Emphatic Structures and Inversion

Question 1

Purpose of Emphasis in Sentence Structure

Answer 1

• We often want to emphasize a part of a sentence:
  > to contradict someone
  > for dramatic effect/make contrast
  > to introduce new or important information/give explanations
• We can do this trough:
  > stress and intonation (spoken English)
  > Grammar and word order (spoken and written English)

Question 2

Cleft sentences (Using “It is/was…”)

Answer 2

• A cleft sentence splits one sentence into two clauses to give emphasis
• e.g.
  > normal: Vanessa made the greatest impact
  > cleft: It is Vanessa who made the greatest impact

Question 3

Structure Cleft sentences

Answer 3

• It + be (is/was/will be…) + emphasized word/phrase + that/who /which clause
• You can emphasize:
  > the subject (e.g. It was Mike who took Sally to the party.)
  > the object (e.g. It was Sally (that) Mike took to the party.)
  > an adverbial (e.g. It was on Saturday (that) Mike took Sally to the party.)
  > a prepositional phrase (e.g. It was to the party (that) Mike took Sally on Saturday.)

Question 4

Wh-Clefts (What…, The one who…, All we…, etc.)

Answer 4

• to highlight the action, verb complement, or person/time/place/reason

Question 5

Structure Wh-Clefts

Answer 5

• Wh-clause + be + emphasized part
• emphasising the action (e.g. What Mike did was (to) take Sally to the party.)
• Continuous or perfect actions (e.g. What the boys are doing is taking Sandy to the match.)
• Emphasising a verb complement (usually an adjective; e.g. What Jean and Bob are ist stingy.)
• emphasising person, place, time, reason (usually use a noun phrase first; e.g. The house where I lived is nearby.)
• Using the thing/the only thing/the last thing/ all… for emphasis (e.g. The only thing we want is a fair chance.)

Question 6

Reversed wh-clefts

Answer 6

• You can put the emphasised part first
• e.g. Taking Sandy to the match is what the boys are doing.

Question 7

Reversed it-clefts (formal)

Answer 7

e.g. And so it was Mozart who revolutionised classical composition.

Question 8

Fronting

Answer 8

• To make contrast, add emphasis, or follow the information flow

Question 9

You can front:

Answer 9

• adjectives or demonstratives (e.g. That I disagree with.)
• Adverbials and known information (e.g. The attic she rarely visited.)
• Comparative/superlative phrases (e.g. Best of all is the Colosseum.)
• Also/such/so at the front (e.g. Also at the funeral were several ambassadors.)
• Verbs/adjectives with “as”or “though” (e.g. Strange as it seems, he survived.)

Question 10

Inversion (verb before subject)

Answer 10

• used after certain adverbs or expressions for formality or emphasis

Question 11

Common inversion cases

Answer 11

• Place or time adverbs (e.g. Here lies the king.)
• Comparative/contrast clauses (e.g. No more acceptable are his ideas than hers.)
• Fixed expressions (e.g. So be it.)

Question 12

Auxiliary before subject (for emphasis) - use after these expressions:

Answer 12

• Never: Never have I seen such chaos.
• Hardly: Hardly had I arrived when the phone rang.
• Little: Little did we know what was coming.
• Only + phrase: Only later did he respond.
• (In) no way/at no time/under no circumstances: Under no circumstances can refunds be given.
• Not only … but: Not only is she late, she forgot the gift.
• No sooner…than: No sooner had we started than it began to rain.
• Neither/Nor: Nor could the boss explain it.
• May (for strong wishes): May he find peace.