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ESL forum >
Grammar and Linguistics > Pseudo-clefts without "what"
Pseudo-clefts without "what"
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ninon100
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Pseudo-clefts without "what"
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Dear colleagues, can we possibly use pseudo-clefts with other words, such as "who", "how", "when" and so on? Pseudo-clefts are typically used with "what": What I need is a cup of coffee. What he loves is a hearty breakfast. What we all missed was attention. BUT: we can�t always use "what"! For people or places or reasons we have to use who, where or why. Are they possible in pseudo-clefts? For instance, "I have chosen you to be my partner." Who I have chosen to be my partner is you. Or: "We are planning to get married in summer." When we are planning to get married is in summer. I�m not talking about "it" construction, like "It�s you that I�ve chosen" - that�s obvious. The problem is pseudo-clefts! |
4 Feb 2019
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jannabanna
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Hi Ninon, This seems clear: As a native speaker I must admit I�ve never heard this kind of sentence with anything other than the pronoun "what". Janet |
4 Feb 2019
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yanogator
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You definitely can use words other than what, at least in the US. Who you are is a combination of genetics and upbringing. Where we are going for vacation is still being discussed. Why she said that I don�t know. How you do it is completely up to you. Your two examples, ninon100, sound a little unnatural, because you built them from other sentences. Bruce |
4 Feb 2019
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ninon100
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ycsLcSzIUYo This teacher, however, is USING who- and why- pseudoclefts in his lecture (11 min 20 sc of the video) I�m totally confused. Maybe they are American only? Or very informal?  |
4 Feb 2019
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Aisha77
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Hi:
The sentences Bruce has written you are quite usual in English from Ireland, so I guess it is not only in the USA. However, I can�t talk if in the UK would be the same. The sentences you wrote as Bruce says to yoy sound weird, I would say instead: "You are the one who I have chosen" or "It�s you who I have chosen to be my partner" "Summer is when we are planning to get married" or "It�s Summer when we are planning to get married".
Imagine this conversation: Peter: You are looking to that man! I knew you were cheating me! Mary: No, I love you. Who I have chosen among all men in the world is you! (This is a correct sentence) So, maybe and only maybe depending on the situation, your sentence could be possible. I hope someone could help us!
Aisha
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4 Feb 2019
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Aisha77
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Maybe this can help you: You wrote: " When we are planning to get married is in summer". Now let�s make it natural: "It�s in summer when we are planning to get married" The subject is IT. When you reverse the sentence you still need a subject and your sentence hasn�t got any. I have seen the video and he doesn�t talk about "where" but only "who" or "why" instead. Anyway, I hope someone can bring a little bit of light here as I am such a kind of person who doesn�t sleep until it knows the answer. I will rack my brain until then! :@ Aisha
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4 Feb 2019
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almaz
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I had a brief look at your clip and the speaker doesn�t sound American at all, ninon100. Most of the examples I�ve seen so far using wh- words other than �what�, seem to me to be forced and unnatural. Perhaps you need to rethink what you mean by a pseudo-cleft. I�m sure you�re aware that the whole construction known as a wh- or pseudo-cleft consists of foregrounded and backgrounded elements, linked by a form of the verb be. The two elements can be analysed separately. The backgrounded element (the wh-clause, if you like) is what is known as a fused relative (sometimes called a free relative, or nominal-relative, clause), which forms part of the pseudo-cleft construction. But not every sentence with a fused relative is necessarily a pseudo-cleft. Basically, all wh- words can occur with a fused relative � but often only under very limited conditions. �Who� (or �whom�), for example, is normally used nowadays� only with certain verbs, such as want, choose or like (compare �I�ll invite who I choose� with *�Who I choose I�ll invite� or *�Who invited John is an idiot� and �Whoever invited John is an idiot�). Anyway, I�m glad you raised this particular question, ninon100, and I�m aware that there are some who might disagree with this analysis (it�s not exactly traditional, I know), but if nothing else, you�ve jogged a failing memory and given me something other than Disney Princess stories to think about while I�m babysitting 
Alex
� I say �nowadays� since we rarely use the type of construction commonly seen in Shakespeare: "Who steals my purse steals trash..."
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4 Feb 2019
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ninon100
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What a fascinating topic :) Thanks everyone! I�ll try to avoid any other constructions but "what". However, it�s not that they are completely banned... Just better left unsaid  Or replaced! |
4 Feb 2019
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