It is you who know/knows my private phone number

English as a Second Language English Vocabulary, Grammar and Idioms
1

Hi, Everyone

Could you tell me that I should use know/knows in the sentence below ? and Why ?

It is you who know/knows my private phone number.

2

This construction is known as a ‘cleft’ sentence because the two parts are separated. The purpose is to emphasise one word in the first part and in your sentence it is ‘you’. You could say: You know my number, but if you want to emphasise ‘you’ suggesting that you are the only one, you would say: It is you who … Now, ‘you’ can be both singular and plural in English and I assume your question refers to ‘you’ singular. I would then choose ‘knows’ to indicate a singular ‘who’ because this means: You are the one who knows … You could test this with: I am tired - I am the one who is tired. It would sound very strange if you said: It’s me (I) who am tired. You would in fact say: It’s me (I) who’s tired.

What I am saying is that after ‘who’ in this type of sentence I would use the third person (singular/plural) after ‘who’ rather than the second or first person of the verb.

Alan

3

Hi Alan,
It is you who know/knows my private phone number.
is that you mean both options are possible ? but I should avoid and rewrite to “You are the one who knows…” ?

Thanks a lot for your help.

4

Both are possible, depending on whether you are speaking to one person or to several.
If it is unclear because of this then your revision is very acceptable.

5

Respected Mr. Torsten!

I felt insult when you just omitted one of my genuine posts without having any real reason last day on 24th May,2012.

It was like:

It is I who am to blame.

It is they who are lonely, etc.

Correct version will be from one of your members posting where Mr. Alan made ambiguity or sheer not corrective.

So, “It is you who know(not knows) my phone number”.

Pleases see the “Better English” by Norman Lewis at page 327.(one of the American best grammarians I believe)

You have just removed the posting without giving any causes, why sir?

We Bangladeshi followed the British English and, so do many countries. I still can remember at my 12 years English class my cited rules!

Again, I checked on the “Raymond and Murphy” (British grammarians)now, yes, it is correct.

My benign question where does the malice or problem you do have? Would you please
clarify me now?It seems instead, I should contact with the apposite authority/s of German or Uk as you people are misleading the innocent guys including me for having following some missions! ah! It is crime.

You don’t have that right either. Sorry it may seem I am rigid now.

6

Hi, Minhajquazi

I also saw your previous post then It was deleted (I don’t know why). Yes I have took a look on some grammar book about the cleft sentence.
Both is correct, thank you for trying to make it clear.
There is an author called Raymond Murphy (Not “Raymond and Murphy” as you said)

7

Have just removed more rubbish by Miniquazi.[YSaerTTEW443543]

TOEFL listening lectures: A university lecture by a professor in the College of Fine Arts[YSaerTTEW443543]