Grammar overview — the AQA defined grammar list
AQA GCSE French requires active command of a defined set of grammar points. This overview maps the whole grammar landscape; click each sub-code for the detailed treatment.
The grammar sub-topics
| Code | Area | Foundation | Higher extra |
|---|---|---|---|
| G.N | Nouns & articles | gender, plurals, definite/indefinite/partitive | — |
| G.A | Adjectives | agreement, position, comparative, superlative | — |
| G.AD | Adverbs | -ment formation, irregulars, intensifiers | — |
| G.PRO | Pronouns | subject, direct/indirect object, reflexive, y/en, relative, disjunctive | — |
| G.V.PRES | Present tense | regular -er/-ir/-re + key irregulars | — |
| G.V.PC | Perfect tense | avoir + être verbs, agreements | — |
| G.V.IMP | Imperfect tense | formation, contrast with perfect | — |
| G.V.FUT | Near future + future | aller + inf, simple future, conditional | — |
| G.V.OTHER | Other tenses/moods | pluperfect, subjunctive, passive | HT only |
| G.NEG | Negation | ne…pas, jamais, rien, personne, plus, que | — |
| G.Q | Questions | intonation, est-ce que, inversion, question words | — |
| G.PREP | Prepositions | à, de, en, depuis, pendant, pour, dans, avec, chez, sans | — |
| G.CONJ | Conjunctions | et, mais, ou, donc, car, parce que, puisque, alors que, cependant | — |
| G.NUM | Numbers, dates, time | cardinals, ordinals, clock, calendar | — |
The grammar hierarchy — what earns the most marks
AQA's mark schemes reward range and accuracy. The simplest way to think about this:
Bronze (Foundation pass): present tense, basic negation, basic adjectives, simple question forms
Silver (C/D crossover): perfect tense with both auxiliaries, imperfect for description, near future, comparative adjectives, object pronouns (le/la/les)
Gold (A/A):* si-clauses (imperfect + conditional), subjunctive after il faut que/bien que, pluperfect, passive, complex relative clauses
The golden rule — accuracy over complexity
A short, accurate sentence scores higher than a long, error-ridden attempt at complexity. Only "reach" for Higher structures if you know them cold. Reserve complexity for areas of strength.
Grammar in writing
Every 90-word or 150-word task should contain at minimum:
- Three tenses — present, one past, one future/conditional
- At least two connectives (not just et and mais)
- At least one opinion verb + justification (je pense que + reason)
- At least one adjective agreement demonstrated correctly
Grammar in speaking
The photo-card and general conversation don't test grammar in isolation — they reward it in context. A natural-sounding sentence with a well-placed object pronoun (Je l'aime beaucoup) will impress far more than a laboured attempt at the subjunctive that falls apart.
Top 5 grammar errors to avoid
- Si-clause conditional: Si j'aurais… ✗ → Si j'avais… ✓ (never conditional after si)
- Être-verb agreement: Je suis allé (male) vs Je suis allée (female) — the -e matters
- "De" after negation: Je n'ai pas de frères (not des frères)
- Adjective gender: un livre intéressant / une histoire intéressante
- "Avoir" for age: J'ai seize ans, never je suis seize ans
AI-generated · claude-opus-4-7 · v3-deep-french