het is...die/dat

Cleft Construction

Level 5

The cleft construction (kloofzin) highlights a specific element (the focus) by splitting the sentence. It follows the structure: Het + zijn + [Focus] + die/dat + [Rest of sentence].

How It Works

The cleft construction provides contrastive focus, answering 'Who/what exactly did this?'

1. Focusing on Nouns
Use Het is/zijn... followed by the noun. The verb zijn must agree in number with the noun:

  • Het is de man... (Singular)
  • Het zijn de mannen... (Plural)

2. Focusing on Pronouns
For 1st & 2nd person (ik, jij, u, wij, jullie), the pronoun moves to the subject position:

  • Ik ben het die...
  • U bent het die...
  • Wij zijn het die...

For 3rd person (hij, zij, het), the standard Het is... structure is used:

  • Het is hij die...
  • Het zijn zij die...

Note: For the 3rd person plural, both Het zijn zij die... and Zij zijn het die... are common and correct. Pronouns in this construction must always be in the nominative (subject) case (e.g., hij, not hem).

3. Verb Agreement in the Relative Clause
When focusing on 1st or 2nd person pronouns, the verb at the end of the relative clause can either agree with that pronoun OR take the third-person singular form:

  • Ik ben het die dat heb gedaan. (Agreement with 'ik')
  • Ik ben het die dat heeft gedaan. (Third-person singular - also correct)

4. Relative Pronouns

  • Use die for de-words, plural nouns, and all personal pronouns except 'het' (ik, jij, u, wij, jullie, hij, zij).
  • Use dat for het-words (even if they refer to people, like het kind).
  • Use wat for indefinite pronouns (alles, iets, niets) or superlatives used as nouns (het leukste).
  • Use waar- compounds for things and preposition + wie for people.

5. Word Order
The second part is a relative clause and follows subordinate clause word order (verbs at the end).

Examples (6)

  1. Het zijn de buren die de politie hebben gebeld.

    It is the neighbors who called the police.

    Word by Word: It are the neighbors who the police have called.

    Notice that 'zijn' is used because 'de buren' is plural, and the verb 'hebben gebeld' goes to the end.

  2. Ik ben het die de afwas altijd doe.

    I am the one who always does the dishes.

    Word by Word: I am it who the dishes always do.

    For first and second person pronouns, the pronoun comes first. The verb in the relative clause ('doe') must agree with the antecedent 'ik'.

  3. U bent het die deze beslissing moet nemen.

    It is you (formal) who must take this decision.

    Word by Word: You are it who this decision must take.

    The polite pronoun u follows the same pattern as 'ik' and 'jij', moving to the front of the construction.

  4. Het is hij die de waarheid spreekt.

    It is he who speaks the truth.

    Word by Word: It is he who the truth speaks.

    For third-person pronouns, we use 'Het is' followed by the subject pronoun (hij), never the object pronoun (hem).

  5. Het is de tafel waarop het boek ligt.

    It is the table on which the book lies.

    Word by Word: It is the table where-on the book lies.

    When focusing on an object involving a preposition, Dutch uses a pronominal adverb like 'waarop'.

  6. Wij zijn het die het meeste werk verzetten.

    It is we who do the most work.

    Word by Word: We are it who the most work shift.

    For plural pronouns, the structure is '[Pronoun] zijn het'. The verb in the relative clause ('verzetten') agrees with 'wij'.

Common Mistakes

  • Using object pronouns (hem, haar, hen) instead of subject pronouns (hij, zij, zij).

    Het is hem die de prijs heeft gewonnen.
    Het is hij die de prijs heeft gewonnen.

    In Dutch cleft constructions, the pronoun being focused on must always be in the nominative (subject) case, even if it would be an object in English. Use hij instead of hem.

  • Using 'Het is' with a first or second person pronoun.

    Het is ik die dat heb gedaan.
    Ik ben het die dat heb gedaan.

    With ik, jij, u, wij and jullie the verb agrees with the pronoun: 'Het ben ik die...' or 'Ik ben het die...'. 'Het is ik' is wrong. With third person pronouns, 'Het is hij die...' and 'Het zijn zij die...' are correct.

  • Using 'die' for neuter nouns referring to people.

    Het is het meisje die daar loopt.
    Het is het meisje dat daar loopt.

    Even when referring to people, the relative pronoun must match the gender of the noun. Since 'meisje' is a het-word, you must use dat instead of die.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

het is...die/datLevel 5Cleft Construction

Learn This First

To learn cleft sentences (het is... die/dat), you first need to understand how relative pronouns work in Dutch, as the construction is essentially a relative clause. You must also be comfortable with subordinate clause word order, as the information being focused is followed by a clause where the verbs are moved to the end.

Words in This Pattern

die