Yesterday, I wrote a short grammar post related to all-clefts, so today we’ll be dealing with another similar content that we also use for emphasis. But first, let’s listen to this song from times when my mum would have been jiving on a dance floor, enjoying the time of her life. 😁😁😁 Like mother like daughter! 🤩
The song is called ….. Yes, you’ve guessed!
What I like About You is a very good example of a cleft using ‘What’ for emphasis. Here’s the grammar for this lesson.
‘What’ Cleft Sentences
We use ‘What + clause’ to put focus on the most important idea.
Examples
- What I loved most about band was it’s vibrant music. (The speaker focuses on vibrant music’ as the main reason why they liked the band.)
- What impressed me the most about her was her voice (The emphasis is on ‘the voice of the person’.)
LOOK!
It’s a common error to get subject + verb agreement mixed up!
Why ‘was’ and not ‘were’?
In cleft sentences with ‘what’, the verb agrees with ‘what’, not with the noun that follows.
- ‘What’ acts as a singular subject, even if the noun that follows is plural.
- The verb must agree with ‘what’, so we use ‘was’ instead of ‘were’.
Example:
- What fascinated me the most was the ancient ruins. (‘What fascinated me’ is a singular idea, so we use ‘was’.)
Incorrect:
• ❌ What fascinated me the most were the ancient ruins.
( This sounds unnatural because the verb should match ‘What’, not ‘ruins’.)
Tip! If you’re unsure whether to use was or were, check if you can replace ‘What’ with ‘The thing(s) that’ in your mind.
The thing that fascinated me the most was the ancient ruins.
What I enjoyed most was the people, the food, and the culture. (= The things I enjoyed most were the people, the food, and the culture.)
(BUT we still use ‘was’ because ‘what’ is singular.)
In for a little challenge? If so, down below you’ll find a sentence completion below 👇