Akeem Lasisi
Conciseness is a major attribute of a good sentence. Every teacher stresses the need to construct concise and sharp clauses or sentences. The principle demands you deploy as fewer words as possible to achieve what a longish statement, which is usually prone to grammatical errors, can do. Yet, there are occasions we deliberately make the sentence not only relaxed but also branch into two clauses to achieve emphasis and/or provide additional information. This is the essence of a cleft sentence in which an element is emphasised by being put in a separate clause.
According to Oxford Dictionary, we use cleft sentences, especially in speaking, to connect what is already understood to what is new to the listener. “In a cleft sentence, a single message is divided into two clauses. This allows us to focus on the new information,” it says.Consider this pair:
Godwin bought the car. (Original sentence.)
It was Godwin who bought the car. (Now a cleft sentence emphasising the performer of the action)
The above shows that a cleft sentence is a complex one with a meaning that could be expressed by a simple sentence. The second clause (It is Godwin) is, however, created so that the reader or listener can focus on the message it conveys. Words that introduce cleft clauses/sentences include it, what, where, who, how and all:
I will leave tomorrow
It is tomorrow I will leave. (Cleft counterpart)
She needs counselling.
What she needs is counselling.
Tinubu travelled on Saturday.
It was on Saturday that Tinubu travelled.
I need two seats.
It is two seats I need.
They are meeting in Yenagoa.
It is at Yenagoa they are meeting.
The work on Fridays.
What they do is work on Fridays.
It is on Fridays they work.
All they do is work on Fridays.
Nigerian want real change.
What Nigerians want is real change.
All Nigerians need is real change.
Bisi wants a place she can keep her bag.
What/Where/All Bisi wants is a place she can keep the bag.
I want food.
What/All I want is food.
Note that the added/cleft clauses in the above statements can change, depending on the information the speaker/writer wants to emphasise. Besides, a cleft clause can also be negative:
Tinubu travelled on Saturday. (Original statement)
It was on Saturday that Tinubu travelled. (Cleft, with the emphasis on the day he travelled.)
It was Tinubu who travelled on Saturday. (Also correct, with emphasis on who performed the action.)
It wasn’t on Saturday that Tinubu travelled. Also correct!)
