Cleft Sentences and Fronting: Adding Emphasis in Presentations and Writing

Why Emphasis Structures Matter

In speech, we emphasize with stress and intonation: I didn't say SHE took it. In writing — and in formal speech — we often use grammar instead. Cleft sentences split one clause into two to put a spotlight on one part:

• Plain: The marketing team caused the delay.
• Cleft: It was the marketing team that caused the delay. (Not someone else.)
• Cleft: What caused the delay was a problem with the supplier. (Here is the real cause.)

C1 speakers use these structures to correct misunderstandings, contrast ideas and guide the audience — exactly what you need in presentations, negotiations and exam speaking.

It-Clefts: It + be + focus + that/who

Structure: It is/was + the focus + that/who + the rest of the sentence

Typical uses

• Correcting: It wasn't the price that worried the client — it was the delivery time.
• Contrasting: It's not what you say, it's how you say it.
• Highlighting time or reason: It was not until the audit that we saw the full picture.

Note: use who or that for people; that (not which) for everything else.

Wh-Clefts (Pseudo-Clefts): What... is/was...

Structure: What + clause + be + the focus

• We need a clear plan. → What we need is a clear plan.
• I love the flexibility. → What I love about this job is the flexibility.
• The results surprised me. → What surprised me was the results.

Focusing on an action: What... do is (to) + verb

• What we did was redesign the whole checkout process.
• What you should do is call them directly.
• What happened was that the server crashed during the demo.

Wh-clefts are perfect signposts in presentations

• What I'd like to do today is walk you through the Q3 results.
• What this chart shows is a steady decline in costs.
• What's really important here is the trend, not the individual numbers.

Reversed wh-clefts

You can also put the focus first — common when you point back to something:

• A clear plan is what we need.
• That's what I mean. / That's why we changed suppliers. / This is where the problem starts.

Other Useful Cleft Patterns

Fronting

Fronting means moving an element to the start of the sentence that normally comes later. It creates emphasis and helps connect sentences smoothly.

Fronted objects and complements (mostly spoken or literary)

• I can accept the delay. The lack of communication, I can't accept.
• Impressive as the results are, they don't tell the whole story. (= Although the results are impressive...)
• Strange though it may seem, the smaller team was faster.

The adjective + as/though + subject + verb pattern is excellent in formal writing and C1 essays.

Fronted adverbials for cohesion

• Of greater concern is the rise in staff turnover.
• Even more surprising was the reaction of investors.
• Central to this strategy is a new pricing model.

Notice the inversion here (is the rise, was the reaction). When an adjective phrase or comparative is fronted, the verb be comes before a long subject. This links the new sentence to the previous one and saves the heavy information for the end, where readers expect it.

Spoken vs. Written

In Exams

• IELTS Speaking Part 3: "What I find worrying is how quickly young people accept everything they read online." This sounds natural and shows grammatical range.
• CELPIP Speaking Task 7 (Expressing Opinions): "The main reason I support the new park is that there are almost no green spaces in my area."
• Essays: one or two clefts or fronted phrases per essay is plenty. Overuse sounds theatrical.

Common Mistakes

Mistake 1: Using "which" in an it-cleft

• Wrong: It was the price which it worried them.
• Correct: It was the price that worried them.

Mistake 2: Double subject after "what"

• Wrong: What I need it is more time.
• Correct: What I need is more time.

Mistake 3: Wrong agreement

• What we need is more people. (The verb agrees with the what-clause → singular is normal, even with a plural focus.)

Mistake 4: Clefting everything

• If every sentence starts with What I think is..., nothing is emphasized. Save clefts for your key message.

Practice Tips

1. Rewrite your presentation opener with What I'd like to do today is... and your conclusion with What this means for us is...
2. Practise corrections: "You said the budget was the problem." — "No, it wasn't the budget; it was the timeline."
3. Read an opinion column and find three fronted phrases like Of greater concern is... Copy them into your phrase notebook.