Adjectives and adverbs

    OCR
    GCSE

    The study of adjectives and adverbs in French requires mastery of morphosyntactic agreement and placement rules. Candidates must demonstrate the ability to manipulate adjectival agreement (gender and number) and understand the invariable nature of adverbs. Critical assessment focuses on the semantic shifts caused by adjectival placement (pre- vs. post-nominal) and the irregular formation of comparative and superlative structures. Proficiency distinguishes between descriptive accuracy and high-level stylistic nuance.

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    Objectives
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    Exam Tips
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    Pitfalls
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    Key Terms
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    Mark Points

    What You Need to Demonstrate

    Key skills and knowledge for this topic

    • Award marks for correct placement of BAGS adjectives (Beauty, Age, Goodness, Size) preceding the noun
    • Credit accurate gender agreement for irregular patterns (e.g., blanc/blanche, long/longue, gentil/gentille)
    • Penalize omission of agreement in plural contexts, specifically the silent 's' in written responses
    • Reward correct mutation of beau/nouveau/vieux to bel/nouvel/vieil before masculine vowel-initial nouns

    Example Examiner Feedback

    Real feedback patterns examiners use when marking

    • "You placed the adjective correctly, but missed the gender agreement—check the noun's gender"
    • "Excellent use of a BAGS adjective before the noun; ensure you use the special form for vowel-initial words"
    • "Watch out for invariable colours like 'marron'—do not add an 's' here"
    • "Your agreement with 'être' is accurate; extend this accuracy to direct object pronouns in the perfect tense for top marks"

    Marking Points

    Key points examiners look for in your answers

    • Award marks for correct placement of BAGS adjectives (Beauty, Age, Goodness, Size) preceding the noun
    • Credit accurate gender agreement for irregular patterns (e.g., blanc/blanche, long/longue, gentil/gentille)
    • Penalize omission of agreement in plural contexts, specifically the silent 's' in written responses
    • Reward correct mutation of beau/nouveau/vieux to bel/nouvel/vieil before masculine vowel-initial nouns

    Examiner Tips

    Expert advice for maximising your marks

    • 💡Systematically identify the gender of every noun before selecting the adjective form during translation tasks
    • 💡Memorize the BAGS acronym to instantly identify which adjectives must precede the noun
    • 💡During proofreading, isolate noun-adjective pairs specifically to check for 'e' and 's' additions
    • 💡Use 'c'est' + masculine adjective for general comments, but 'il/elle est' + agreeing adjective for specific nouns

    Common Mistakes

    Pitfalls to avoid in your exam answers

    • Applying English syntax by placing all adjectives before the noun (e.g., un vert pantalon)
    • Treating invariable colour adjectives (e.g., marron, orange) as variable by adding 's' or 'e'
    • Failing to make agreement when the adjective is separated from the noun by the verb être

    Study Guide Available

    Comprehensive revision notes & examples

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    Key Terminology

    Essential terms to know

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