LIMPARFAIT

Limparfait is one of the past tenses. It is used for: - a description in the past (description of place / people / emotions / weather etc) Ctait un jour de semaine ordinaire. Il pleuvait. Lhomme portait un chapeau noir et un impermable gris. Il souriait. Il avait lair heureux. - an action / an habit that used to happen in the past but does not anymore Quand il avait dix ans, il ne sortait jamais seul le soir. (Here, we are implying that he now goes out on his own in the evenings) - an unfinished action in the past and / or an action which was in progress in the past when it was interrupted by another shorter action. Je faisais mes devoirs quand le tlphone a sonn. (The action of doing the homework was interrupted by the phone ringing which is a short completed action in the past.)

So, how is the imperfect or imparfait formed? To be able to conjugate a verb in the imperfect, it is essential that you learn / revise the nous form of the verbs in the present. Why? Well simply because to conjugate a verb in the imperfect, you need to: - Take the nous form of the verb in the present tense nous regardons / nous finissons / nous prenons - Take off the nous and the -ons ending regard / fais / pren - Add the correct imperfect ending :

ais - ais - ait - ions - iez - aient

je regardais / vous faisiez / elles prenaient

The good thing about the imperfect is that not only it is an easy tense to form so long as you know the nous form of your verbs in the present, but also, there is only one exception. Etre J Tu Il / elle / on Nous Vous Ils / elles NB: dont forget that the verbs such as nager / ranger or manger keep the e after the g and in front of the a. Je rangeais Tu rangeais Il rangeait nous rangions vous rangiez ils rangeaient

tais tais tait tions tiez taient

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Lets practice !

1) Quand il . jeune, mon grand-pre .. dans une ferme. (tre / habiter) 2) Avant, ma sur .. toujours sa chambre. Maintenant, sa chambre est toujours en dsordre. (ranger) 3) La femme qui . un martini , proccupe. (boire / sembler) 4) Ce matin l, il .. et il .. froid. (neiger / faire) 5) Avant, vous . toujours le mtro pour aller au travail. Pourquoi avez-vous chang soudainement ? (prendre) 6) Les filles . sortir quand leur pre est rentr. (se prparer)

Le plus-que parfait
The pluperfect is used to refer to actions in the past which took place in the past and were completed in the past before other actions (also in the past) took place. (I think that you have gathered that past is the
key word here!).

Its English translation is had. Javais fini mes devoirs quand ma mre est rentre.
plus-que-parfait pass compos

I had finished my homework when my mother came back Here, the action of finishing the
homework was completed before the return of the mother, the pluperfect is therefore used to convey this idea of anteriority in the past.

How is it formed? Well, if you know how to put a verb in the pass compos and know the imperfect forms of avoir and tre, you should then find the plus-que parfait relatively easy as... Avoir or tre in the IMPERFECT + past participle of the verb NB: All the rules of the pass compos apply to the plus- que- parfait.

j avais fait elle tait alle

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Top 15 useful vocabulary items per topic !

As you know, it is impossible to give you all the vocabulary that you may need for the final exam. Equally, as this guide is only a revision guide, your bank of vocabulary should be quite substantial by now at this stage of the revision process....The next few pages are intending to remind you of some essential vocabulary items per topics like family, education and so on. Again, it is impossible to cover all the potential topics and remember that this list is far from being exhaustive. I have made some suggestions of more comprehensive vocabulary books that you may want to use (refer to resources pages) and dont forget either that vocabulary only really comes to life in context so keep on reading and refer back to the examples of texts provided in section 1 and 2 of this guide too! This list my also prompt you about some of the issues you can go and read article about befor the exam! Note that when a word / verb etc....belongs to the familiar register, it will be followed by the following (f).

une famille clate (a split family) partager (to share) une famille monoparentale (a single parent family)

une famille recompose ( a recomposed family) bien sentendre avec (to get on well with someone) le conflit de gnration (the generation gap)

faire confiance quelquun / se confier (to trust someone / to confide in someone)

le cocon familial (the family nest)

La famille / lamiti

un malentendu ( a misunderstanding) couver quelquun (f) (to overprotect someone)

fidle / loyal (faithful / loyal) les allocations familiales (the family allowance / benefit)

le foyer (home/ family unit)

voler de ses propres ailes (to fly the nest)

concilier carrire et famille (to reconcile career and family)

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Le discours
A speech is primarily written to be said, therefore, it will have to be extremely well structured and clear. A speech is also generally meant to present facts and convince an audience of something (for example, you
might want to convince your audience to react against the rise in climate changes or maybe to join a specific group etc. ).

Examples of questions: Write a speech to inform young children about the dangers of drugs. Write a speech to raise awareness amongst your peers of the rise of violence in schools and the need to address the issue

Whatever the context and topic, and whoever your audience is, there are certain elements that need to be respected when writing a speech.

Make sure you always start your speech by addressing your audience: Chers collgues / Mesdames et Messieurs /
Bonjour toutes et tous / Bonjour les enfants....

If you are delivering a speech in front of an unknown audience, you might want to introduce yourself too! A short but catchy introduction to your topic / speech is a must. Choose the appropriate register of language for your audience and be coherent in the use of that register. Address your audience directly to engage them and keep them engaged. You can do this by asking RHETORICAL questions and you may even answer these questions very briefly to reinforce a specific point.
Comment ragiriez-vous si vos enfants taient les victimes de tels crimes? Laccepteriez-vous sans rien dire ? NON !

Use repetitions and rgles de 3 (repetitions of a word or an idea 3 times in a row). Use punctuation (! / !! / ...) to convey emotions on paper that would normally be conveyed through the tone of your voice and expression. Write in italics / bold or underline words that you want to insist on. Give examples and facts to prove what you are saying Use humour if it is appropriate (and if you can!) Your speech must be logical and STRUCTURED. Therefore you must use linking words appropriately. Miss a line or two in between each paragraph developing an idea; remember that as a speech is written to be spoken it needs to be clear on paper too. If appropriate, involve yourself personally from time to time using nous / je / moi so that you give more weight to what you are talking about as you are even ready to put yourself on the line for it. A short but sharp CONCLUSION which is going to stick in peoples mind is essential...and dont forget to thank your audience!

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