Why is "Leaving an adjective masculine when the noun is feminine or plural (*elle est content*)" a common mistake in Common A* pitfalls?

Why it happens: English adjectives never change form, so beginners forget French adjectives must match the noun. How to avoid it: After every adjective, ask: which noun does it describe, and is that noun feminine or plural? Add -e (feminine), -s (plural) or -es (both): *elle est contente*, *des voitures bleues*. Source: Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports — Paper 4 (Writing), accuracy

Why is "Using the wrong auxiliary in the passé composé (*j'ai allé*, *je suis mangé*)" a common mistake in Common A* pitfalls?

Why it happens: Learners apply one auxiliary to every verb instead of remembering the small être set. How to avoid it: Memorise the Mrs Vandertramp motion/change verbs (+ all reflexives) that take être; everything else takes avoir. So *je suis allé* (être) but *j'ai mangé* (avoir). Source: Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports — Paper 4 (Writing)

Why is "Not agreeing the être past participle with the subject (*elles sont allé*)" a common mistake in Common A* pitfalls?

Why it happens: Even students who choose être correctly forget that its participle then behaves like an adjective. How to avoid it: After any être past participle, check the subject's gender and number and add the same -e/-s/-es endings: *elle est allée*, *elles sont allées*. Source: Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports — Paper 4 (Writing)

Why is "Falling for false friends and franglais (*sensible*, *passer un examen*, *travailler* for travel)" a common mistake in Common A* pitfalls?

Why it happens: Translating word-for-word from English and trusting that look-alike words share a meaning. How to avoid it: Treat any English-looking word with suspicion. Learn the high-frequency traps as pairs: *sensible* = sensitive, *réussir* = to pass an exam, *voyager* = to travel, *librairie* = bookshop. Source: Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports — Papers 2 & 4

Why is "Dropping meaning-accents that change the word (*a* for *à*, *ou* for *où*, *sur* for *sûr*)" a common mistake in Common A* pitfalls?

Why it happens: English has no accents, so beginners treat them as optional decoration rather than spelling. How to avoid it: Treat an accent as part of the spelling. Learn the meaning-pairs by heart (*à*/*a*, *où*/*ou*, *sûr*/*sur*, *dû*/*du*) and proof-read for them in every written answer. Source: Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports — Paper 4 (Writing), accuracy

Why is "Slipping into tu with the examiner or an adult stranger instead of vous" a common mistake in Common A* pitfalls?

Why it happens: tu is the form learners practise most with classmates, so it comes out automatically. How to avoid it: Default to vous with the examiner throughout Paper 3 and match the verb ending (*vous habitez*, not *tu habites*). Reserve tu for friends, family and children. Source: Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports — Paper 3 (Speaking)

Cambridge IGCSE French (0520)

Common A* pitfalls

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Detailed Study Notes

Detailed notes on Exam-Skill Sections for Cambridge IGCSE French, covering key concepts, explanations, examples, and exam-focused revision points.

Common A* pitfalls and how to avoid them — Cambridge IGCSE French 0520 (2025-2027)

The handful of recurring errors that quietly stop strong candidates reaching the top grade across Listening, Reading, Speaking and Writing — and the exact habits that fix each one. Learn what the examiners reward, what they penalise, and how to turn a solid B into an A*.

At a glance

An A* answer is accurate, not just long. Most lost marks at the top end come from small, repeated accuracy slips — accents, agreement, verb endings — not from missing vocabulary.
Adjective and past-participle agreement is the single biggest written A* killer: elle est content (wrong) instead of elle est contente (she is happy) loses an accuracy mark every time.
Accents are spelling. Omitting them (a for à, ou for où, missing the cédille in français) is penalised in Paper 4 and can change the meaning of the word.
Answer the question that was asked. In Paper 4 you must cover every bullet point; in Paper 2 you must lift the precise detail, not a nearby distractor.
Stretch your tenses and opinions. Top answers move beyond the present tense (use passé composé, imparfait, futur proche) and justify opinions with parce que (because).
Don't translate word-for-word from English. False friends (sensible = sensitive, not sensible) and English word order produce un-French sentences that examiners notice.
In Speaking, communication beats silence. Repair phrases (pouvez-vous répéter ? — can you repeat?) keep the conversation alive and protect your fluency marks.
Listening traps are deliberate. Examiners plant distractors and near-sound pairs (tu/tout); listen to the whole item before committing to an answer.

What you’ll learn

Mapped to the Cambridge IGCSE 0520 syllabus (2025-2027).

Identify the recurring accuracy errors that prevent top-grade performance across all four 0520 papers.
Apply adjective and past-participle agreement correctly in writing and speaking.
Use accents as an integral part of correct spelling and meaning.
Plan a Paper 4 written response that addresses every bullet point and stretches range (tenses, opinions, connectives).
Avoid false friends and English-influenced word order when producing French.
Use repair and clarification strategies in the Speaking test to maintain communication.
Recognise and resist common Listening and Reading distractors.

What an A* actually requires — accuracy over length

Top grades reward precise, controlled French, not just more words.

Many capable candidates believe the route to an A* is to write more — longer sentences, rarer words, bigger paragraphs. The mark schemes tell a different story. At the top of every 0520 paper, the deciding factor is accuracy and control: getting the small things right, consistently.

A typical Paper 4 (Writing) task is marked on two things at once:

Communication / content — did you cover the task and the bullet points clearly?
Language / accuracy — are your verbs, agreements, accents and structures correct?

A student who writes a short, correct answer that covers every bullet point will usually beat a student who writes a long, ambitious answer riddled with agreement and accent errors. The lesson: be ambitious, then be careful. Stretch your range, then check it.

The pitfalls in this note are the ones examiner reports flag year after year. None of them require new vocabulary to fix — they require habits: agreement checks, accent checks, reading the question twice, and proof-reading.

Worked mini-example — same idea, two grades.

B-grade sentence: Ma soeur est content et elle a mange une pizza. (Several errors: missing accents on sœur nuance, content not agreeing, mangé missing its accent.)
A*-grade sentence: Ma sœur est contente et elle a mangé une pizza. (My sister is happy and she ate a pizza.) Same vocabulary — the only difference is accuracy.

A* = accurate and controlled French, not the longest answer.
Paper 4 marks content (task coverage) AND language (accuracy) together.
A short correct answer often outscores a long error-filled one.
Every pitfall here is fixed by a habit, not by new vocabulary.

Pitfall 1 — adjective and past-participle agreement

Adjectives must match the noun's gender and number; so must past participles with être.

Adjectives — and être past participles — add -e for feminine and -s for plural.

This is the number-one written A* killer. In French, an adjective must agree with the noun it describes in gender (masculine/feminine) and number (singular/plural).

Form	Add	Example	English
Masculine singular	(nothing)	un grand jardin	a big garden
Feminine singular	-e	une grande maison	a big house
Masculine plural	-s	des grands jardins	big gardens
Feminine plural	-es	des grandes maisons	big houses

The same logic applies to the past participle of verbs that take être (the Mrs Vandertramp / DR & MRS VANDERTRAMP verbs of motion and change, plus all reflexive verbs):

Il est allé au cinéma. (He went to the cinema.)
Elle est allée au cinéma. (She went — note the extra -e.)
Elles sont allées au cinéma. (They [feminine] went — extra -e and -s.)

Two habits that fix this:

After writing any adjective, ask: what noun does this describe, and is it feminine or plural? Then add the ending.
After any être past participle, do the same check on the subject.

Worked mini-example. Correct: Ma mère est française et mes parents sont contents. (My mother is French and my parents are happy.) Here française takes -e (mère is feminine) and contents takes -s (parents is plural). Drop either ending and you lose an accuracy mark.

Adjectives match the noun: -e feminine, -s plural, -es feminine plural.
être past participles agree with the subject (elle est allée).
Most common slip: leaving an adjective masculine when the noun is feminine.
Habit: after every adjective, check the noun's gender and number.

Pitfall 2 — dropped accents and false friends

Accents are part of spelling; false friends trap word-for-word translators.

Dropped accents. English has no accents, so beginners treat them as decoration. They are not — an accent is part of the spelling, like a letter, and Paper 4 penalises a missing accent as an accuracy error. Worse, some accents carry meaning:

Without accent	With accent	They are different words
a (has)	à (to / at)	Il a (he has) vs à Paris (to Paris)
ou (or)	où (where)	café ou thé (coffee or tea) vs où es-tu ? (where are you?)
sur (on)	sûr (sure)	sur la table (on the table) vs je suis sûr (I'm sure)
du (of the)	dû (had to)	grammar word vs past participle

The highest-value habit: learn frequent words with their accents baked in — café, élève, père, mère, français, être, à, où, déjà, très — and proof-read for them.

False friends (faux amis). A faux ami is a French word that looks like an English word but means something different. Word-for-word translators walk straight into them:

French	Looks like	Actually means
sensible	sensible	sensitive
librairie	library	bookshop (library = bibliothèque)
actuellement	actually	currently / right now
assister à	assist	to attend
passer un examen	pass an exam	to sit/take an exam (to pass = réussir)
travailler (cf. travel)	travel	to work (to travel = voyager)

Worked mini-example. English "I am sensitive" must NOT become Je suis sensible if you mean "sensible/reasonable" — but it is exactly right for "sensitive". To say "She passed her exam" write Elle a réussi son examen, not Elle a passé son examen (which means she sat it). Always check a look-alike word's real meaning before using it.

An accent is part of the spelling — omitting it is an accuracy error in Paper 4.
Some accents change meaning: à (to) vs a (has); où (where) vs ou (or).
False friends mislead translators: sensible = sensitive, librairie = bookshop.
passer un examen = to SIT an exam; to PASS it = réussir.

Pitfall 3 — not answering the whole question

Cover every bullet point in Paper 4; lift the exact detail in Paper 2.

A reliable four-step routine for full-mark coverage in Paper 4 Writing.

You cannot score top marks for content you never wrote. Two coverage failures cost candidates dearly:

Paper 4 (Writing) — missing a bullet point. Tasks give you a set of bullet points (or guidance prompts) that you must all address. Skip one and you cap your communication mark, however good your French is. The fix is mechanical: before writing, number the bullets; while writing, tick each one off; before finishing, check none is left blank.

Paper 2 (Reading) — lifting the wrong detail. Reading questions ask for a precise piece of information, and the text usually contains a distractor — a nearby plausible-looking detail that is not the answer. If the question asks à quelle heure (at what time) the train leaves, do not copy the arrival time sitting next to it.

A simple coverage template for a Paper 4 answer. For a task like "Write about a recent holiday", hit each bullet and stretch the range:

Je suis allé(e) à... (I went to... — past tense, agreement on the participle)
J'ai logé dans... (I stayed in...)
Le temps était... (the weather was... — imperfect)
J'ai aimé... parce que... (I liked... because... — opinion + reason)
La prochaine fois, je voudrais... (next time I would like... — future idea)

Worked mini-example. A task lists four bullets: where you went, who with, what you did, your opinion. An answer that brilliantly describes where and what but never says who with or your opinion has only covered half the task — and is capped accordingly, no matter how elegant the French.

Paper 4: address every bullet point — missing one caps your content mark.
Number the bullets and tick them off as you write.
Paper 2: lift the exact detail asked for; beware the nearby distractor.
Plan first, write second, proof-read third.

Pitfall 4 — staying in the present tense with no opinions

Top answers vary tenses and justify opinions; safe present-only answers stay mid-band.

A grammatically perfect answer that uses only the present tense and never gives a reason will be accurate — but it will sit in the middle bands, not the top. The mark schemes explicitly reward range and variety: more than one tense, a spread of structures, and justified opinions.

Stretch your tenses. At Standard level you should show control of at least:

Tense	Use	Example
Present	now / habits	Je joue au foot. — I play football
Passé composé	completed past	J'ai joué au foot. — I played football
Imparfait	description / used to	Je jouais au foot. — I used to play / was playing
Futur proche	near future	Je vais jouer au foot. — I'm going to play
Conditional (a touch)	would like	Je voudrais jouer au foot. — I'd like to play

Justify your opinions. Don't just say you like something — say why, using a connective:

J'aime le français parce que c'est utile. (I like French because it's useful.)
Je préfère la mer car c'est plus relaxant. (I prefer the sea because it's more relaxing.)
À mon avis, ... (in my opinion, ...); Je pense que... (I think that...).

Use connectives to build longer, controlled sentences: et (and), mais (but), parce que (because), donc (so), aussi (also), par contre (on the other hand), d'abord ... ensuite ... enfin (first ... then ... finally).

Worked mini-example.

Mid-band: J'aime le sport. Je joue au tennis. C'est bien. (Correct, but flat — present only, no reasons.)
Top-band: J'aime beaucoup le sport. Le week-end dernier, j'ai joué au tennis avec mon frère, et c'était génial parce que j'adore la compétition. La semaine prochaine, je vais essayer le badminton. (Three tenses, an opinion with a reason, connectives — same topic, far higher range.)

Present-only, reason-free answers stay mid-band even when accurate.
Show a spread of tenses: present, passé composé, imparfait, futur proche.
Always justify opinions with parce que / car (because).
Link ideas with connectives (mais, donc, d'abord, ensuite, enfin).

Pitfall 5 — freezing in Speaking and rushing in Listening

Manage communication in Speaking; listen to the whole item before answering in Listening.

Speaking (Paper 3) — don't freeze, repair. The single biggest avoidable loss in the Speaking test is going silent when you don't understand or can't find a word. Examiners reward candidates who keep the conversation going. Learn a small kit of repair phrases:

Phrase	English
Pardon ?	Sorry? (didn't catch that)
Pouvez-vous répéter, s'il vous plaît ?	Could you repeat, please?
Qu'est-ce que ça veut dire ?	What does that mean?
Comment dit-on ... en français ?	How do you say ... in French?
Un instant, je réfléchis.	One moment, I'm thinking.
C'est-à-dire...	That is to say... (buys time, sounds fluent)

Also use vous (not tu) with the examiner, and don't kill the conversation with one-word answers — extend: Oui, j'adore ça parce que... (Yes, I love it because...).

Listening (Paper 1) — don't grab the first thing you hear. The recording is designed with distractors: a number or word that sounds right but is corrected a moment later ("On part à huit heures... non, à neuf heures" — we leave at eight... no, at nine). Habits that protect your marks:

Read the question and options before the audio plays (you get time to do this).
Listen to the whole item before committing — the answer is often confirmed or corrected near the end.
Use the second playing to check, not to panic.
Beware near-sound pairs the exam loves: tu /y/ vs tout /u/, nasal contrasts (an vs en contexts), and numbers like deux (2) vs douze (12).

Worked mini-example — Speaking. You don't know the word for "lifeguard". Instead of freezing, say: C'est la personne qui surveille la piscine. (It's the person who watches over the swimming pool.) You've kept talking, stayed in French, and communicated — exactly what the marks reward.

Speaking: never go silent — use repair phrases (pouvez-vous répéter ?).
Use vous with the examiner and extend answers with reasons.
Listening: read the question first, then listen to the WHOLE item.
Watch for distractors and corrections (huit ... non, neuf) and near-sound pairs.

Quick recap

A* = accurate, controlled French — small repeated slips (accents, agreement, verb endings) cost the top grade, not missing vocabulary.
Make adjectives and être past participles agree in gender and number (elle est contente, elle est allée).
Treat accents as spelling; some change meaning (à/a, où/ou, sûr/sur). Watch false friends (sensible = sensitive, librairie = bookshop).
Answer the whole question: cover every Paper 4 bullet point; lift the exact detail in Paper 2 and ignore distractors.
Stretch your range — use several tenses (present, passé composé, imparfait, futur proche) and justify opinions with parce que.
In Speaking, never freeze — use repair phrases and paraphrase; use vous with the examiner.
In Listening, read the question first and listen to the whole item before committing — the exam plants distractors and near-sound pairs.

Memorise this

Verbatim phrases and definitions Cambridge mark schemes credit.

Agreement: content / contente / contents / contentes; il est allé / elle est allée / elles sont allées.
Meaning accents: à (to/at) vs a (has); où (where) vs ou (or); sûr (sure) vs sur (on).
False friends: sensible = sensitive; librairie = bookshop; passer un examen = to sit an exam (réussir = to pass).
Opinion + reason: J'aime ... parce que ... ; À mon avis, ... ; Je pense que ....
Stretch frames: La semaine dernière, j'ai ... ; Quand j'étais petit(e), je ... ; À l'avenir, je voudrais ....
Connectives: et, mais, parce que, car, donc, aussi, d'abord, ensuite, enfin.
Speaking repairs: Pardon ? ; Pouvez-vous répéter, s'il vous plaît ? ; Qu'est-ce que ça veut dire ? ; Comment dit-on ... en français ?.
Use vous (not tu) with the examiner.

How it’s examined

These pitfalls map directly onto the four Cambridge IGCSE French 0520 papers.

Paper 1 (Listening): Distractors and corrections ("...à huit heures, non, à neuf heures") and near-sound pairs (tu/tout, deux/douze) are deliberately built in. Reading the question first and listening to the whole item is the defence.
Paper 2 (Reading): Questions target a precise detail; a plausible distractor usually sits nearby. Lift the exact information asked for, and use spelling-to-sound/cognate skills to decode unfamiliar words.
Paper 3 (Speaking): Pronunciation, fluency and communication are assessed. Freezing loses marks; repair phrases, paraphrase, extended answers and using vous protect and raise the grade.
Paper 4 (Writing): Marked on communication/content (cover every bullet point) AND language/accuracy (agreement, accents, verb endings, range of tenses). Top answers are accurate, cover the full task, vary tenses and justify opinions.

Cambridge 0520 examiner reports repeatedly identify the same top-end losses: missing accents, adjective/past-participle agreement errors, incomplete task coverage, over-reliance on the present tense, and anglicised pronunciation. Fixing these habits is what converts a strong B into an A*.

Sources: Cambridge IGCSE French 0520 Syllabus 2025-2027; Cambridge 0520 Papers 1-4 Specimen & Mark Schemes 2025-2027; Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports 2022-2024. Last reviewed 2026-06-02.

Take this whole topic with you

Step-by-step worked examples — Common A* pitfalls

Step-by-step solutions to past-paper-style questions on common a* pitfalls, written exactly the way a tutor would explain them at the board.

1Spot and fix the adjective agreement error
Getting started
Question
Find and correct the error: Ma sœur est content et elle a une voiture bleu. (My sister is happy and she has a blue car.)
Step-by-step solution
1. Step 1
  Find the adjectives and their nouns. content describes ma sœur (my sister — feminine); bleu describes une voiture (a car — feminine).
2. Step 2
  Apply feminine agreement. A feminine singular adjective adds -e: content → contente, bleu → bleue.
3. Step 3
  Check there is no plural. Both nouns are singular, so no extra -s is needed — just the feminine -e on each.
Answer
Ma sœur est contente et elle a une voiture bleue. Both adjectives take -e because sœur and voiture are feminine.
Examiner tip
Adjective agreement is the number-one written A* killer in Cambridge 0520 examiner reports. After every adjective, ask: what noun does this describe, and is it feminine or plural? — then add the ending.
2Spot and fix the avoir/être auxiliary error
Building confidence
Question
Find and correct the error: Hier, je suis mangé une pizza et après je ai allé au cinéma. (Yesterday I ate a pizza and then I went to the cinema.)
Step-by-step solution
1. Step 1
  Identify the two verbs. manger (to eat) and aller (to go), both in the passé composé (the completed past).
2. Step 2
  manger takes avoir. Most verbs form the past with avoir, so it must be j'ai mangé (I ate), not je suis mangé.
3. Step 3
  aller takes être. aller is a verb of motion on the Mrs Vandertramp list, so it must be je suis allé (I went), not j'ai allé.
4. Step 4
  The auxiliaries were swapped. Switch them back: avoir for manger, être for aller.
Answer
Hier, j'ai mangé une pizza et après je suis allé(e) au cinéma. (manger → avoir; aller → être.)
Examiner tip
Choosing the wrong auxiliary is a top-end accuracy slip. Memorise the small Mrs Vandertramp set of être verbs (aller, venir, arriver, partir, monter, descendre, entrer, sortir, naître, mourir, rester, tomber, retourner + reflexives); every other common verb takes avoir.
3Spot and fix the past-participle agreement error
Building confidence
Question
Find and correct the error: Mes deux sœurs sont allé à Paris et elles sont rentré tard. (My two sisters went to Paris and they came back late.)
Step-by-step solution
1. Step 1
  Spot the auxiliary. Both verbs use être (sont), so their past participles must agree with the subject.
2. Step 2
  Identify the subject. mes deux sœurs (my two sisters) is feminine plural — so add -e (feminine) and -s (plural): -es.
3. Step 3
  Apply the ending. allé → allées; rentré → rentrées (both add -es).
Answer
Mes deux sœurs sont allées à Paris et elles sont rentrées tard. être past participles agree with the subject, so feminine plural takes -es.
Examiner tip
Agreement of the past participle with être is exactly the kind of detail that separates A* from B. Do the same subject-check after every être verb that you do after every adjective.
4Spot and fix the false friend and franglais
Stretch
Question
Find and correct the errors: J'ai passé mon examen — je suis très sensible et j'ai travaillé beaucoup en France l'été dernier. The student means: 'I passed my exam — I'm very sensible — and I travelled a lot in France last summer.'
Step-by-step solution
1. Step 1
  passer un examen is a faux ami. It means to sit/take an exam, not to pass it. To pass an exam is réussir: j'ai réussi mon examen.
2. Step 2
  sensible is a faux ami. It means sensitive, not 'sensible'. For 'sensible/level-headed' use raisonnable: je suis très raisonnable.
3. Step 3
  travailler is franglais here. It looks like 'travel' but means to work. 'To travel' is voyager: j'ai beaucoup voyagé en France.
4. Step 4
  Rebuild the sentence with the true meanings the student intended.
Answer
J'ai réussi mon examen — je suis très raisonnable — et j'ai beaucoup voyagé en France l'été dernier. (passer → réussir; sensible → raisonnable; travailler → voyager.)
Examiner tip
Word-for-word translation walks straight into false friends. Examiner reports note that sensible (= sensitive), passer un examen (= to sit it) and librairie (= bookshop) are among the most common faux-ami errors. Check a look-alike word's real meaning before you use it.
5Spot and fix the meaning-accent and tu/vous slip
Stretch
Question
In the Speaking test you address the examiner. Find and correct the errors: Monsieur, ou est-ce que tu habites ? A mon avis, c'est une belle ville. (Sir, where do you live? In my opinion, it's a beautiful town.)
Step-by-step solution
1. Step 1
  ou → où. Without the accent grave, ou means 'or'; with it, où means 'where'. The accent changes the meaning, so it is compulsory.
2. Step 2
  tu → vous. You are speaking to the examiner, an adult you do not know, so the polite vous register is required: où est-ce que vous habitez ?
3. Step 3
  Match the verb to vous. The verb ending changes: tu habites → vous habitez.
4. Step 4
  A → À. à (to/at/in) needs the accent grave to separate it from a (has, from avoir): À mon avis (in my opinion).
Answer
Monsieur, où est-ce que vous habitez ? À mon avis, c'est une belle ville. (ou → où; tu habites → vous habitez; A → À.)
Examiner tip
Meaning-accents (à/a, où/ou, sûr/sur) must be written, and register matters: use vous with the examiner throughout Paper 3. Slipping into tu with an adult stranger is a register error examiners notice.

Model Answers — Common A* pitfalls

High-scoring sample answers for common a* pitfalls on the Cambridge IGCSE 0520 paper, with examiner-style notes mapping each response to the mark scheme and assessment objectives.

Question 1
Paper 4 (Writing) style. A candidate drafted: L'année dernier, je suis allé en Espagne avec ma famille. C'était très bien et la plage était beau. Ma mère est content. Rewrite it as a corrected, top-band version and gloss it in English.
Model answer
Corrected: L'année dernière, je suis allé en Espagne avec ma famille. C'était très bien et la plage était belle. Ma mère était contente.

(Last year, I went to Spain with my family. It was very good and the beach was beautiful. My mother was happy.)
Why this scores
Why this scores. dernière agrees with the feminine année; belle is the feminine of beau agreeing with la plage; contente agrees with ma mère; and est becomes était (imperfect) so the description sits correctly in the past. The vocabulary did not change — only the accuracy and tense control that the top band rewards.
Question 2
Paper 4 (Writing) style. Improve this flat, present-only sentence to a top-band answer with agreement, a stretched tense and a justified opinion: J'aime le sport. Je joue au tennis. C'est bien.
Model answer
Top-band: J'aime beaucoup le sport. Le week-end dernier, j'ai joué au tennis avec ma sœur, et c'était génial parce que j'adore la compétition.

(I really like sport. Last weekend, I played tennis with my sister, and it was great because I love competition.)
Why this scores
Why this scores. It keeps the avoir past (j'ai joué), adds the imperfect (c'était), and — crucially — justifies the opinion with parce que (because). Range plus a reasoned opinion lifts an accurate but flat answer from mid-band to the top.
Question 3
Paper 3 (Speaking) style. The examiner asks about your town. Give a model reply that uses the correct register and avoids the classic accent and agreement slips.
Model answer
À mon avis, ma ville est très intéressante et les gens sont sympathiques. Et vous, où est-ce que vous habitez ?

(In my opinion, my town is very interesting and the people are friendly. And you, where do you live?)
Why this scores
Why this scores. À and où carry their accents; intéressante agrees with the feminine ville; sympathiques agrees with the plural les gens; and the candidate uses vous (not tu) with the examiner, then extends the turn with a question to keep the conversation going.

Key Definitions and Keywords — Common A* pitfalls

Definitions to memorise and the exact keywords mark schemes credit for common a* pitfalls answers — sharpened from recent examiner reports for the 2026 0520 sitting.

Accord (agreement)
Examiner keyword
Making a word match another in gender (masculine/feminine) and number (singular/plural). Adjectives and être past participles must agree.
Example
une voiture bleue (a blue car — feminine -e); elles sont allées (they went — feminine plural -es).
Participe passé (past participle)
Examiner keyword
The verb form used after an auxiliary (avoir/être) to make the passé composé. With être it agrees with the subject.
Example
mangé (eaten), allé (gone). Elle est allée — she went (extra -e).
Auxiliaire (auxiliary verb)
Examiner keyword
The helper verb (avoir or être) used to build the passé composé. Most verbs take avoir; motion/change verbs and reflexives take être.
Example
j'ai mangé (I ate — avoir) vs je suis allé (I went — être).
Faux ami (false friend)
Examiner keyword
A French word that looks like an English word but means something different. A trap for word-for-word translators.
Example
sensible = sensitive (not sensible); librairie = bookshop (not library).
Registre : tu / vous (register)
Examiner keyword
The level of formality. tu is informal (friends, family, children); vous is polite/formal or plural — used with adults you don't know, including the examiner.
Example
Tu habites où ? (to a friend) vs Où habitez-vous ? (to the examiner).
Genre (gender)
Every French noun is masculine (le) or feminine (la). The gender controls articles and adjective agreement, so it must be learned with the noun.
Example
le problème (m.) is masculine despite the -e; la photo (f.) is feminine despite the -o.
Accent grave (meaning-accent)
Examiner keyword
On a and u the grave accent does not change the sound but separates look-alike words, so it carries meaning and is compulsory.
Example
à (to/at) vs a (has); où (where) vs ou (or); sûr (sure) vs sur (on).
Franglais / calque
An English word or word-order borrowed into French where it doesn't belong, producing un-French sentences examiners notice.
Example
travailler means 'to work', not 'to travel' (= voyager); avoid copying English structures word-for-word.
Passé composé
The most common French past tense for completed actions, built from an auxiliary (avoir/être) + past participle.
Example
J'ai fini (I finished); Nous sommes partis (we left).
Connecteur (connective)
A linking word that joins ideas and justifies opinions, lifting an answer's range above short, present-only sentences.
Example
parce que (because), mais (but), donc (so), d'abord ... ensuite ... enfin (first ... then ... finally).

Common Mistakes and Misconceptions — Common A* pitfalls

The traps other students keep falling into on common a* pitfalls questions — taken from recent Cambridge IGCSE 0520 examiner reports and mark schemes — and how to avoid them.

✕Leaving an adjective masculine when the noun is feminine or plural (elle est content)
Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports — Paper 4 (Writing), accuracy
Why it happens
English adjectives never change form, so beginners forget French adjectives must match the noun.
How to avoid it
After every adjective, ask: which noun does it describe, and is that noun feminine or plural? Add -e (feminine), -s (plural) or -es (both): elle est contente, des voitures bleues.
✕Using the wrong auxiliary in the passé composé (j'ai allé, je suis mangé)
Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports — Paper 4 (Writing)
Why it happens
Learners apply one auxiliary to every verb instead of remembering the small être set.
How to avoid it
Memorise the Mrs Vandertramp motion/change verbs (+ all reflexives) that take être; everything else takes avoir. So je suis allé (être) but j'ai mangé (avoir).
✕Not agreeing the être past participle with the subject (elles sont allé)
Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports — Paper 4 (Writing)
Why it happens
Even students who choose être correctly forget that its participle then behaves like an adjective.
How to avoid it
After any être past participle, check the subject's gender and number and add the same -e/-s/-es endings: elle est allée, elles sont allées.
✕Falling for false friends and franglais (sensible, passer un examen, travailler for travel)
Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports — Papers 2 & 4
Why it happens
Translating word-for-word from English and trusting that look-alike words share a meaning.
How to avoid it
Treat any English-looking word with suspicion. Learn the high-frequency traps as pairs: sensible = sensitive, réussir = to pass an exam, voyager = to travel, librairie = bookshop.
✕Dropping meaning-accents that change the word (a for à, ou for où, sur for sûr)
Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports — Paper 4 (Writing), accuracy
Why it happens
English has no accents, so beginners treat them as optional decoration rather than spelling.
How to avoid it
Treat an accent as part of the spelling. Learn the meaning-pairs by heart (à/a, où/ou, sûr/sur, dû/du) and proof-read for them in every written answer.
✕Slipping into tu with the examiner or an adult stranger instead of vous
Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports — Paper 3 (Speaking)
Why it happens
tu is the form learners practise most with classmates, so it comes out automatically.
How to avoid it
Default to vous with the examiner throughout Paper 3 and match the verb ending (vous habitez, not tu habites). Reserve tu for friends, family and children.

Common A* pitfalls

Detailed Study Notes

At a glance

What you’ll learn

Quick recap

Memorise this

How it’s examined

Take this whole topic with you

1Spot and fix the adjective agreement error

2Spot and fix the avoir/être auxiliary error

3Spot and fix the past-participle agreement error

4Spot and fix the false friend and franglais

5Spot and fix the meaning-accent and tu/vous slip

Accord (agreement)

Participe passé (past participle)

Auxiliaire (auxiliary verb)

Faux ami (false friend)

Registre : tu / vous (register)

Genre (gender)

Accent grave (meaning-accent)

Franglais / calque

Passé composé

Connecteur (connective)

✕Leaving an adjective masculine when the noun is feminine or plural (elle est content)

✕Using the wrong auxiliary in the passé composé (j'ai allé, je suis mangé)

✕Not agreeing the être past participle with the subject (elles sont allé)

✕Falling for false friends and franglais (sensible, passer un examen, travailler for travel)

✕Dropping meaning-accents that change the word (a for à, ou for où, sur for sûr)

✕Slipping into tu with the examiner or an adult stranger instead of vous