B1 Grammar
Complete list of B1 Grammar points with meaning, formation, examples and audio. Tap any point for a full explanation.
- Conditional present — would / polite requests Conditional = 'would' — politeness and hypotheses
- Present subjunctive — after il faut que, vouloir que Subjunctive after necessity/wish (il faut que, vouloir que)
- Relative pronouns — où, dont où (where/when) and dont (of/about which, whose)
- si clauses — real condition (si + present → future) Real condition: si + present tense, then future
- Plus-que-parfait — the past perfect Past perfect: an action before another past action
- Imperative with pronouns — donne-le-moi Imperative with object pronouns (affirmative and negative)
- Gérondif — en + present participle Gérondif: 'while / by doing', simultaneous action or means
- The passive voice — la voix passive Passive voice: the subject undergoes the action
- Reciprocal reflexive verbs — se parler Reciprocal verbs: doing something to each other
- Verbs followed by à + infinitive Verbs that link to an infinitive with à
- Verbs followed by de + infinitive Verbs that link to an infinitive with de
- Past participle agreement with avoir (preceding direct object) Participle agrees with a direct object placed before avoir
- Passé composé vs imparfait — contrast Completed action vs ongoing background in the past
- venir de / être sur le point de + infinitive Just did / about to do something
- Futur proche vs futur simple — contrast Near/planned future vs distant/formal future
- si + imparfait → conditionnel présent (hypothesis) Unreal present hypothesis: if + imperfect, then conditional present
- Reported speech in the present — discours indirect Indirect speech (present reporting verb): que / si / ce que + shifted pronouns
- Indirect questions — je me demande si / ce que Indirect questions: est-ce que→si, qu'est-ce que→ce que, qu'est-ce qui→ce qui
- Subjunctive after conjunctions — bien que, pour que, avant que Certain conjunctions always require the subjunctive
- Order of double object pronouns — je le lui donne Order when two object pronouns come before the verb
- ce qui / ce que / ce dont Indefinite relative pronouns: 'what / that which'
- Demonstrative pronouns — celui, celle, ceux, celles 'the one(s)' — replace ce + noun, need a complement
- celui-ci / celui-là — this one / that one 'this one' (-ci, near) vs 'that one' (-là, far)
- Possessive pronouns — le mien, le tien, le sien 'mine, yours, his/hers' — replace possessive + noun
- tout — as adjective and pronoun 'all / every / everything' — adjective and pronoun forms
- chaque / chacun — each / each one chaque (each, adjective) vs chacun/chacune (each one, pronoun)
- quelques / plusieurs / certains — some / several quelques (a few) · plusieurs (several) · certains (some, of a group)
- Irregular superlatives — le meilleur, le mieux Irregular superlatives: the best (adj le meilleur / adv le mieux), the worst (le pire)
- Comparative and superlative of adverbs Comparing adverbs: more/less/as … than; superlative le plus / le moins
- Indefinite adjectives — aucun, même, autre, tel Indefinite adjectives: aucun (no/none), même (same), autre (other), tel (such)
- Prepositions of time — à, en, dans, pendant Choosing the right preposition for time expressions
- dans vs en with a duration dans = in (after that time); en = in (time taken to do)
- avant / après — before / after Saying 'before' and 'after' with nouns and verbs
- jusqu'à / à partir de — until / from Marking an end point (until) and a starting point (from)
- par vs pour Distinguishing par (by/through/per) from pour (for/in order to)
- Duration — depuis / pendant / pour / il y a Four ways to express time span and 'ago'
- Expressing cause — à cause de / grâce à 'Because of' (negative) vs 'thanks to' (positive)
- Expressing cause — parce que, car, puisque, comme Expressing cause: parce que, car, puisque, comme
- Expressing consequence — donc, alors, si bien que Expressing consequence: donc, alors, si bien que
- Expressing purpose — pour, afin de, pour que Purpose 'in order to / so that'
- Expressing opposition — mais, alors que, tandis que Expressing opposition/contrast: mais, alors que, tandis que
- Expressing time — quand, lorsque, dès que, pendant que Time conjunctions: quand, lorsque, dès que, pendant que
- Intensity + consequence — si / tellement … que Intensity leading to a consequence: si / tellement … que
- ne … que — restriction (only) ne … que = only (restriction, not negation)
- ne … aucun / nulle part — none / nowhere ne … aucun = not any/none; ne … nulle part = nowhere
- Negation of the infinitive — ne pas + infinitive Negate an infinitive: ne pas + infinitive (both words before)
- personne / rien as subject — personne ne … As subject: personne ne … / rien ne … (no one / nothing)
- Questions with a preposition — avec qui, de quoi Preposition + qui (people) / quoi (things) in questions
- c'est vs il/elle est c'est + article/name/pronoun; il/elle est + adjective/profession
- Omission of the article — il est médecin When French drops the article
- Articles with body parts — se laver les mains The definite article with body parts
- Verbs in -cevoir — recevoir, apercevoir recevoir = to receive (ç before o/u, irregular)
- Colour adjectives — agreement and invariability Simple colour adjectives agree with the noun; colours derived from a noun or made of two words stay invariable.
- autant / autant de — comparing quantities and actions Use autant (que) to express equality with a verb, and autant de + noun for equal quantities.
- Negation in speech — dropping ne In casual speech ne is dropped: il vient pas, y a personne — informal, keep ne in writing
- Fractions and percentages Fractions: la moitié de, un tiers, un quart, trois quarts; percentages: vingt pour cent (20 %). The verb usually agrees with the noun after de.
- cent / vingt / mille — number agreement cent and vingt take -s only when multiplied AND final (quatre-vingts, deux cents), but not before another number (quatre-vingt-trois, deux cent cinq). mille is invariable; million/milliard are nouns and take de.