Cleft Sentences and Emphasis Worksheets
27 worksheets · Advanced grammar
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Cleft sentences & emphasis worksheets
27 printable worksheets with answer keys; the 24 most used, easiest level first.
About Cleft sentences & emphasis
A cleft sentence splits one idea into two clauses to focus on a particular element. It-clefts highlight a noun phrase or adverbial: It was Anna who found the keys, not me. What-clefts (pseudo-clefts) put the focus at the end: What I need is a long holiday. With actions we use do: What she did was (to) resign.
Cleft sentences are usually taught at C1–C2, and they appear in key word transformations and in spoken emphasis. Learners often forget the verb be (What I need a holiday), use the wrong relative word, or struggle with other emphatic frames such as All I did was ask, The reason why... is that... and The thing that annoys me is...
This page contains printable cleft sentence worksheets with answer keys, which you can print as PDF or assign online via a class link, covering it-clefts, wh-clefts and other emphatic structures.
Teaching tips: Cleft sentences & emphasis
- Show clefts as corrections in dialogue (A: Did Tom break it? B: No, it was Sam who broke it) so learners see their purpose.
- Watch for a missing 'be' in what-clefts, for example 'What I want a coffee'; the pattern is What + clause + be + focus.
- Have learners rewrite neutral statements from a speech or review with clefts to add emphasis, then read them aloud with stress on the focus.
- Include All-clefts (All I want is some peace) to convey 'only' and the idea that something is small or simple.
Questions teachers ask
Can I use 'that' instead of 'who' in it-clefts?
Yes. It was Anna that found the keys is correct, and that is used for things, times and places too: It was in 2010 that we met.
Is the verb singular or plural in 'What we need is/are...'?
The verb is normally singular (What we need is more staff), although plural agreement is sometimes heard in speech when the complement is plural.
How do I emphasize an action with a cleft?
Use what + subject + do + be + infinitive: What he did was (to) call the police. The to is optional.