Cleft Sentences in English
Cleft sentences are advanced structures used to emphasize a particular part of a sentence.
They allow speakers to highlight important information, create contrast, and make their communication more effective.
They are especially useful in:
📊 Presentations
📞 Meetings
💼 Job Interviews
🤝 Negotiations
💬 Professional Conversations
💡 Why Use Cleft Sentences?
Compare these two sentences:
Normal:
✔ We need better communication skills.
Cleft sentence:
✔ What we need is better communication skills.
The second sentence gives more importance to the idea of better communication skills.
📚 Common Types of Cleft Sentences
The main types are:
- It-clefts
- Wh-clefts (What-clefts)
- All-clefts
- Negative clefts
1. It-cleft Sentences
Structure:
It + be + emphasized information + that/who + rest of sentence
Normal:
✔ Sarah organized the meeting.
Emphasis on Sarah:
✔ It was Sarah who organized the meeting.
Normal:
✔ We need to improve our customer service.
Emphasis on the action:
✔ It is improving our customer service that we need to focus on.
More examples:
✔ It was John who solved the problem.
✔ It was yesterday that they announced the decision.
✔ It is communication skills that make a great leader.
💼 Cleft Sentences in Professional English
They are very useful when you want to highlight responsibility, priorities, or key points.
Examples:
✔ It was our marketing team that developed the new strategy.
✔ It is customer satisfaction that drives our decisions.
✔ It was during the last meeting that we identified the main issue.
2. Wh-cleft Sentences (What-clefts)
Structure:
What + clause + be + emphasized information
These are very common in spoken English.
Normal:
✔ We need more time.
Cleft:
✔ What we need is more time.
Normal:
✔ I want to improve my communication skills.
Cleft:
✔ What I want to improve is my communication skills.
More examples:
✔ What we need to do is find a practical solution.
✔ What matters most is building strong relationships with clients.
✔ What I appreciate about this company is its culture.
💼 In Meetings and Presentations
Very common expressions:
✔ What we need to focus on is increasing efficiency.
✔ What I would like to discuss today is our new strategy.
✔ What this means is that we need to change our approach.
3. All-cleft Sentences
Structure:
All + clause + be + information
Used to emphasize the only thing needed or the main point.
Examples:
✔ All we need is more information.
✔ All I wanted was a clear explanation.
✔ All they did was complain.
4. Negative Cleft Sentences
Used to emphasize something surprising or important.
Examples:
Normal:
✔ The problem is not money.
Cleft:
✔ What is not important is the money.
More natural examples:
✔ What we don't need is another meeting.
✔ What I don't understand is why they changed the plan.
Cleft Sentences vs Normal Sentences
Normal Cleft
I need your help. What I need is your help.
Maria made the decision. It was Maria who made the decision.
We need to reduce costs. What we need to do is reduce costs.
The problem started yesterday. It was yesterday that the problem started.
⚠️ Common Mistakes
Using the wrong verb form
Incorrect:
❌ What we need is improving communication.
Correct:
✔ What we need is to improve communication.
or:
✔ What we need is improved communication.
Overusing cleft sentences
Cleft sentences are powerful because they create emphasis.
If every sentence uses them, the effect disappears.
Confusing "what" with "that"
Incorrect:
❌ That we need is more time.
Correct:
✔ What we need is more time.
🗣️ Examples in Real Communication
Meetings
✔ What I suggest is reviewing the data again.
✔ What we need to decide today is the next step.
Interviews
✔ What I learned from that experience was the importance of teamwork.
Presentations
✔ What this chart shows is a significant increase in sales.
Negotiations
✔ What we are looking for is a long-term partnership.
Final Tip
Cleft sentences are not used because they are "advanced grammar" only. They are useful because they help you control emphasis.
In professional English, the ability to highlight the right information can make your presentations, meetings, and explanations much more effective.