What is a Cleft Sentence in Passive Form?
A cleft sentence is a way to emphasize or highlight a particular part of a sentence by splitting it into two clauses. In the passive form, we use "It was" or "It is" followed by the emphasized information, then a relative clause with the rest of the sentence in passive voice. This structure helps you focus attention on what is most important in your message. For example, instead of saying "A storm destroyed the bridge," you can say "It was the bridge that was destroyed by a storm" to emphasize what was destroyed.
Basic Structure of Passive Cleft Sentences
The typical pattern is: It was + [emphasized element] + that + [rest of sentence in passive voice]. The emphasized element can be the object, agent, time, or location. The relative clause (the part after "that") must use passive voice to match the original meaning. This is different from active cleft sentences because the verb in the relative clause is passive, not active.
When to Use Passive Cleft Sentences
Use passive cleft sentences when you want to emphasize what happened to something, who did something, or when/where it happened—but you want to keep the sentence in passive voice. This is especially useful in formal writing, reports, or when the "doer" of the action is unknown or unimportant. Passive cleft sentences are common in news reports, academic writing, and formal explanations where clarity and emphasis matter.
Active vs Passive Cleft Sentences: Side-by-Side Comparison
| Aspect | Active Cleft Sentence | Passive Cleft Sentence |
|---|---|---|
| Form |
It + be + focused element + that/who + subject does something
Pattern: It is [noun/pronoun] that [active clause]
|
It + be + focused element + that/who + was/were + past participle (by agent)
Pattern: It is [noun/pronoun] that [passive clause]
|
| When to Use | Use when you want to emphasise who performs an action or what/when/where an action occurs, while the performer (subject) is known or important. | Use when you want to emphasise the recipient of an action, when the agent is unknown, unimportant, or deliberately omitted, or when the focus is on what happened to something. |
| Positive Example |
It was Maria who designed the logo.
→ Emphasises Maria as the active designer.
|
It was the logo that was designed by Maria.
→ Emphasises the logo as the thing acted upon.
|
| Negative Example |
It was not the manager who approved the plan.
→ Denies the manager performed the approving action.
|
It was not the plan that was approved by the manager.
→ Denies the plan as the thing that received the approval.
|
| Question Example |
Was it the director who announced the decision?
→ Questions whether the director was the active announcer.
|
Was it the decision that was announced by the director?
→ Questions whether the decision was the thing announced.
|
| Key Signal Words |
|
|
| Emphasis Shift | Focus is on who or what performs the action. The agent is highlighted and grammatically foregrounded in the cleft position. | Focus shifts to what is acted upon. The agent may be absent entirely, allowing the object or recipient to take centre stage. |
| Grammatical Structure of the Relative Clause |
It was Maria who [she] designed the logo.
Relative clause uses an active verb form. The clefted element acts as the logical subject. |
It was the logo that [it] was designed by Maria.
Relative clause uses a passive verb form. The clefted element acts as the logical object/patient. |
| Register & Frequency | Common in both spoken and written English. Frequently used for contrastive emphasis and correction in everyday conversation. | More common in formal and written English (academic, journalistic, legal). Less frequent in casual speech due to the double structural complexity. |
| Additional Example Pair |
It was the committee that rejected the proposal.
The committee = doer; proposal = object.
|
It was the proposal that was rejected by the committee.
The proposal = highlighted; committee = background agent.
|
| Key Difference: Both active and passive cleft sentences use the It is/was … that/who structure to isolate and emphasise one element of a sentence, but they differ fundamentally in what is foregrounded and how the verb in the relative clause is constructed. In an active cleft, the highlighted element is the doer (agent) of the action, and the relative clause retains an active verb. In a passive cleft, the highlighted element is the receiver (patient) of the action, and the relative clause uses a passive construction (was/were + past participle), optionally followed by a by-phrase. The passive cleft is particularly useful when the agent is unknown, irrelevant, or when the writer or speaker deliberately wants to shift attention away from who performed the action and onto what was affected by it. | ||
Formula
✔ Positive
It
+
was
+
[emphasized element]
+
that
+
was
+
[past participle]
+
by [agent]
It was the manager that was blamed for the mistake.
Examples
It was the ancient temple that was discovered by archaeologists in 1985.
Emphasizing what was discovered · Past passive cleft
It is the new policy that is being implemented by the government.
Emphasizing what is happening · Present continuous passive cleft
It was during the meeting that the decision was announced by the director.
Emphasizing when something happened · Time emphasis
It was the students who were praised by their teacher for their excellent work.
Emphasizing who received the action · Person emphasis
It was in the kitchen that the accident was reported by the staff.
Emphasizing where something occurred · Location emphasis
It is the data that is being analyzed by the research team at the moment.
Formal emphasis in present continuous · Academic usage
When to use it
News Reporting
Journalists use passive cleft sentences to emphasize what happened or who was affected. This structure creates impact and clarity.
"It was three buildings that were damaged by the fire."
Formal Reports
In business and academic writing, passive cleft sentences focus attention on key information when the agent is unknown or unimportant.
"It was the budget that was reduced by 20% this year."
Academic Writing
Researchers use this structure to emphasize findings or methods without focusing on who performed the action.
"It was the hypothesis that was confirmed by the experimental results."
Emphasis in Conversation
Use passive cleft sentences in speech to stress an important detail and make your point more memorable.
"It was my phone that was stolen, not my wallet!"
Signal words
It was
It is
It will be
that
was
is
by
were
are
Common Mistakes
✕
Wrong
It was the bridge that destroyed by the storm.
✓
Correct
It was the bridge that was destroyed by the storm.
The relative clause must use passive voice (was + past participle), not active voice.
✕
Wrong
It is the mistake that made by the programmer.
✓
Correct
It is the mistake that was made by the programmer.
Use the correct auxiliary verb (was/is) in the relative clause for the passive voice.
✕
Wrong
It was the project that is completed by the team.
✓
Correct
It was the project that was completed by the team.
The auxiliary verb in both clauses should match in tense (was...was, not was...is).
✕
Wrong
It was during summer that the festival organized by volunteers.
✓
Correct
It was during summer that the festival was organized by volunteers.
Always include the auxiliary verb (was/is) before the past participle in passive voice.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
What to Remember
- Use "It was" or "It is" to start a passive cleft sentence for emphasis.
- Follow the main clause with a relative clause containing the passive voice verb.
- The emphasized element comes between "It was/is" and the relative pronoun "that."
- Cleft sentences highlight one part of the sentence to draw attention to it.
- Don't use active voice in the relative clause; keep the passive structure throughout.