Cleft Sentences

Article excerpt · target grammar marked

It was not the record sales that made Amy Winehouse extraordinary — it was the sensation that she was singing directly to them. What the album achieved was a near-total demolition of the boundary between vintage R&B and contemporary pop.

Grammar Reference · Cleft Sentences

It-cleft — form

It + be + focused element + relative clause. It was Mark Ronson who produced the album. Stresses who or what.

Wh-cleft — form

What/where/why + clause + be + focus. What she created was a new kind of British soul. Fronts the new information.

All / The thing cleft

All + subject + verb + be + focus. All we need is more time to rehearse. Limits or narrows a claim emphatically.

Common error — extra

Do not repeat the subject after the relative pronoun. It was Amy who she changed everything. ✗ → It was Amy who changed everything. ✓

01Exercise 1 — Form · Write the Correct Form

Cleft Sentences

1. was the live instrumentation ... gave the album its vintage feel.

2. surprised critics most was the album's commercial success.

3.It was Lauryn Hill first set the five-Grammy record in a single night.

4. I am arguing is that her legacy has grown, not faded.

5. was the Foundation ... continued her social work after 2011.

6. the streaming data reveals is a new generation discovering the album.

02Exercise 2 — Transform

rewrite with the new structure

1.The Grammy ceremony changed public awareness of British soul music.

2.Her death shocked the music world most profoundly.

3.The basslines gave the record its sense of timelessness.

4.I only want to point out that she won five awards in one evening.

5.The Foundation's arts programme matters most to young people today.

6.Her vocal style influenced a whole generation of British singers.

03Exercise 3 — About You

in your notebook

Personalise: complete five sentences about yourself using the target grammar.

Cleft Sentences01classplan.ai