EuraStudy
Notes/French/Grammar
Notes · FrenchUK · A-Levels

Grammar

AQA 7652 sets out a prescribed grammar range in section 3.3, divided into an AS list and an additional A-level list, and A-level candidates are expected to have studied both. Grammar is not a separate paper: it is assessed as AO3 - manipulate the language accurately, using a range of lexis and structure - which carries thirty per cent of the qualification and appears in every paper. These notes cover the verb system, past reference, future and conditional with si-clauses, the subjunctive, pronouns and agreement, and the specific A-level structures that earn AO3 marks.

6 sections·~30 min reading time·3 competencies·Level Foundation 1 · Standard 3 · Advanced 2

T·131313 / 15
Exam profile
AO3 · Manipulate the language accurately, in spoken and written forms, using a range of lexis and structureAO1 · Accurate grammar is what makes a spoken or written response to spoken French creditableAO2 · Accurate grammar is what makes a spoken or written response to written French creditable
Operators:conjugueraccordertransformerjustifiercorrigerappliquer

basic level

The AS list (AQA 3.3.1) covers nouns, articles, adjectives, numerals, adverbs, quantifiers, pronouns, the full tense range including the past historic receptively, the present passive, the present subjunctive, prepositions, conjunctions, negation, questions, commands, word order, comparatives, indirect speech, discourse markers and fillers.

higher level

The A-level list (AQA 3.3.2) adds four things on top of everything in the AS list: dependent infinitives (faire réparer) actively rather than receptively, the passive voice in all tenses, the perfect subjunctive, the imperfect subjunctive receptively, and inversion after adverbs. These are the structures that visibly separate an A-level script from an AS one.

Depth

Reading depth: In depth

Text

Text size: Standard

Contents · 6 sections▾
  1. Grammar
    • 01The verb system and the present: le présent○
    • 02Talking about the past: passé composé, imparfait, plus-que-parfait◐
    • 03Future, conditional and si-clauses: les phrases hypothétiques◐
    • 04The subjunctive: le subjonctif présent et passé●
    • 05Pronouns, agreement and word order: les pronoms et l'ordre◐
    • 06The A-level structures that earn AO3 marks●
§ 01

The verb system and the present: le présent#

●○○FoundationLPAQA 7652 3.3.1.8 Verbs - conjugation of regular -er, -ir, -re verbs, modal verbs, principal irregular verbs, reflexive verbs; use of tenses: presentLPDfE GCE modern foreign languages subject content

Le système verbal français

Modes et tempsProbability tree, 13 paths, Data: l'indicatif → le présent; l'indicatif → l'imparfait; l'indicatif → le passé composé; l'indicatif → le plus-que-parfait; l'indicatif → le futur; l'indicatif → le conditionnel; l'indicatif → le passé simple (R); le subjonctif → le présent; le subjonctif → le passé; le subjonctif → l'imparfait (R); autres formes → l'impératif; autres formes → l'infinitif; autres formes → les participesl'indicatifle subjonctifautres formesle verbe françaisle présentl'imparfaitle passé composéle plus-que-parfaitle futurle conditionnelle passé simple (R)le présentle passél'imparfait (R)l'impératifl'infinitifles participes
Fig. 1The whole AQA tense and mood range on one diagram. Everything on the indicative branch is required actively except the past historic, which is receptive; on the subjunctive branch the imperfect is receptive only.

Key points

French verbs fall into three groups, and knowing which group a verb belongs to tells you most of what you need. The first group ends in -er and is by far the largest and the most regular: parler gives je parle, tu parles, il parle, nous parlons, vous parlez, ils parlent. The second group ends in -ir and inserts -iss- in the plural: finir gives je finis, tu finis, il finit, nous finissons, vous finissez, ils finissent. The third group is everything else - irregular verbs in -ir (partir, venir, ouvrir), in -re (vendre, prendre, mettre) and in -oir (voir, devoir, recevoir). A regular -re verb such as vendre gives je vends, tu vends, il vend, nous vendons, vous vendez, ils vendent, with no ending at all in the third person singular.
A small set of irregular verbs accounts for a very large share of everything you will say or write, so learn them as whole paradigms rather than as rules. Être: je suis, tu es, il est, nous sommes, vous êtes, ils sont. Avoir: j'ai, tu as, il a, nous avons, vous avez, ils ont. Aller: je vais, tu vas, il va, nous allons, vous allez, ils vont. Faire: je fais, tu fais, il fait, nous faisons, vous faites, ils font. The modals: pouvoir (je peux, nous pouvons, ils peuvent), devoir (je dois, nous devons, ils doivent), vouloir (je veux, nous voulons, ils veulent), savoir (je sais, nous savons, ils savent). Add venir (je viens, nous venons, ils viennent), prendre (je prends, nous prenons, ils prennent) and dire (je dis, vous dites, ils disent).
Reflexive - properly, pronominal - verbs carry a pronoun that agrees with the subject: je me lève, tu te lèves, il se lève, nous nous levons, vous vous levez, ils se lèvent. The pronoun sits immediately before the verb, and in the negative it stays inside: je ne me lève pas. Pronominal verbs are far more common in French than reflexives in English, and many are not reflexive in meaning at all: se passer (to happen), s'agir de (to be about), se souvenir de, se rendre compte de, s'attendre à, se produire. Note also the pronominal passive: cela ne se dit pas - that is not said.
Two uses of the present are worth deliberate practice because English does them differently. First, depuis plus the present expresses an action that began in the past and continues: j'apprends le français depuis cinq ans means I have been learning French for five years. The same applies to il y a cinq ans que j'apprends le français and ça fait cinq ans que j'apprends le français. Using a past tense here is one of the commonest errors at A-level. Second, the two verbal paraphrases: aller plus infinitive for the near future, je vais partir, and venir de plus infinitive for the immediate past, je viens de partir - I have just left. Both are on the AQA list and both are indispensable.
Worked example

Choosing between depuis, pendant, il y a and pour

Put the right time expression and tense in each: (1) J'habite ici ___ trois ans. (2) J'ai habité à Lyon ___ trois ans. (3) Je suis arrivé ___ trois ans. (4) Je pars à Lyon ___ trois ans.

  1. 01depuis - still going on

    (1) J'habite ici depuis trois ans. The action continues, so French uses the present and English uses the perfect: I have been living here for three years.

  2. 02pendant - a completed duration

    (2) J'ai habité à Lyon pendant trois ans. The stay is over, so the passé composé with pendant. English: I lived in Lyon for three years.

  3. 03il y a - ago

    (3) Je suis arrivé il y a trois ans. il y a plus a time expression means ago, and the verb is in the past. Do not confuse it with il y a meaning there is.

  4. 04pour - an intended future duration

    (4) Je pars à Lyon pour trois ans. pour is used for a planned or intended duration in the future. Using pour for a completed past duration is a classic error - that is pendant.

  5. 05Fix the test

    Ask two questions: is the action over, and is the duration planned? Ongoing gives depuis with the present; over gives pendant with a past; a point in the past gives il y a; intended future gives pour.

Result: (1) depuis trois ans, present tense. (2) pendant trois ans, passé composé. (3) il y a trois ans, past tense. (4) pour trois ans, future or present with future meaning.

Exam focus

  • Use depuis with the present for an ongoing action - the single most frequently examined tense mismatch between French and English (AO3).
  • Produce être, avoir, aller, faire and the four modals faultlessly; they underpin every compound tense you will build (AO3).

Typical mistakes

  • Writing j'ai appris le français depuis cinq ans; the correct form is j'apprends le français depuis cinq ans.
  • Placing the reflexive pronoun outside the negation: me ne lève pas instead of ne me lève pas.

Active revision

Conjuguez au présent, sans notes, les huit verbes irréguliers les plus fréquents (être, avoir, aller, faire, pouvoir, devoir, vouloir, savoir), puis écrivez pour chacun une phrase sur un thème de la spécification.

Active recall

Recall the key points — then reveal.

Sources: AQA A-level French (7652) specification - grammar (AQA) · GCE AS and A level subject content for modern foreign languages (Department for Education)

§ 02

Talking about the past: passé composé, imparfait, plus-que-parfait#

●●○StandardLPAQA 7652 3.3.1.8 Verbs - use of tenses: perfect (including agreement of past participle), imperfect, pluperfect, past historic (R)LPDfE GCE modern foreign languages subject content

Key points

Le passé composé is formed with avoir or être plus the past participle, and choosing the auxiliary correctly is the first hurdle. Most verbs take avoir: j'ai parlé, il a fini, nous avons vendu. A closed set of intransitive verbs of movement and change of state takes être: aller, venir, arriver, partir, entrer, sortir, monter, descendre, naître, mourir, rester, retourner, tomber, and their compounds revenir, devenir, rentrer, repartir. All pronominal verbs take être: je me suis levé. Note that several être verbs take avoir when used transitively: j'ai monté les valises (I took the cases up) against je suis monté (I went up). Past participle forms: -er verbs give -é, second-group -ir verbs give -i, regular -re verbs give -u, and the irregulars must be learnt - eu, été, fait, dit, mis, pris, vu, su, pu, voulu, venu, ouvert, écrit, lu, bu, connu, né, mort.
L'imparfait is formed from the nous form of the present, minus -ons, plus -ais, -ais, -ait, -ions, -iez, -aient: nous parlons gives je parlais; nous finissons gives je finissais; nous prenons gives je prenais. The only irregular stem is être, which gives ét-: j'étais. The imperfect does three jobs: description (il faisait froid, la salle était pleine), habitual or repeated past action (tous les étés, nous allions en Bretagne), and an action in progress interrupted by another (je lisais quand il est entré). The passé composé, by contrast, reports single completed events that move the narrative on.
The distinction between the two is the single most examined point in A-level French, and the reliable test is not duration but function. Ask what the verb is doing: setting the scene, describing a state, or reporting a repeated habit - imperfect; reporting one thing that happened - passé composé. A useful pair to memorise: j'ai su means I found out, at a moment; je savais means I knew, as a state. Similarly j'ai voulu means I decided to or tried to; je voulais means I wanted to. Several verbs change meaning across the two tenses this way: pouvoir, devoir, connaître, avoir.
Le plus-que-parfait - the imperfect of avoir or être plus the participle - reports what had already happened before another past moment: quand je suis arrivé, il était déjà parti. It is required in indirect speech after a past reporting verb, where a passé composé shifts back one step: il a dit qu'il avait terminé. Alongside it, AQA requires le passé simple receptively: it is the literary narrative past you will meet in reading texts and set works but do not need to produce. Recognise its endings: for -er verbs il parla, ils parlèrent; for most others il finit, ils finirent; and the irregulars il fut, il eut, il fit, il vint, il put.
Worked example

Past-participle agreement: the three rules

Explain the agreement in each: (1) Elle est arrivée. (2) Les lettres que j'ai écrites. (3) Elle s'est lavée. (4) Elle s'est lavé les mains. (5) Elles se sont parlé.

  1. 01Rule 1 - être verbs agree with the subject

    (1) Elle est arrivée: arrivée agrees with elle, feminine singular. With the sixteen or so être verbs of movement and change of state, the participle behaves like an adjective describing the subject.

  2. 02Rule 2 - avoir verbs agree with a PRECEDING direct object

    (2) Les lettres que j'ai écrites: the direct object les lettres comes before the verb via the relative que, so écrites agrees, feminine plural. If the object followed - j'ai écrit les lettres - there would be no agreement. This is the rule candidates most often miss, and it is easiest to spot after que, after a preceding direct-object pronoun (je les ai vues) and in questions with quelle (Quelle décision as-tu prise ?).

  3. 03Rule 3 - pronominal verbs: agree if the pronoun is the direct object

    (3) Elle s'est lavée: se is the direct object (she washed herself), so agreement. (4) Elle s'est lavé les mains: here les mains is the direct object and it follows the verb, while se is indirect (to herself), so no agreement. The rule is really Rule 2 in disguise.

  4. 04The indirect-pronoun case

    (5) Elles se sont parlé: parler à quelqu'un takes an indirect object, so se is indirect and there is no agreement at all. The same applies to se téléphoner, s'écrire, se sourire, se ressembler, se succéder.

  5. 05Turn it into a checking routine

    Ask: is the auxiliary être with a movement verb (agree with the subject)? Is there a direct object before the verb (agree with it)? Is the reflexive pronoun direct or indirect (agree only if direct)? Three questions, in that order, resolve every case.

Result: (1) agrees with the subject (être verb). (2) agrees with the preceding direct object les lettres. (3) agrees because se is the direct object. (4) no agreement because the direct object les mains follows. (5) no agreement because se is indirect after parler à.

Exam focus

  • Choose between imparfait and passé composé by function - description and habit against single completed event (AO3).
  • Recognise the passé simple in reading texts and set works and translate it as a simple past, never as a present (AO2).

Typical mistakes

  • Using the imperfect for a single completed action because it lasted a long time; duration is not the test, function is.
  • Forgetting that all pronominal verbs take être in compound tenses: je me suis levé, never j'ai me levé.

Active revision

Rédigez un récit de 120 mots au passé sur un événement de votre choix, en soulignant chaque imparfait et en justifiant en une phrase le choix de chaque temps.

Active recall

Recall the key points — then reveal.

Sources: AQA A-level French (7652) specification - grammar (AQA)

§ 03

Future, conditional and si-clauses: les phrases hypothétiques#

●●○StandardLPAQA 7652 3.3.1.8 Verbs - use of tenses: future, conditional, future perfect, conditional perfectLPDfE GCE modern foreign languages subject content

Les trois phrases avec « si »

Les systèmes hypothétiquesGraph, la phrase avec « si » → si + présent, la phrase avec « si » → si + imparfait, la phrase avec « si » → si + plus-que-parfait, si + présent → futur simple, si + imparfait → conditionnel présent, si + plus-que-parfait → conditionnel passéla phrase avec «si »si + présentsi + imparfaitsi + plus-que-parfaitfutur simpleconditionnelprésentconditionnelpassé
Fig. 2The three fixed pairings. Learn them as pairs, never as separate tenses, and the ban on a conditional after si takes care of itself.

Key points

Le futur simple is built on the infinitive plus the endings -ai, -as, -a, -ons, -ez, -ont, dropping the final -e of -re verbs: je parlerai, je finirai, je vendrai. A limited set of irregular stems must be learnt because they recur constantly: aur- (avoir), ser- (être), ir- (aller), fer- (faire), viendr- (venir), tiendr- (tenir), pourr- (pouvoir), devr- (devoir), voudr- (vouloir), saur- (savoir), verr- (voir), faudr- (falloir), enverr- (envoyer), recevr- (recevoir), courr- (courir), mourr- (mourir), vaudr- (valoir). Learn them once and you have the conditional too, because le conditionnel présent is the same stem plus the imperfect endings: je parlerais, j'aurais, je serais, j'irais, je ferais.
The two compound forms follow automatically. Le futur antérieur - the future of avoir or être plus the participle - reports what will have happened by a future point: quand tu arriveras, j'aurai déjà terminé. Le conditionnel passé - the conditional of avoir or être plus the participle - reports what would have happened: j'aurais préféré partir plus tôt. Both appear on the AQA list and both are worth deploying deliberately, because they are among the clearest signals of control. Note also the future's use after quand, lorsque, dès que and aussitôt que, where English uses a present: quand j'aurai le temps, je t'appellerai - when I have time, I will call you.
The three si-clause patterns are fixed and must be automatic. Pattern one, a real and likely condition: si plus the present, main clause in the future - si tu travailles, tu réussiras. Pattern two, a hypothesis contrary to present fact: si plus the imperfect, main clause in the conditional present - si j'avais le temps, je viendrais. Pattern three, an unreal past: si plus the pluperfect, main clause in the conditional perfect - si j'avais su, je serais venu. The order of the clauses can be reversed without changing the tenses. The absolute rule is that no future and no conditional may ever follow si in a conditional clause; si je serais and si j'aurais are among the most heavily penalised errors in the subject.
Two refinements are worth having. First, si also means whether in indirect questions, and there the ban does not apply: je me demande si elle viendra, je ne savais pas s'il serait là. Recognising which si you are dealing with prevents you from over-applying the rule. Second, French has ways of expressing a condition without si at all, and they are strongly credited: au cas où plus the conditional (au cas où il pleuvrait, prends un parapluie), à condition que and pourvu que plus the subjunctive, sans plus a noun replacing a whole clause (sans son aide, je n'y serais jamais arrivé), and the gerund (en travaillant davantage, tu réussirais).
Worked example

Repairing four si-clause errors

Correct and justify: (1) Si je serais riche, je voyagerais. (2) Si tu viendras, je serai content. (3) Si j'aurais su, je ne serais pas venu. (4) Quand j'aurai fini, je te dis.

  1. 01(1) - the conditional after si

    The hypothesis is contrary to present fact, so it is pattern two: si plus imperfect, conditional in the main clause. Si j'étais riche, je voyagerais. The conditional stays where it belongs, in the second half.

  2. 02(2) - the future after si

    This is pattern one: si plus present, future in the main clause. Si tu viens, je serai content. Note that the English if you come also uses a present, so the two languages agree here - the error is one of over-correction.

  3. 03(3) - the conditional perfect after si

    Pattern three: si plus pluperfect. Si j'avais su, je ne serais pas venu. This sentence is worth memorising whole; it is idiomatic, complete and demonstrates the pattern in four words.

  4. 04(4) - the tense after quand

    The main clause must be in the future because the whole sentence refers to the future: Quand j'aurai fini, je te le dirai. Note also the added le, standing for the thing to be told - French does not leave dire without an object here.

  5. 05Build a checking habit

    In the re-reading pass, find every si and every quand. At si, check that no -rai or -rais ending follows. At quand, check that a future event has a future verb. Two seconds each, and it removes a whole category of error.

Result: (1) Si j'étais riche, je voyagerais. (2) Si tu viens, je serai content. (3) Si j'avais su, je ne serais pas venu. (4) Quand j'aurai fini, je te le dirai.

Exam focus

  • Never write a future or conditional after a conditional si; the tense belongs in the other clause (AO3).
  • Use the future after quand, lorsque, dès que where English uses a present - a reliable discriminator (AO3).

Typical mistakes

  • Writing si j'aurais le temps; it must be si j'avais le temps, j'aurais le temps de venir.
  • Using the present after quand for a future event: quand j'ai le temps, je t'appellerai. It must be quand j'aurai le temps.

Active revision

Écrivez neuf phrases sur des thèmes de la spécification : trois du type 1, trois du type 2, trois du type 3, puis réécrivez-en trois sans « si » (au cas où, sans, en + participe présent).

Active recall

Recall the key points — then reveal.

Sources: AQA A-level French (7652) specification - grammar (AQA)

§ 04

The subjunctive: le subjonctif présent et passé#

●●●AdvancedLPAQA 7652 3.3.1.8 Verbs - subjunctive mood: present (common uses)LPAQA 7652 3.3.2.1 Verbs - subjunctive mood: perfect tense; imperfect tense (R)

Key points

The present subjunctive is formed from the ils form of the present indicative, minus -ent, plus -e, -es, -e, -ions, -iez, -ent. Ils parlent gives que je parle; ils finissent gives que je finisse; ils prennent gives que je prenne, with the nous and vous forms taken from the present nous stem: que nous prenions, que vous preniez. A short list of irregulars covers nearly everything else: être (que je sois, que nous soyons), avoir (que j'aie, que nous ayons), aller (que j'aille, que nous allions), faire (que je fasse), pouvoir (que je puisse), savoir (que je sache), vouloir (que je veuille), falloir (qu'il faille), valoir (qu'il vaille). Learn those nine and the subjunctive stops being frightening.
The perfect subjunctive - required at A-level and not at AS - is simply the present subjunctive of avoir or être plus the past participle: bien qu'il ait terminé, je regrette qu'elle soit partie. Use it when the subjunctive clause refers to something completed before the time of the main verb. Because AS candidates cannot be expected to produce it, a correct perfect subjunctive is one of the clearest single signals to an examiner that a script is operating at A-level standard. AQA also lists the imperfect subjunctive - qu'il fût, qu'il eût, qu'il parlât - as receptive only: recognise it in literary set works, do not produce it.
The triggers divide into four families and are best learnt that way. Volition and necessity: vouloir que, souhaiter que, exiger que, il faut que, il est nécessaire que, il vaut mieux que. Emotion and judgement: être content que, regretter que, avoir peur que, il est dommage que, cela m'étonne que. Doubt and denial, including opinion verbs in the negative or interrogative: douter que, ne pas penser que, ne pas croire que, il est possible que, il semble que. And a fixed set of conjunctions: bien que, quoique, pour que, afin que, à condition que, pourvu que, avant que, jusqu'à ce que, sans que, de peur que, à moins que.
Two things save marks. First, know what does not take the subjunctive, because over-use is as visible as under-use: espérer que takes the indicative (j'espère qu'il viendra); penser que and croire que in the affirmative take the indicative; après que takes the indicative, unlike avant que; parce que, puisque, pendant que and même si all take the indicative. Second, remember the escape hatch: when the subject of both clauses is the same, French prefers an infinitive - je veux partir, not je veux que je parte; avant de partir, not avant que je parte. Using the infinitive where French requires it is not avoidance, it is correctness.
Worked example

Deciding whether the subjunctive is needed

Decide indicative, subjunctive or infinitive, and justify: (1) J'espère qu'il ___ (venir). (2) Bien qu'il ___ (faire) froid, nous sortirons. (3) Je veux ___ (partir) tôt. (4) Elle regrette que nous ___ (ne pas rester) plus longtemps. (5) Après qu'il ___ (finir), nous sommes sortis.

  1. 01(1) espérer que - indicative

    J'espère qu'il viendra. espérer que is the classic exception: unlike its English equivalent's feel and unlike souhaiter que, it takes the indicative. The future is used because the hope is about the future.

  2. 02(2) bien que - subjunctive

    Bien qu'il fasse froid, nous sortirons. bien que is one of the fixed subjunctive conjunctions, and faire is irregular: que je fasse.

  3. 03(3) same subject - infinitive

    Je veux partir tôt. Both clauses have the same subject, so French uses the infinitive with no que. Je veux que je parte is not French.

  4. 04(4) emotion, completed action - perfect subjunctive

    Elle regrette que nous ne soyons pas restés plus longtemps. regretter que triggers the subjunctive; the staying is completed relative to the regret, so the perfect subjunctive; rester takes être, so soyons restés, with agreement.

  5. 05(5) après que - indicative

    Après qu'il a eu fini, or in ordinary usage Après qu'il a fini, nous sommes sortis. après que takes the indicative because the event is presented as real and completed. Many native speakers use the subjunctive here in speech, but the examined norm is the indicative.

Result: (1) J'espère qu'il viendra - indicative. (2) Bien qu'il fasse froid - subjunctive. (3) Je veux partir - infinitive, same subject. (4) Elle regrette que nous ne soyons pas restés - perfect subjunctive. (5) Après qu'il a fini - indicative.

Exam focus

  • Deploy at least one accurate perfect subjunctive (bien qu'il ait fait, je regrette qu'elle soit partie) - an A-level-only structure (AO3).
  • Do not use the subjunctive after espérer que, après que, or affirmative penser que and croire que (AO3).

Typical mistakes

  • Writing après qu'il soit parti; après que takes the indicative, while avant que takes the subjunctive.
  • Using a subjunctive clause when both subjects are the same: je veux que je parte instead of je veux partir.

Active revision

Écrivez dix phrases contenant chacune un subjonctif, en couvrant les quatre familles de déclencheurs, dont au moins trois au subjonctif passé.

Active recall

Recall the key points — then reveal.

Sources: AQA A-level French (7652) specification - grammar (AQA)

§ 05

Pronouns, agreement and word order: les pronoms et l'ordre#

●●○StandardLPAQA 7652 3.3.1.7 Pronouns - personal, object, disjunctive, position and order, reflexive, relative, demonstrative, indefinite, possessive, interrogative; use of y, enLPAQA 7652 3.3.1.14 Word order

Les pronoms français

Les pronomsProbability tree, 13 paths, Data: personnels → sujet : je, tu, il; personnels → COD : me, te, le, la, les; personnels → COI : me, te, lui, leur; personnels → réfléchis : me, te, se; personnels → disjoints : moi, toi, lui; adverbiaux → y (à + chose ou lieu); adverbiaux → en (de + chose, quantité); relatifs → qui (sujet); relatifs → que (COD); relatifs → dont (de + nom); relatifs → où, lequel, auquel; autres → démonstratifs : celui; autres → possessifs : le mienpersonnelsadverbiauxrelatifsautresles pronomssujet : je, tu, ilCOD : me, te, le, la, lesCOI : me, te, lui, leurréfléchis : me, te, sedisjoints : moi, toi, luiy (à + chose ou lieu)en (de + chose, quantité)qui (sujet)que (COD)dont (de + nom)où, lequel, auqueldémonstratifs : celuipossessifs : le mien
Fig. 3The pronoun system in one view. The two branches candidates under-use are the adverbial pronouns y and en, and dont - all three are quick wins for AO3.

Key points

Object pronouns come before the verb in French, and when several occur together their order is fixed. The sequence is: me, te, se, nous, vous - then le, la, les - then lui, leur - then y - then en. So il me le donne, je le lui ai dit, il y en a, elle nous les a montrés. In the affirmative imperative the pronouns follow the verb and me and te become moi and toi: donne-le-moi, vas-y, prends-en. In the negative imperative they return to their normal place: ne me le donne pas. Learning the order as a fixed sequence - me te se nous vous, le la les, lui leur, y, en - is far more reliable than reasoning it out each time.
Y and en are the two pronouns English speakers under-use, and using them well immediately raises a script. Y replaces à plus a thing or a place: je pense à mon avenir gives j'y pense; je vais à Paris gives j'y vais. En replaces de plus a thing, and any quantity: il parle de son travail gives il en parle; j'ai trois frères gives j'en ai trois. Note that en is compulsory with a quantity even when English drops it: Combien en veux-tu ? - How many do you want? And note that à plus a person takes lui or leur, not y: je pense à lui.
Relative pronouns are decided by grammatical function, not by whether they refer to a person. Qui is the subject of its clause: l'homme qui parle. Que is the direct object: l'homme que je vois - and note that que triggers past-participle agreement in compound tenses. Dont replaces de plus a noun and covers whose, of which and about which: le livre dont je parle, l'étudiant dont les parents sont médecins. Où covers place and also time: le jour où je suis arrivé. After a preposition, use lequel, laquelle, lesquels, lesquelles, contracting with à and de: auquel, duquel, and use qui after a preposition only for people: la personne avec qui je travaille.
Word order carries two A-level points. First, adjective position: most French adjectives follow the noun, but a small group precedes it - beau, bon, grand, gros, jeune, joli, long, mauvais, nouveau, petit, vieux - and some change meaning by position: un ancien élève (a former pupil) against un livre ancien (an old book); un grand homme (a great man) against un homme grand (a tall man); ma propre chambre (my own room) against ma chambre propre (my clean room). Second, inversion. French inverts after speech in reported narration - dit-il, répondit-elle - and, as an A-level-only requirement, after certain adverbs placed first: peut-être viendra-t-il, sans doute a-t-il raison, à peine était-il arrivé qu'on l'appela, aussi faut-il rester prudent.
Worked example

Choosing between qui, que, dont and où

Fill each gap and justify: (1) La femme ___ parle est ma prof. (2) Le film ___ j'ai vu hier était excellent. (3) L'auteur ___ je vous ai parlé vient à Paris. (4) L'année ___ je suis né. (5) Le sujet ___ nous discutons est complexe.

  1. 01Find what the missing element does in its own clause

    Ignore whether it refers to a person. Ask: is it the subject, the direct object, or the complement of a preposition? That single question decides the pronoun.

  2. 02(1) subject - qui

    La femme qui parle: the woman is doing the speaking, so the relative is the subject. qui is never elided: qui elle, not qu'elle.

  3. 03(2) direct object - que, with agreement

    Le film que j'ai vu hier: the film is what I saw, so direct object. Because the direct object precedes, the participle agrees - here vu, masculine singular, so no visible change. With a feminine noun it would show: la pièce que j'ai vue.

  4. 04(3) and (5) - de + noun gives dont

    parler de quelqu'un: L'auteur dont je vous ai parlé. discuter de quelque chose: Le sujet dont nous discutons. The test is always which preposition the verb takes - if it is de, the relative is dont.

  5. 05(4) time - où

    L'année où je suis né. où covers time as well as place, and this is where English where cannot be used. Le jour où, le moment où, l'époque où - all take où.

Result: (1) qui - subject. (2) que - direct object, participle agrees with a preceding object. (3) dont - parler de. (4) où - time. (5) dont - discuter de.

Exam focus

  • Use y and en accurately and often; their absence is one of the clearest markers of an anglophone script (AO3).
  • Produce at least one inversion after an adverb - peut-être viendra-t-il, sans doute a-t-il raison - which is an A-level-only requirement (AO3).

Typical mistakes

  • Writing je pense à lui as j'y pense when the referent is a person; y is for things and places.
  • Placing object pronouns after the verb as in English: je vois le instead of je le vois.

Active revision

Réécrivez douze phrases en remplaçant tous les compléments par des pronoms, y compris « y » et « en », puis vérifiez l'ordre et l'accord du participe passé.

Active recall

Recall the key points — then reveal.

Sources: AQA A-level French (7652) specification - grammar (AQA)

§ 06

The A-level structures that earn AO3 marks#

●●●AdvancedLPAQA 7652 3.3.2 A-level grammar - dependent infinitives, passive voice in all tenses, perfect and imperfect subjunctive, inversion after adverbsLPAQA 7652 3.3.1.9-3.3.1.17 Prepositions, conjunctions, negation, questions, commands, word order, other constructions, discourse markers, fillers

Key points

AQA's A-level-only list is short, which makes it a checklist rather than a syllabus. Dependent infinitives, which AS candidates need only recognise: faire plus an infinitive means to have something done - j'ai fait réparer ma voiture (I had my car repaired), il a fait construire une maison, elle m'a fait rire. Note that with faire the infinitive is not passive in form even when it is passive in sense, and that the person made to act takes à or par when there is also a direct object: j'ai fait lire le texte aux élèves. Laisser behaves similarly: il a laissé partir les enfants.
The passive in all tenses is the second A-level-only item. Être plus the past participle, agreeing with the subject, across the range: le texte est adopté, était adopté, a été adopté, avait été adopté, sera adopté, aurait été adopté. Being able to produce the future and conditional passive on demand is a genuine discriminator. Remember, though, that French uses the passive far less than English and prefers two alternatives: on plus an active verb (on a adopté le texte) and the pronominal passive (ce mot ne s'emploie plus). Choosing among the three by register - passive for institutional writing, on for speech - is itself a mark of control.
The third and fourth items are the perfect subjunctive, covered above, and inversion after adverbs. The adverbs that trigger it when placed first are peut-être, sans doute, à peine, aussi (in the sense of therefore), and encore. The inversion is the simple one for pronoun subjects - peut-être viendra-t-il - and the complex one for noun subjects, where the noun is stated and then resumed by a pronoun: peut-être le gouvernement cédera-t-il. Two safe alternatives exist and should be known: peut-être qu'il viendra with no inversion, and moving the adverb - il viendra peut-être. But the inversion is what the specification asks for.
Beyond the four listed items, a set of structures reliably lifts an AO3 mark and can be deployed in any answer. Negation beyond ne... pas: ne... plus, ne... jamais, ne... rien, ne... personne, ne... que, ne... aucun, ne... ni... ni, and the infinitive form ne pas faire. Emphasis: c'est... qui and c'est... que; ce qui / ce que fronted with c'est - ce qui me frappe, c'est... Comparison: plus... que, moins... que, d'autant plus que, meilleur against mieux, pire. Compressed clauses: the perfect infinitive après avoir fait and après être parti, the gerund en travaillant, participial apposition, and sans plus an infinitive. Each of these is short, safe and visible - which is exactly what you want under time pressure.
Worked example

Auditing a paragraph against the A-level checklist

Take this correct but flat paragraph and raise it by inserting the four A-level structures: On a réformé le système. Beaucoup de gens ne sont pas contents. Le gouvernement va peut-être changer d'avis. Les syndicats ont demandé le retrait du texte.

  1. 01Insert a passive in a compound tense

    On a réformé le système becomes Le système a été réformé en profondeur. Compound passive, participle agreeing with the masculine singular subject. Institutional register, appropriate to the content.

  2. 02Insert an inversion after an adverb

    Le gouvernement va peut-être changer d'avis becomes Peut-être le gouvernement reviendra-t-il sur sa décision. Noun subject, so the noun is stated and resumed by -t-il with the euphonic t between hyphens.

  3. 03Insert a perfect subjunctive

    Add a concession: Bien que les syndicats aient obtenu quelques concessions, le mécontentement persiste. bien que plus the perfect subjunctive aient obtenu - completed action, so the perfect.

  4. 04Insert a dependent infinitive

    Add: Le ministre a fait retirer plusieurs articles du projet. faire plus infinitive - the minister did not remove them himself, he had them removed. Precise as well as impressive.

  5. 05Upgrade the negation

    Beaucoup de gens ne sont pas contents becomes Nombreux sont ceux qui n'y voient qu'un recul. Two gains: the restrictive ne... que and the pronoun y. Three words shorter and considerably stronger.

Result: Le système a été réformé en profondeur, et nombreux sont ceux qui n'y voient qu'un recul. Bien que les syndicats aient obtenu quelques concessions, le mécontentement persiste. Le ministre a fait retirer plusieurs articles du projet. Peut-être le gouvernement reviendra-t-il sur sa décision.

Exam focus

  • Work through the four A-level-only items as a checklist in every extended piece: a dependent infinitive, a passive in a non-present tense, a perfect subjunctive, and one inversion after an adverb (AO3).
  • Prefer on or a pronominal verb to the passive in speech, and the true passive in institutional writing (AO3).

Typical mistakes

  • Writing peut-être il viendra with no inversion and no que; use peut-être viendra-t-il or peut-être qu'il viendra.
  • Over-using the true passive in French, where on and pronominal verbs are far more idiomatic.

Active revision

Rédigez un paragraphe de 150 mots sur un thème de la spécification contenant, dans l'ordre : un infinitif dépendant, un passif à un temps composé, un subjonctif passé, une inversion après « peut-être » et une négation autre que « ne... pas ».

Active recall

Recall the key points — then reveal.

Sources: AQA A-level French (7652) specification - grammar (AQA) · AQA A-level French (7652) specification - scheme of assessment (AQA)

Contents

Section -- / 06

    • 01The verb system and the present: le présent○
    • 02Talking about the past: passé composé, imparfait, plus-que-parfait◐
    • 03Future, conditional and si-clauses: les phrases hypothétiques◐
    • 04The subjunctive: le subjonctif présent et passé●
    • 05Pronouns, agreement and word order: les pronoms et l'ordre◐
    • 06The A-level structures that earn AO3 marks●

0/6 Read

From notes into training

Grammar

Reinforce this topic with matching tasks from the question bank.

~30
min
3
Competencies
Practise

References & sources

Sources

AQA

  • AQA A-level French (7652) specification - grammar
  • AQA A-level French (7652) specification - scheme of assessment

Department for Education

  • GCE AS and A level subject content for modern foreign languages

Previous topic

Politics and immigration

Next topic

Literary texts and films (Works)

EuraStudy·Notes T·13·MMXXVI

Carry on to the next topic — your learning path is kept.