Câu Chẻ (Cleft Sentences)

Tóm tắt ôn tập

Cấu trúc

It-cleft: It + be + thành phần nhấn mạnh + that/who + mệnh đề
What-cleft: What + S + V + be + thành phần nhấn mạnh

Ví dụ:
- It was John who broke the window.
- What I need is a vacation.

Cách dùng

Nhấn mạnh chủ ngữ: It was John who did it.
Nhấn mạnh tân ngữ: It was the book that I bought.
Nhấn mạnh trạng ngữ: It was yesterday that I met her.
What-cleft nhấn mạnh tân ngữ: What I want is peace.

Dấu hiệu nhận biết

It is/was...that/who What...is/was The thing that The person who The place where The reason why The time when All (that) What...do/does/did nhấn mạnh

Nội dung chi tiết

Câu chẻ (Cleft Sentences) là cấu trúc dùng để nhấn mạnh một thành phần trong câu bằng cách “tách” nó ra khỏi câu gốc. Có hai loại câu chẻ chính: It-cleft và What-cleft (Wh-cleft).

1. It-cleft

1.1. Cấu trúc

It + be + thành phần nhấn mạnh + that/who + mệnh đề còn lại

Thành phần	Câu chẻ
Chủ ngữ	It is/was + S + who/that + V + O
Tân ngữ	It is/was + O + that + S + V
Trạng ngữ	It is/was + Adv + that + S + V + O

1.2. Nhấn mạnh chủ ngữ (người)

It + be + người + who/that + V

Câu gốc	Câu chẻ
John broke the window.	It was John who/that broke the window.
Mary helped me.	It was Mary who helped me.
My mother taught me to cook.	It was my mother who taught me to cook.

1.3. Nhấn mạnh chủ ngữ (vật)

It + be + vật + that + V

Câu gốc	Câu chẻ
The storm destroyed the house.	It was the storm that destroyed the house.
This book changed my life.	It was this book that changed my life.

1.4. Nhấn mạnh tân ngữ

It + be + tân ngữ + that + S + V

Câu gốc	Câu chẻ
I bought the book.	It was the book that I bought.
She loves music.	It is music that she loves.
They built this bridge in 1990.	It was this bridge that they built in 1990.

1.5. Nhấn mạnh trạng ngữ

Trạng ngữ thời gian:

Câu gốc	Câu chẻ
I met her yesterday.	It was yesterday that I met her.
He left in 2010.	It was in 2010 that he left.

Trạng ngữ nơi chốn:

Câu gốc	Câu chẻ
They met in Paris.	It was in Paris that they met.
I bought it at that shop.	It was at that shop that I bought it.

Trạng ngữ nguyên nhân:

Câu gốc	Câu chẻ
He failed because he didn’t study.	It was because he didn’t study that he failed.

2. What-cleft (Wh-cleft)

2.1. Cấu trúc cơ bản

What + S + V + be + thành phần nhấn mạnh

Câu gốc	What-cleft
I need a vacation.	What I need is a vacation.
She wants peace.	What she wants is peace.
He said something strange.	What he said was something strange.

2.2. Các biến thể

Cấu trúc	Ví dụ
What + S + do/does/did + be + V	What I did was (to) call her.
The thing that	The thing that I love most is music.
The person who	The person who helped me was my teacher.
The place where	The place where we met was Paris.
The reason why	The reason why I left was personal.
The time when	The time when I was happiest was my childhood.

2.3. Ví dụ chi tiết

What:

I want to travel. → What I want is to travel.
He needs help. → What he needs is help.

The thing that:

I love music most. → The thing that I love most is music.

The person who:

My teacher inspired me. → The person who inspired me was my teacher.

The place where:

I was born in Hanoi. → The place where I was born is Hanoi.

3. All-cleft

3.1. Cấu trúc

All (that) + S + V + be + thành phần nhấn mạnh

Câu gốc	All-cleft
I want rest.	All (that) I want is rest.
You need practice.	All (that) you need is practice.
She did was smile.	All (that) she did was smile.

3.2. Ví dụ

All I want for Christmas is you.
All you have to do is ask.
All she ever does is complain.

4. So sánh It-cleft và What-cleft

It-cleft	What-cleft
Nhấn mạnh bất kỳ thành phần nào	Thường nhấn mạnh tân ngữ/bổ ngữ
It was John who helped me.	What I need is help.
Formal hơn	Ít formal hơn
Dùng that/who	Dùng what/the thing that

5. Chia thì trong câu chẻ

5.1. Quy tắc

Động từ “be” trong câu chẻ chia theo thời điểm nhấn mạnh.

Thì	Ví dụ
Hiện tại	It is John who helps me.
Quá khứ	It was John who helped me.
Hiện tại hoàn thành	It has been John who has helped me.
Tương lai	It will be John who will help you.

5.2. Ví dụ

It is education that changes lives. (Sự thật chung)
It was yesterday that I met her. (Quá khứ)
It will be in July that we will move. (Tương lai)

6. Lỗi thường gặp

❌ Sai → ✅ Đúng

Lỗi sai	Sửa đúng	Giải thích
It was John which broke it.	It was John who/that broke it.	Người dùng who/that
What was John that helped me.	It was John who helped me.	What-cleft không dùng cho người
It was yesterday when I met her.	It was yesterday that I met her.	Dùng “that” trong It-cleft
What I need are money.	What I need is money.	Động từ chia theo “What” (số ít)

7. Ứng dụng trong IELTS

IELTS Writing Task 2

Câu chẻ giúp nhấn mạnh ý chính.

It is education that plays the most important role in development.
What governments should do is invest more in healthcare.
It was only in the 20th century that women gained equal rights.
The thing that concerns me most is environmental pollution.

IELTS Speaking

Dùng câu chẻ để nhấn mạnh quan điểm.

It was my mother who taught me to be kind.
What I love most about my hometown is the friendly people.
It was in 2015 that I first visited Europe.
All I want is to have a peaceful life.

Lưu ý

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