Korean Cleft Structures: Emphasizing with 'It Is... That' and 'What... Is'
Learn Korean cleft sentences using 것이...이다 and -는 것이...이다 to spotlight who, what, or when, moving beyond plain do-emphasis.
By TheaFirst conversations · Yapr Learn
Korean has no single word-for-word equivalent of English 'It is... that' or 'What... is.' Instead, it uses nominalization and focus particles to package information as a cleft. The most common pattern is 것이...이다 ('the thing that... is'), often shortened to 게...이다 in speech. This lesson teaches you to identify the focused element, build the nominalized clause, and attach the correct particle. You will also contrast this with do-emphasis, which stresses a verb or truth value rather than a participant.
By the end, you can…
- build Korean cleft sentences with 것이...이다 to emphasize a person, thing, or time.
- distinguish cleft focus from do-emphasis and choose the right pattern for context.
Listen once. Try it slowly. Then say it without looking.
Checking available voices…
아나가 전화한 것이에요.
It was Ana who called.
a-na-ga jeon-hwa-han geo-si-e-yo
Focused subject: Ana. Use after a plain-style verb before 것이.
제가 원하는 것은 조용한 방이에요.
What I want is a quiet room.
je-ga won-ha-neun geo-seun jo-yong-han bang-i-e-yo
Focused object: a quiet room. 은 marks the topic of the cleft.
문제는 그가 거짓말을 했다는 것이에요.
The problem is that he lied.
mun-je-neun geu-ga geo-jit-ma-reul haet-da-neun geo-si-e-yo
Focused clause: the fact that he lied. 다는 것이 nominalizes a full statement.
어제 내가 간 곳은 부산이었어요.
The place I went yesterday was Busan.
eo-je nae-ga gan go-seun bu-san-i-eot-eo-yo
Focused place: Busan. 곳 is a place nominalizer, not 것이.
중요한 것은 결과가 아니라 과정이에요.
What matters is not the result but the process.
jung-yo-han geo-seun gyeol-gwa-ga a-ni-ra gwa-jeong-i-e-yo
Contrastive cleft with 아니라: 'not X but Y.'
Pronunciation guides are approximate. Slow playback keeps the original pitch.
Make it make sense
Useful pattern
The core cleft is [nominalized clause] + 것이/게 + 이다. The nominalizer 것이 turns a verb phrase into a 'thing that...' noun. In speech, 것이 contracts to 게: 내가 좋아하는 게 커피예요 ('What I like is coffee'). The focused element sits after 이다. If the focus is a person, use 사람 or the bare clause; if it is a place, use 곳; if it is a fact, use 것이다 after a quoted clause with 다는. Example: 그가 말한 것은 사실이에요 ('What he said is true').
When to use it
Use clefts when the listener already knows the situation but not the identity, time, or reason. Compare 아나가 전화했어요 ('Ana called') with 아나가 전화한 것이에요 ('It was Ana who called'). The second presupposes someone called and identifies Ana. Do-emphasis, by contrast, stresses the verb or truth: 전화하기는 했어요 ('I did call, at least'). Clefts answer 'who/what/when' questions; do-emphasis answers 'did you or didn't you?' or contradicts a denial. In formal writing, 것이다 is standard; in conversation, 게 is natural.
Listen to each line, then take one part and reply out loud.
어제 회의에 누가 왔어요?
Who came to the meeting yesterday?eo-je hoe-ui-e nu-ga wa-sseo-yo?민수가 온 것이에요. 제가 부탁했거든요.
It was Minsu who came. I had asked him to.min-su-ga on geo-si-e-yo. je-ga bu-tak-haet-geo-deun-yo.그런데 제가 궁금한 것은 왜 그가 화를 냈는지예요.
But what I'm curious about is why he got angry.geu-reon-de je-ga gung-geum-han geo-seun wae geu-ga hwa-reul naen-neun-ji-ye-yo.화를 낸 것은 아니고, 그냥 피곤했던 것 같아요.
It's not that he got angry; I think he was just tired.hwa-reul naen geo-seun a-ni-go, geu-nyang pi-gon-haet-deon geot ga-ta-yo.A little context goes a long way
Korean clefts are common in polite explanations and apologies because they let you identify a fact without directly blaming a person. Using 것이에요 in a formal setting sounds measured; switching to 게 in casual speech is normal among friends. Avoid stacking too many clefts in one turn, which can sound evasive or overly indirect.
One thing to watch for
Treating 것이 as an optional word and saying 아나가 전화했어요 when you mean 'It was Ana who called.'
Try this instead: If the point is to identify Ana against an assumed alternative, nominalize the clause: 아나가 전화한 것이에요. Plain 아나가 전화했어요 only states that Ana called; it does not mark Ana as the focused answer.
Your turn
Try answering out loud before checking a possible answer.
1How would you say 'It was yesterday that I met him' using a cleft?
Show a sample answer
제가 그를 만난 것은 어제였어요.
The nominalized clause 제가 그를 만난 것 is the topic, and 어제 is the focused predicate after 이었어요. Alternatives like 어제 만난 것이에요 are possible if the focus shifts.
2Which pattern emphasizes the verb 'did call' rather than identifying who called?
Show a sample answer
전화하기는 했어요.
The -기는 하다 pattern marks do-emphasis on the verb. A cleft like 전화한 것이에요 would instead identify the caller or the fact, not stress that the call happened.
3Turn 'What matters is trust' into Korean with a cleft.
Show a sample answer
중요한 것은 신뢰예요.
중요한 것 nominalizes 'important thing,' 은 marks it as topic, and 신뢰예요 is the focused predicate. 중요한 게 신뢰예요 is a casual alternative.
Use 것이...이다 (or 게...이다 in speech) to identify who, what, when, or why against an assumed alternative; use do-emphasis for verb or truth stress.
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