁴ information or express a strong feeling.

Structure: What-Clause + BE (is/was) + [Emphasized Part]

Emphasizing the object/idea:

→ Simple: "I need a holiday."
→ Cleft: "What I need is a holiday."

---

Emphasizing the action (using 'What... did'):

→ Simple: "He broke the window."
→ Cleft: "What he did was break the window."

Example in Battambang: "What I love most about this city is the friendly people."

Using these structures adds a level of sophistication⁵ to your English, moving you beyond simple sentence patterns.

🧠 Practice Quiz: Create Emphasis

Rewrite these simple sentences as cleft sentences to emphasize the bold part.

1. She loves Khmer traditional music. (Use an It-cleft)
   Answer: It is Khmer traditional music that she loves.
2. I need a long holiday. (Use a What-cleft)
   Answer: What I need is a long holiday.
3. My brother broke the glass, not me! (Use an It-cleft)
   Answer: It was my brother who broke the glass, not me!
4. We met at the university. (Use an It-cleft)
   Answer: It was at the university that we met.
5. He painted the beautiful picture. (Use a What-cleft for the action)
   Answer: What he did was paint the beautiful picture.

📝 Homework: Emphasize Your Ideas

Write your own cleft sentences for these situations.

1. Think of your favorite food. Write a sentence about it using an "It-cleft".
   (Example: It is beef lok lak that I like more than any other food.)
   _________________________________________
2. Think of one important thing you must do tomorrow. Write a sentence using a "What-cleft".
   (Example: What I must do tomorrow is finish my assignment.)
   _________________________________________
3. Your friend thinks you studied marketing, but you actually studied graphic design. Correct them using an "It-cleft".
   (Example: It wasn't marketing that I studied; it was graphic design.)
   _________________________________________

Vocabulary Glossary

1. Cleft Sentence: (Noun Phrase) - ប្រយោគបំបែក (brâyoŭk bâm'baek) - A complex sentence that is "split" into two parts to put emphasis on one element. ↩
2. Emphasis: (Noun) - ការសង្កត់ធ្ងន់ (kaa sâng'kât'thngón) - Special importance, value, or attention that is given to something. ↩
3. Highlight: (Verb) - បន្លិច (bânh'lĭch) - To attract attention to or emphasize something important. ↩
4. Clarify: (Verb) - បញ្ជាក់ (bânh'cheăk) - To make something clear or easier to understand. ↩
5. Sophistication: (Noun) - ភាពល្អិតល្អន់ (phéap lâ'ĭt'lâ'ân) - The quality of being advanced, complex, or having a good understanding of style. ↩