Cleft sentences
A cleft sentence splits one message into two clauses to spotlight a single element: 'It was the price that shocked me' (it-cleft) or 'What I need is a longer deadline' (wh-cleft). Clefts add emphasis and contrast without changing the facts, and examiners read them as evidence of full, flexible grammatical range.
The rule
How to build cleft sentences
It-cleft
Itbefocusthat/whorest
It was my sister who suggested Lisbon.
Wh-cleft (what-cleft)
Whatclausebefocus
What keeps tourists away is the traffic.
Reversed wh-cleft
focusbewhat-clause
A quiet workspace is what I miss most about the old office.
All-cleft
Allclausebefocus
All she wanted was a straight answer.
The reason / the place / the day
The reasonclausebethat-clause
The reason the project stalled is that nobody owned the budget.
Inside a sentence
ItItwasbemy sisterfocuswhothat/whosuggested Lisbon.
WhatWhatkeeps tourists awayclauseisbethe traffic.focus
- subject
- helping verb
- key word
How to use cleft sentences
What is a cleft sentence?
'Cleft' means split. A cleft sentence takes one plain statement ('The commute annoys me') and cleaves it into two clauses so that one element carries all the stress: 'It's the commute that annoys me' or 'What annoys me is the commute.' The facts are identical; the focus is not.
In speech, English can emphasise a word just by stressing it. Writing has no volume control, so clefts do the job structurally, which is why they are so valuable in essays, and why the 'full flexibility' wording of the IELTS Band 9 descriptors fits them perfectly.
- It was the coach's calm that won the players over.it-cleft, focus on the calm
- What convinced the panel was her fieldwork in Nepal.wh-cleft, focus saved for the end
How do it-clefts work?
The frame is It + be + focus + that/who. Almost any element can sit in the focus slot: the subject ('It was Marco who locked up'), the object ('It was the keys that he forgot'), or an adverbial ('It was on Tuesday that the pipes burst'). Whatever follows that/who is old, background information.
Two details keep it-clefts accurate. First, the verb after that/who agrees with the focus noun: 'It is the residents who decide', not 'decides'. Second, be changes tense to fit the situation: it was, it is, it must have been.
- It was the deposit that put students off, not the rent itself.object in focus, contrast added
- It was only after midnight that the queue finally cleared.adverbial in focus
- It was the neighbours who was complaining.→ who were complaining, agree with the focus noun
How do wh-clefts (what-clefts) work?
A wh-cleft puts a what-clause first and saves the focus for the end: 'What the city lacks is affordable housing.' Because English gives end position the most weight, wh-clefts build suspense; the listener waits for the payoff after is.
The what-clause acts as a singular subject, so it takes is or was. To spotlight a whole action rather than a thing, add do: 'What the government should do is invest in vocational training.' This 'What…do is…' frame is one of the most natural high-band moves in IELTS Part 3.
- What impressed me most was the staff's patience.
- What we should do is book the earlier ferry.do-cleft spotlights an action
- What I'm looking for are a two-bedroom flat.→ is; the what-clause takes a singular verb
Which other cleft patterns are worth learning?
All-clefts narrow the focus to a single thing and quietly imply 'nothing more': 'All the plant needs is indirect sunlight.' Noun-headed clefts use the reason, the place, the day or the person as the frame, and the formal pattern is 'the reason … is that', never 'is because'.
Finally, negative contrast clefts pair two halves to correct an assumption: it isn't X that matters; it's Y. This double-cleft move is the most conversational of all the patterns and slots straight into discussion answers.
- All the plant needs is indirect sunlight.all = nothing more than this
- The person you should speak to is the visa officer, not the travel agent.
- It isn't the heat that bothers visitors to Kuala Lumpur; it's the humidity.contrast pair of clefts
How do clefts add contrast and emphasis in IELTS answers?
Clefts shine wherever you correct an assumption, contrast two ideas, or single out a priority, precisely the moves that IELTS Part 3 discussions and Task 2 essays demand. They show an examiner that you control information structure: you decide what lands with stress, not the sentence.
Use them sparingly. One or two clefts per essay or discussion reads as emphasis; five reads as a rehearsed tic. The Band 9 descriptor's own word is 'naturally'; a cleft should sit exactly where a fluent speaker would put vocal stress.
- It isn't money that motivates most volunteers; it's the sense of purpose.correcting an assumption
- What matters more than speed is reliability.prioritising
- It was the over-65 group that recorded the sharpest increase.highlighting a standout figure in Task 1
Common mistakes with cleft sentences
Find what is wrong in each one, then open it to check.
1It was yesterday when the offer arrived.What's wrong? Show the fix
It was yesterday that the offer arrived.
It-clefts link with that even after time expressions; when belongs in relative clauses, not clefts.
2What I'm interested is the salary package.What's wrong? Show the fix
What I'm interested in is the salary package.
The preposition stays inside the what-clause (interested in) even though the word order feels crowded.
3The reason I resigned was because the pay was low.What's wrong? Show the fix
The reason I resigned was that the pay was low.
'The reason … is because' states the cause twice; formal English pairs the reason with a that-clause.
4It is the manager who decide the weekly rota.What's wrong? Show the fix
It is the manager who decides the weekly rota.
The verb after who/that agrees with the focus noun: the manager decides.
5What we need are a longer deadline.What's wrong? Show the fix
What we need is a longer deadline.
The what-clause is a singular subject, so it takes is, even before a noun phrase that feels weighty.
6That I admire about Selin is her honesty.What's wrong? Show the fix
What I admire about Selin is her honesty.
Wh-clefts are headed by what (= the thing that); that cannot introduce the fused clause.
Practise
Write your own
Write a sentence of your own with cleft sentences, about you, your studies or your town.
Cleft sentences in IELTS
Speaking
- Keep one contrast cleft loaded for Part 3: 'It's not the technology itself that worries me; it's how children use it.' It frames a balanced answer and displays C1-level information control in a single sentence.
- Launch a Part 2 talk with a wh-cleft: 'What made that trip unforgettable was the people we met on the night train.' It sets the theme and buys you a beat to organise the story.
Writing
- In Task 2, a wh-cleft sharpens a thesis or recommendation: 'What governments should prioritise is prevention rather than treatment.' One cleft in the introduction or conclusion is enough to register as range.
- In Task 1, spotlight the standout figure with a single it-cleft ('It was the under-25s who accounted for most of the growth'), then return to plain comparisons; clefts lose their force if every sentence is split.