Open questions
What does emphasis help the speaker do?
Highlight the most important information
The question /truth is that wealthy countries have only donated $2 million.
truth
What he did was fixed the problem quickly.
What he did was fix the problem quickly.
It was at night ___ the accident happened.
when
The people in the village need clean drinking water.
What...
What the people in the village need is clean drinking water.
What is being emphasized in:
It was John who solved the problem.
The person (John)
The things / point that need to be fixed still haven't been done.
point
It was him that solved the issue.
It was he who solved the issue.
She ___ appreciate your effort, even if she doesn’t say it often.
does
The park was where we met a lot of our friends
It...
It was in the park where we met a lot of our friends.
What is being emphasized in:
It was in Paris that they met.
The place (Paris)
The reason/ fact why the crops have failed is the drought.
reason
It was the teachers which helped the students the most.
It was the teachers who helped the students the most.
The reason ___ the experiment failed was a lack of control variables.
why
The medical supplies didn’t arrive yesterday, but the food did.
What...
What arrived yesterday was the food.
What is being emphasized in:
It was in 2020 that the company expanded.
The time (2020)
The question /truth is: what can we do to help?
question
It was not until later when they realized the mistake.
It was not until later that they realized the mistake.
Rarely ___ we see such an innovative solution to the problem.
do
Doctors are doing their best in this situation.
It's...
It’s doctors who are doing their best in this situation.
Which one emphasizes time?
I met John yesterday / It was yesterday that I met John
It was yesterday that I met John
The people / fact is this is a popular town to live in.
fact
It was because the lack of funding that the project failed.
It was because of the lack of funding that the project failed.
It was not until midnight ___ they finished the project.
that
The local residents have painted the murals on the wall.
It...
It was the local residents who have painted the murals on the wall.