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cleft sentence
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This shows grade level based on the word's complexity.
noun Grammar.
a sentence in which a simpler sentence is paraphrased by being divided into two parts, each with its own verb, in order to emphasize certain information, especially a sentence beginning with expletive it and a form of be followed by the information being emphasized, as It was a mushroom that Alice ate instead of Alice ate a mushroom.
Also called pseudo-cleft sentence. a two-part sentence in which a subject or subject complement expresses information being emphasized and an indefinite relative clause corresponds to the rest of a simpler sentence that has been paraphrased, as A mushroom was what Alice ate or What Alice ate was a mushroom.
QUIZ
WILL YOU SAIL OR STUMBLE ON THESE GRAMMAR QUESTIONS?
Smoothly step over to these common grammar mistakes that trip many people up. Good luck!
Question 1 of 7
Fill in the blank: I can’t figure out _____ gave me this gift.
Words nearby cleft sentence
Cleethorpes, clef, cleft, cleft lip, cleft palate, cleft sentence, cleg, Clegg, cleidoic, cleidoic egg, Cleisthenes
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023