It was … who killed the goat.

Analyze the question The sentence is "It was _ who killed the goat." We need the pronoun that fits correctly after "It was".

Explain the concept In formal English grammar, the verb "to be" (is, was, were) is a linking verb. It does not take an object. It links the subject to a subject complement, which must be in the nominative (subject) case: I, he, she, we, they.

So in a cleft sentence like "It was ___ who...", the pronoun is the complement of "was" and takes the subject form. The relative pronoun "who" also tells us the missing word is the doer of the action (the one who killed the goat).

Solution

• A. his is a possessive. It does not fit, because "It was his who killed the goat" makes no sense.
• B. him is the object form. Informal speech accepts "It was him", but formal exam English requires the subject form.
• C. he is the subject form. "It was he who killed the goat" is correct.
• D. us is the object form, and it is also plural, which clashes with "who killed" (a singular doer).

You can test it by rearranging the sentence: "He killed the goat." We say "he", not "him", as the doer. So "It was he who killed the goat."

Answer: C. he

Tip When a pronoun follows a form of "to be" (is, was, am, are, were), use the subject form: It is I, It was he, It was they. JAMB and WASSCE test this rule often, even though "It's me" is common in casual speech. Always go with the formal rule in exams.