Three ways to highlight
A Spaltsatz (cleft sentence) splits one statement into two clauses so that one part stands alone in the spotlight. English uses clefts constantly because its word order is fixed. German has two lighter tools first: stress and the first position. The cleft is the heaviest of the three.
Who said it? Three answers
Mein Bruder hat das gesagt.
My brother said that.
Stress on Bruder. The everyday choice.
Das hat mein Bruder gesagt.
My brother said that.
Das links back, the new information comes later.
Es war mein Bruder, der das gesagt hat.
It was my brother who said that.
A cleft: correcting or insisting.
Es-Spaltsatz: es war X, der …
Building plan
The verb sein agrees with the focused noun, not with es: Es waren meine Eltern, die …. With a personal pronoun the order flips and es follows the verb: Ich war es, der das gesagt hat. Use the es-cleft mainly to correct someone or to insist, often with nicht … sondern.
Es war nicht Anna, die angerufen hat, sondern ihre Schwester.
It wasn't Anna who called, it was her sister.
Es waren meine Eltern, die mich auf die Idee gebracht haben.
It was my parents who gave me the idea.
Ich war es, die den Termin abgesagt hat.
I was the one who cancelled the appointment.
Sperrsatz: was ich brauche, ist …
The second type starts with a was- or wer-clause and saves the focus for the end, after ist or war. It builds suspense and is very common in both speech and writing. After das Einzige, alles, nichts, etwas and superlatives like das Beste, the relative pronoun is usually was.
Was ich jetzt brauche, ist ein bisschen Ruhe.
What I need now is a bit of peace and quiet.
Was mich wirklich stört, ist der Lärm.
What really bothers me is the noise.
Das Einzige, was zählt, ist das Ergebnis.
The only thing that matters is the result.
Wer davon profitiert, sind am Ende die Vermieter.
The ones who benefit in the end are the landlords.
Plural focus: sind, not ist.
You can also turn it round and put the focus first, which sounds like a conclusion: Ein bisschen Ruhe ist das, was ich jetzt brauche.
Choosing the right weight
What each option says
| Form | Use it for |
|---|---|
| Stress: Anna hat angerufen. | Everyday highlighting in speech |
| Es war Anna, die angerufen hat. | Correcting, insisting, clearing up a misunderstanding |
| Was mich stört, ist der Lärm. | Building up to the point, in speech and in writing |
