Highlighting "Who"
When you want to place special emphasis on exactly who did something—like pinpointing who made a groundbreaking scientific discovery—Portuguese uses a cleft sentence. To express "It was [person] who...", use foi (the past tense of ser, meaning "it was") followed by the person, and then quem (who).
| It was the inventor who discovered the radiation. | Foi o inventor quem descobriu a radiação. |
| It was the researcher who wrote the equation. | Foi o investigador quem escreveu a equação. |
Highlighting "Where"
To emphasize the specific location where the magic happens, use a form of the verb ser (such as é for "it is") followed by the place, and then onde (where).
| It is in the laboratory where the physicist works. | É no laboratório onde o físico trabalha. |
| It is in the university where they measure radiation. | É na universidade onde medem a radiação. |
Highlighting "When"
Similarly, when you need to stress the exact moment or timeframe of an event, use a form of ser plus the time phrase, followed by quando (when).
| It was yesterday when he understood gravity. | Foi ontem quando ele compreendeu a gravidade. |
| It was in autumn when they made penicillin. | Foi no outono quando fizeram a penicilina. |
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