Paper Together: sit a paper in a room with your friends.See how it works
Read the role-play card, choose tu or vous, give the right message for each task, deal with the unexpected question and use phrases for shops, hotels, restaurants and directions.
The role play is a short conversation with the examiner based on a card. The card says who you are and who the examiner is, and gives you several tasks. You have preparation time to read the card and make notes. Each task is marked for whether you convey the message clearly, and there is a mark for your overall language. You usually have to answer questions, give information and ask questions.
Typical situations: in a shop, at a hotel, in a restaurant, at the station, at the doctor, at the tourist office, talking to a friend about plans, or at a school exchange. The examiner follows a script, so you can predict much of it. Tap the words to hear them.
Use the preparation time well. Read the situation, underline the form (tu or vous), and read every task. A task may ask you to say something («Dites quand vous voulez partir»), to ask a question («Demandez le prix»), or to give two details («Donnez deux détails»). One task is the unprepared question: you cannot prepare it, so you must listen and answer. Plan what you will say for each task in French, but do not write full sentences.
Prepare an answer for every task, then a question you could ask. Note down the key words you need: numbers, times, places. If the card has a symbol which marks a question you do not know in advance, remember the examiner will ask it. Be ready to give a short, clear answer and expand if you can. Do not answer in English.
A task says "Ask how much the ticket costs." What do you say (vous)?
Combien coûte le billet, s'il vous plaît ? It is a polite, complete question with the right form.
Shop: «Je voudrais acheter un pull», «Avez-vous ce pull en bleu ?», «Je le prends», «Combien ça coûte ?», «C'est trop cher». Restaurant: «Je voudrais réserver une table pour quatre personnes», «Qu'est-ce que vous recommandez ?», «Je voudrais le menu à vingt euros», «L'addition, s'il vous plaît». Hotel: «Je voudrais une chambre pour deux nuits», «Est-ce que le petit-déjeuner est compris ?», «Il y a un problème avec la douche».
Travel: «Un billet aller-retour pour Lyon, s'il vous plaît», «À quelle heure part le train ?», «De quel quai ?». Directions: «Pour aller à la gare, s'il vous plaît ?», «Continuez tout droit», «Tournez à gauche». Health: «J'ai mal à la tête», «Depuis quand avez-vous mal ?». Friends: «On va au cinéma ?», «Tu veux venir ?», «À quelle heure ?», «Où est-ce qu'on se retrouve ?».
One task cannot be prepared: the examiner asks a question you have not seen. Do not panic. Listen carefully to the question word: «quand» (time), «où» (place), «pourquoi» (reason), «combien» (number), «comment» (how), «qui» (person), «qu'est-ce que» (what). Answer with a short, complete sentence. If you do not understand, ask: «Pouvez-vous répéter, s'il vous plaît ?» This earns you the same marks as understanding at once.
Even a simple answer can be good: «Je voudrais deux billets» or «Parce que je suis fatigué». If you cannot think, say something sensible that fits: you are not marked on the truth but on the communication. Avoid silence. Use fillers such as «alors», «euh», «voyons» to buy a moment. Then answer clearly.
You do not understand the unexpected question. What is the best thing to say?
Pouvez-vous répéter, s'il vous plaît ? Asking for repetition is a recognised strategy that does not lose marks.
A clear message is the minimum; a developed message shows more language. If the card says "say what you want to buy", say: «Je voudrais acheter un pull bleu, taille moyenne». If it says "ask for a room", add: «pour deux personnes, pour trois nuits». Give a reason or an opinion if it fits: «Je préfère celui-ci parce qu'il est plus chaud». Do not give extra information if it risks errors.
When the card asks you to ask a question, use a full question: «Est-ce que vous avez une chambre avec douche ?», «Combien coûte la chambre ?», «À quelle heure part le train ?». Use the correct form: «vous» with a stranger. Use the conditional for polite requests: «Je voudrais», «Pourriez-vous». Say «s'il vous plaît» and «merci».
Situation: you are in a hotel (vous). Examiner: «Bonjour, je peux vous aider ?» You: «Bonjour, je voudrais une chambre pour deux nuits, s'il vous plaît.» Examiner: «Pour combien de personnes ?» You: «Pour deux personnes, une chambre double.» Examiner: «Très bien. Vous voulez un balcon ?» You: «Non, merci, mais est-ce que le petit-déjeuner est compris ?» Examiner: «Oui, de sept à dix heures.» You: «Parfait. Merci beaucoup. À quelle heure faut-il partir le dernier jour ?»
Notice the pattern: greeting, request with details, polite answers, a question of your own, thanks. Each answer is short, complete and correct. Practise saying such dialogues aloud with a partner, changing the situation. Record yourself and listen: are the endings clear? Are you using «vous»?
Which is the best answer to "Pour combien de nuits ?"
Pour trois nuits, s'il vous plaît. It answers the question with the right detail and is polite.
Say each phrase clearly. Pronounce the final vowel and the accents: «café», «hôtel», «élève». Do not say the final consonants unless there is a vowel after them (liaison): «vous avez» (vouzavé). Keep the nasal vowels: «bon», «un», «chambre». Speak slowly and steadily; an examiner will understand a slow, clear answer far more easily than a fast, unclear one.
If you make a mistake, correct yourself calmly: «Pardon, je voulais dire…». If you forget a word, describe it: «C'est pour mettre le café». If you do not understand, ask: «Comment ?», «Pouvez-vous parler plus lentement ?». Use polite words all the time: «s'il vous plaît», «merci», «excusez-moi». They add to the mark for language as well.
In preparation, plan an answer for every task and a short question. In the exam, listen to each prompt and answer all of it. If a task asks for two details, give two. Do not give wrong extra information, as it can lose the mark for that task. Use «vous» correctly all the time. Do not worry about small errors: clear communication earns the marks.
Practise at home by writing your own role plays for different situations and acting them out. Learn a list of ten useful phrases for each situation. Keep your answers short but complete, and always end politely. A relaxed, friendly tone helps you perform at your best.
What should you do if a task asks for two details?
Give two clear details. Each detail needed earns part of the message mark.
You are in a café (vous). Ask for a coffee and the bill.
Answer: Je voudrais un café, s'il vous plaît. L'addition, s'il vous plaît.
You are at the station (vous). Ask for a return ticket to Lyon and ask what time the train leaves.
Answer: Un billet aller-retour pour Lyon, s'il vous plaît. À quelle heure part le train ?
You are at a hotel (vous). Say you have a problem with your room, say what is wrong and ask for another room.
Answer: Il y a un problème avec ma chambre. La douche ne marche pas et il fait très froid. Pourriez-vous me donner une autre chambre, s'il vous plaît ?
Try each one, then open the answer.
Translate into French: I would like a coffee, please. (vous)
Answer: Je voudrais un café, s'il vous plaît
Translate into French: How much does it cost?
Answer: Combien ça coûte
Translate into French: Where is the station, please? (vous)
Answer: Où est la gare, s'il vous plaît
Translate into French: The bill, please.
Answer: L'addition, s'il vous plaît
Translate into French: Do you have a table for four people? (vous)
Answer: Avez-vous une table pour quatre personnes
Translate into French: Could you tell me what time the train leaves? (vous)
Answer: Pourriez-vous me dire à quelle heure part le train
Translate into French: There is a problem with the shower. (vous)
Answer: Il y a un problème avec la douche
Translate into French: I would like to buy a blue jumper, please. (vous)
Answer: Je voudrais acheter un pull bleu, s'il vous plaît
Translate into French: I would like to book a room for three nights, with a shower, and I would like to know if breakfast is included. (vous)
Answer: Je voudrais réserver une chambre pour trois nuits, avec douche, et je voudrais savoir si le petit-déjeuner est compris
Translate into French: Excuse me, I do not understand. Could you speak more slowly, please? (vous)
Answer: Excusez-moi, je ne comprends pas. Pourriez-vous parler plus lentement, s'il vous plaît
Translate into French: Yesterday I lost my bag at the station; it is black and it contains my passport. Could you help me? (vous)
Answer: Hier, j'ai perdu mon sac à la gare; il est noir et il contient mon passeport. Pourriez-vous m'aider
Which strategy do you use when you do not understand a question? Give the French sentence (vous).
Answer: Pouvez-vous répéter, s'il vous plaît
Longer tasks with the marking points. These are Yumio practice questions.
Role play (you are at a hotel, vous). Write the French you would say: (a) ask for a room for two nights, (b) ask if breakfast is included, (c) say there is a problem with the shower. [5 marks]
Answer: Je voudrais une chambre pour deux nuits, s'il vous plaît. Est-ce que le petit-déjeuner est compris ? Il y a un problème avec la douche.
Role play (you are at a restaurant, vous). Write the French you would say to: reserve a table for six at eight o'clock tomorrow, ask what the waiter recommends, and say that you are vegetarian. [6 marks]
Answer: Je voudrais réserver une table pour six personnes demain soir à vingt heures. Qu'est-ce que vous recommandez ? Je suis végétarien, donc je ne mange pas de viande.
Using tu with a receptionist
Use vous with professionals.
Giving one detail for a two-detail task
Give two details.
Silence at the unprepared question
Ask for repetition or give a simple answer.
Je veux une chambre
Use je voudrais.
Answering in English
Answer only in French.
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