Present tense
Use the present for routines and current states. Regular -er verbs change their endings with the subject; common verbs such as être, avoir and aller are irregular.
Je suis bénévole et nous aidons les visiteurs.
IGCSE · French · grammar
For Years 9–11 · Learn, try, checkIGCSE French Grammar: Put the Forms to Work
Build accurate sentences with concise tense notes, examples and short answer-reveal practice.
Build a sentence you can change
Begin with a subject, a verb and one clear detail. For writing and speaking, present-tense routines, completed past events and future plans are useful starting points. For reading and listening, recognising a form matters even before you can produce it quickly.
Practise moving between a past event and its background, then adding a comparison or conditional preference. Check your own board’s grammar list rather than borrowing a UK GCSE tier checklist.
- Say a sentence, change its subject, then check the new ending.
- Move it to a different time frame and change the time marker too.
- Add a negative or reason without changing the intended meaning.
- Keep a small correction log: wrong form → correct form → new example.
French grammar: the useful building blocks
These are concise starting notes, not the entire specification. Each example shows the form doing a job in a sentence.
Perfect tense
For a completed past action, combine an auxiliary (avoir or être) with a past participle. Most verbs use avoir. With être, the participle agrees with the subject.
Nous avons vendu des billets. Amir est arrivé tôt.
Imperfect
Use the imperfect for past habits or background. Take the nous present stem, remove -ons, and add -ais, -ais, -ait, -ions, -iez, -aient. Être uses ét-.
Il pleuvait quand nous avons quitté la salle.
Future
Near future: present aller + infinitive. Simple future: future stem + -ai, -as, -a, -ons, -ez, -ont. Some stems are irregular, such as ir- for aller.
Nous allons organiser une fête. Les voisins viendront.
Conditional
Use the conditional for a wish or hypothetical outcome. Add imperfect endings to the future stem. Je voudrais is useful for a polite request or wish.
Avec plus de temps, nous aiderions d’autres personnes.
Modal verbs
Pouvoir, devoir and vouloir are commonly followed by an infinitive. Keep the second verb in that form; do not conjugate both.
Nous pouvons réparer ce vélo, mais il faut attendre.
Negatives
In careful written French, surround the conjugated verb with ne…pas, ne…jamais or ne…plus. In a compound tense, the negative surrounds the auxiliary.
Nous ne jetons plus ces objets. Elle n’est pas venue.
Adjective agreement
Adjectives usually agree with the noun in gender and number. Many take -e in the feminine and -s in the plural; some are irregular.
Une salle lumineuse ; des quartiers calmes.
Pronouns
Direct object pronouns such as le, la and les usually come before the conjugated verb, or before an infinitive they belong to. Y can replace a place introduced by à.
Je vais à la bibliothèque. J’y retrouve ma cousine.
Comparisons
Use plus…que, moins…que and aussi…que. Bon becomes meilleur when comparing quality; bien becomes mieux when comparing how something is done.
Cette salle est aussi grande que l’autre.
Connectives
Et adds, mais contrasts, parce que explains and donc gives a consequence. Choose the link that matches the ideas, not just a longer word.
Le centre est petit, donc il faut réserver.
Choose the form from the meaning
Original practice · not an exam paper
Four short grammar checks
Write the missing form or correction. Say why it fits before you reveal the answers.
- Complete: Hier, elles ___ (arriver) tôt.
- Complete: Il ___ (pleuvoir) quand l’atelier a commencé.
- Replace à la bibliothèque: Nous allons à la bibliothèque.
- Complete: Avec plus de temps, nous ___ (aider) les voisins.
Reveal answers and explanations
- Elles sont arrivées: arriver uses être, with feminine plural agreement.
- Il pleuvait: background in the imperfect.
- Nous y allons: y replaces the location and precedes allons.
- Nous aiderions: conditional, describing a hypothetical outcome.
Use grammar in a real answer
Hier, nous avons organisé un atelier. Il pleuvait, mais les voisins sont venus. Nous voudrions recommencer.
Underline the verbs, then label each time frame. Write a version about your own life, keeping the grammatical pattern but changing the detail. Finally say it aloud without reading.
Original practice · not an exam paper
Change one detail, keep the structure
Change the final sentence to a new plan or wish. Then check the subject, verb and any agreement. For example, change je vais jouer to je vais lire, not je vais lis.
Reveal answers and explanations
A model adaptation is Nous voudrions organiser une autre activité.. Your own accurate alternative may be different.
Grammar helps writing when it conveys a precise meaning, and speaking when it makes an answer easy to follow. A memorised complex sentence that does not fit the question is not an improvement.
Check the assessment for your board
Confirm your board with your teacher. These are original learning resources, not official papers or a grade prediction.
Pearson Edexcel International GCSE
Pearson Edexcel International GCSE writing includes a task requiring verbs in their correct forms. Practise choosing a tense from context as well as producing it; reading and continuous writing also depend on grammar.
Pearson Edexcel International GCSE French speaking guide
Official Pearson Edexcel International GCSE French specification (PDF)Cambridge IGCSE
The Cambridge IGCSE syllabus lists grammar for understanding and expression. Build accurate sentences and practise manipulating them for directed writing. These notes relate to 2025–2027; check the separate syllabus if your exam is in 2028 or later.
Cambridge IGCSE French speaking guide
Official Cambridge IGCSE French 2025–2027 syllabus (PDF)Cambridge exam year matters: 2025–2027 and 2028–2030 are different syllabuses. The PDF above is for 2025–2027; for a later exam, choose your year on the official Cambridge French qualification page. Pearson guidance here concerns the linear 2017 International GCSE specifications (4FR1 / 4SP1); check the precise qualification your school enters.
Carry the skill into your next answer
Move between understanding language and using it. Pick a related resource rather than starting another long checklist.
Ready to say it aloud?
The website supports broad revision. The ScoreMySpeech app stays specialist: French and Spanish speaking practice with feedback, not full reading, listening or writing assessment.