Why is "Using être (il est chaud / c'est chaud) instead of faire for the weather" a common mistake in Weather and climate?

Why it happens: In English we say 'it IS hot', so beginners reach for the verb 'to be'. How to avoid it: Learn the chunk **il fait** for weather: *il fait chaud / froid / beau*. Reserve *il est* for a thing (a hot drink). For the weather, faire is the rule. Source: Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports — Papers 3 & 4

Why is "Writing 'il fait pleut' or 'il fait neige'" a common mistake in Weather and climate?

Why it happens: Learners assume every weather phrase starts with *il fait*. How to avoid it: *Pleut* and *neige* are complete verbs. Say **il pleut** and **il neige** with nothing in front. Use *il fait* only before an adjective. Source: Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports — Paper 4 (Writing)

Why is "Saying 'en printemps' instead of 'au printemps'" a common mistake in Weather and climate?

Why it happens: Three of the four seasons take *en*, so learners apply *en* to all of them. How to avoid it: Memorise the exception: **au printemps**, but **en été / en automne / en hiver**. A quick rhyme keeps spring separate: 'au printemps'. Source: Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports — Paper 3 (Speaking)

Why is "Missing 'moins' and getting temperatures the wrong way round in Listening" a common mistake in Weather and climate?

Why it happens: *Moins* is short and easy to miss at speed, but it flips a temperature to negative. How to avoid it: Listen for *moins* first — it signals a below-zero temperature (*il fait moins cinq* = −5). Cross-check with a feeling word like *il fait froid* or *il neige*. Source: Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports — Paper 1 (Listening)

Why is "Describing the weather but giving no opinion or reason" a common mistake in Weather and climate?

Why it happens: Beginners stop at the safe sentence *il fait beau* and don't develop it. How to avoid it: Add *j'aime / je n'aime pas* and a reason with *parce que*: *J'aime l'été parce qu'il fait chaud.* Opinions with reasons are easy communication marks. Source: Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports — Papers 3 & 4

Why is "Dropping accents and apostrophes (ete for été, parce quil for parce qu'il)" a common mistake in Weather and climate?

Why it happens: English has no accents, so they're treated as optional. How to avoid it: Spell high-frequency words by heart: *l'été*, *la météo*, *les degrés*, *préférée*, and the elision *parce qu'il*. Accents are part of the spelling and are marked in Writing. Source: Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports — Paper 4 (Writing), accuracy

Topic Area 3 - The World Around UsCambridge IGCSE French (0520)

Weather and climate

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Weather and climate in French — vocabulary, the verb faire and the forecast — Cambridge IGCSE French 0520 (2025-2027)

Learn to describe the weather, talk about the seasons and give a simple forecast in French, using the special verb faire (to do/make). Master the vocabulary and sentence frames that come up in every Listening, Reading, Speaking and Writing paper.

At a glance

French describes most weather with the verb faire (to do/make): il fait beau (the weather is nice), literally 'it makes nice'.
Il fait + adjective covers temperature and general weather: il fait chaud (it's hot), il fait froid (it's cold), il fait beau (it's fine), il fait mauvais (the weather is bad).
Some weather uses its own verb: il pleut (it's raining, from pleuvoir) and il neige (it's snowing, from neiger).
Other weather uses il y a (there is): il y a du vent (it's windy), il y a du soleil (it's sunny), il y a des nuages (it's cloudy).
The four seasons are le printemps (spring), l'été (summer), l'automne (autumn) and l'hiver (winter) — say en été, en automne, en hiver but au printemps (in spring).
Temperatures use degrees: il fait vingt degrés (it's 20 degrees); below zero is moins cinq (minus five).
Add time and opinion to lift your mark: aujourd'hui (today), demain (tomorrow), and j'aime (I like) / je n'aime pas (I don't like) the weather, with a reason after parce que (because).
Watch the spelling: it is il fait (one t, silent), and weather is le temps (also means 'time') — Quel temps fait-il ? (What's the weather like?).

What you’ll learn

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

Ask and answer the question Quel temps fait-il ? (What's the weather like?).
Describe present weather using il fait + adjective, il pleut / il neige, and il y a + noun.
Name the four seasons and use the correct preposition (en été, au printemps).
State the temperature in degrees, including below zero.
Talk about weather in different places and at different times (today, tomorrow, in winter).
Give a short weather forecast (la météo) for tomorrow.
Express an opinion about the weather and justify it with parce que (because).

The key question and the verb faire

French describes the weather with the verb faire — il fait beau means 'the weather is nice'.

The single most useful sentence in this topic is the question Quel temps fait-il ? (kel ton feh-TEEL) — What's the weather like? Notice that the word le temps (luh TON) means both the weather and time, so context tells you which one is meant.

The surprise for English speakers is the verb. We say "it is hot" with the verb 'to be', but French uses the verb faire (to do/make): il fait chaud (eel feh SHOH) — literally "it makes hot", meaning it's hot. You do not translate word-for-word; you simply learn il fait as the weather phrase.

il fait is the il (it) form of faire in the present tense. The final t of fait is silent, so it sounds like feh.

French	Pronunciation	English
Quel temps fait-il ?	kel ton feh-TEEL	What's the weather like?
Il fait beau.	eel feh BOH	The weather is nice/fine.
Il fait mauvais.	eel feh moh-VEH	The weather is bad.
Il fait chaud.	eel feh SHOH	It's hot.
Il fait froid.	eel feh FRWA	It's cold.
Il fait du soleil.	eel feh du so-LAY	It's sunny.
Il fait du vent.	eel feh du VON	It's windy.

Worked mini-example. To answer Quel temps fait-il aujourd'hui ? (What's the weather like today?) on a warm, bright day you say: Aujourd'hui, il fait beau et il fait chaud. (oh-zhoor-DWEE, eel feh BOH ay eel feh SHOH) — Today, it's fine and it's hot. One question, two pieces of weather, joined by et (ay — and).

Quel temps fait-il ? = What's the weather like? (le temps = weather and time).
French uses faire for weather: il fait beau literally 'it makes nice'.
il fait is fixed — learn it as a chunk; the final t is silent (feh).
Join two weather phrases with et (and): il fait beau et chaud.

Three weather patterns: il fait, il pleut/neige, il y a

Weather splits into three grammar boxes — il fait + adjective, the special verbs il pleut/il neige, and il y a + noun.

French weather looks confusing until you sort every phrase into three boxes. Once you know which box a word belongs to, you build the sentence correctly every time.

Sort every weather phrase into one of three boxes: il fait + adjective, the special verbs il pleut/il neige, or il y a + noun.

Box 1 — il fait + adjective. Use this for general weather and temperature.

French	Pronunciation	English
il fait beau	eel feh BOH	it's nice/fine
il fait mauvais	eel feh moh-VEH	the weather is bad
il fait chaud	eel feh SHOH	it's hot
il fait froid	eel feh FRWA	it's cold
il fait frais	eel feh FREH	it's cool/chilly
il fait doux	eel feh DOO	it's mild

Box 2 — special one-word verbs. Two very common weathers have their own verb, so you do not add anything.

French	Pronunciation	English	From the verb
il pleut	eel PLUH	it's raining	pleuvoir (to rain)
il neige	eel NEZH	it's snowing	neiger (to snow)

Box 3 — il y a + noun. Use il y a (eel-ya — there is/are) before a thing: the wind, the sun, clouds.

French	Pronunciation	English
il y a du vent	eel-ya du VON	it's windy (there is wind)
il y a du soleil	eel-ya du so-LAY	it's sunny (there is sun)
il y a des nuages	eel-ya day nü-AZH	it's cloudy (there are clouds)
il y a du brouillard	eel-ya du broo-YAR	it's foggy (there is fog)
il y a un orage	eel-ya uhn o-RAZH	there's a storm

Note: du soleil and du vent can also appear as il fait du soleil / il fait du vent — both are correct and common. Just don't mix patterns within one phrase.

Worked mini-example. Describe a stormy autumn day: Il fait mauvais, il pleut et il y a du vent. (eel feh moh-VEH, eel PLUH ay eel-ya du VON) — The weather is bad, it's raining and it's windy. One sentence pulls a phrase from each box.

Box 1: il fait + adjective (beau, mauvais, chaud, froid, frais, doux).
Box 2: special verbs il pleut (raining), il neige (snowing) — nothing extra needed.
Box 3: il y a + noun (du vent, du soleil, des nuages, du brouillard).
Don't mix boxes: it's il pleut (not il fait pleut).

Temperature and degrees

Use il fait + number + degrés for temperature, and moins for below zero.

To give an exact temperature, use il fait + the number + degrés (day-GRAY — degrees).

French	Pronunciation	English
Il fait vingt degrés.	eel feh van day-GRAY	It's 20 degrees.
Il fait trente degrés.	eel feh tront day-GRAY	It's 30 degrees.
Il fait dix degrés.	eel feh dee day-GRAY	It's 10 degrees.
Il fait zéro degré.	eel feh zay-RO day-GRAY	It's zero degrees.
Il fait moins cinq.	eel feh mwan SANK	It's minus five (−5).

For temperatures below zero, put moins (mwan — minus/less) before the number: moins cinq (−5), moins dix (−10).

You can combine a temperature with a description: Il fait froid : il fait moins deux degrés. (It's cold: it's minus two degrees.) The colon (or the word et) links the general comment to the exact figure.

Worked mini-example. A Listening clip says "À Paris, il fait trois degrés et il y a du vent." Decode it: in Paris it's 3 degrees and windy — so the answer to "Is it warm in Paris?" is non (no). Always pair the number with the feeling word (chaud/froid) to check your understanding.

Temperature = il fait + number + degrés: il fait vingt degrés (20°).
Below zero uses moins: il fait moins cinq (−5).
degré is singular for one degree (un degré), degrés for the rest.
Combine feeling + figure: il fait froid, il fait moins deux degrés.

Seasons and the right preposition

The four seasons take 'en' — except spring, which takes 'au'.

The four seasons. Three take 'en', but spring is the odd one out and takes 'au printemps'.

The four seasons — les saisons (lay seh-ZON) — are all masculine:

French	Pronunciation	English	"in this season"
le printemps	luh pran-TON	spring	au printemps
l'été (m)	lay-TAY	summer	en été
l'automne (m)	lo-TON	autumn	en automne
l'hiver (m)	lee-VAIR	winter	en hiver

The rule to memorise: three seasons take en, but spring is special and takes au. A quick rhyme to remember the exception: "au printemps, en hiver" — only spring is au.

You can now talk about typical weather by season:

En hiver, il fait froid et il neige. (In winter, it's cold and it snows.)
En été, il fait chaud et il fait du soleil. (In summer, it's hot and sunny.)
Au printemps, il pleut souvent. (In spring, it often rains.)
En automne, il y a du vent et des nuages. (In autumn, it's windy and cloudy.)

Worked mini-example. Build a full sentence about your favourite season: Ma saison préférée est l'été parce qu'il fait chaud. (My favourite season is summer because it's hot.) Note préférée agrees (feminine, because saison is feminine) and parce qu' drops the e before the vowel.

Seasons: le printemps, l'été, l'automne, l'hiver — all masculine.
en été / en automne / en hiver, but au printemps.
Pair a season with its typical weather: en hiver, il neige.
Ma saison préférée est… (My favourite season is…) is a high-value Speaking phrase.

Giving a forecast (la météo) and using time

Add time words and the near future to turn a description into a forecast.

A weather forecast is la météo (la may-tay-OH). To talk about when the weather happens, add a time expression — usually at the start of the sentence.

French	Pronunciation	English
aujourd'hui	oh-zhoor-DWEE	today
demain	duh-MAN	tomorrow
ce matin	suh ma-TAN	this morning
cet après-midi	set a-preh-mee-DEE	this afternoon
ce soir	suh SWAR	this evening/tonight
souvent	soo-VON	often
toujours	too-ZHOOR	always

Talking about tomorrow — the near future. The simplest, safest way to give a forecast is to keep using the present tense with demain:

Demain, il fait beau. (Tomorrow, it's fine.)

To sound more like a real forecast you can use va (is going to) with weather that has its own verb:

Demain, il va pleuvoir. (duh-MAN, eel va pluh-VWAR) — Tomorrow, it's going to rain.
Demain, il va neiger. (Tomorrow, it's going to snow.)
Demain, il va faire chaud. (Tomorrow, it's going to be hot.)

This is the near future: il va + the infinitive (pleuvoir, neiger, faire). At Standard level, examiners love to see one or two near-future weather sentences in a Speaking or Writing task.

A model mini-forecast. Putting it together for two days:

Aujourd'hui, il fait beau et il fait vingt degrés. Mais demain, il va pleuvoir et il va faire froid. (Today, it's fine and 20 degrees. But tomorrow, it's going to rain and it's going to be cold.)

The little word mais (meh — but) signals a change in the weather, which is exactly what a forecast does. Other useful connectors: et (and), alors (so), parce que (because).

Forecast = la météo; put the time word first: Demain, il fait beau.
Near future: il va + infinitive — il va pleuvoir, il va neiger, il va faire chaud.
mais (but) signals a change between today and tomorrow.
Time words to learn: aujourd'hui, demain, ce matin, ce soir, souvent.

Opinions, reasons and the regions of France

Say whether you like the weather and why, and describe weather across France.

Examiners reward opinions with reasons. Don't just describe the weather — say how you feel about it.

Opinion phrases:

French	Pronunciation	English
J'aime…	zhem	I like…
Je n'aime pas…	zhuh nem PA	I don't like…
Je préfère…	zhuh pray-FAIR	I prefer…
J'adore le soleil.	zha-DOR luh so-LAY	I love the sun.
Je déteste la pluie.	zhuh day-TEST la PLWEE	I hate the rain.

Then justify with parce que (par-suh-kuh — because):

J'aime l'été parce qu'il fait chaud. (I like summer because it's hot.)
Je n'aime pas l'hiver parce qu'il fait froid et il neige. (I don't like winter because it's cold and it snows.)
Je préfère le printemps parce qu'il ne fait pas trop chaud. (I prefer spring because it's not too hot.)

Notice parce que becomes parce qu' before the vowel of il (elision).

Weather around France and the world. Use à (in/at) before a town and dans le sud / le nord (in the south/north):

French	English
à Paris	in Paris
dans le sud de la France	in the south of France
dans le nord	in the north
à la montagne	in the mountains
au bord de la mer	at the seaside

Worked mini-example. A full, mark-worthy answer to Quel temps fait-il chez toi ? (What's the weather like where you live?):

Aujourd'hui, dans le sud, il fait beau et il fait vingt-cinq degrés. J'adore ça parce que j'aime le soleil ! (Today, in the south, it's fine and 25 degrees. I love it because I like the sun!)

You have now combined time + place + weather + temperature + opinion + reason — that is exactly the range a top answer shows.

Give an opinion: j'aime / je n'aime pas / je préfère / j'adore / je déteste.
Justify it with parce que (→ parce qu' before a vowel).
Place words: à Paris, dans le sud/nord, à la montagne, au bord de la mer.
A top answer combines time + place + weather + temperature + opinion + reason.

Memorise this

Verbatim phrases and definitions Cambridge mark schemes credit.

Quel temps fait-il ? (kel ton feh-TEEL) — What's the weather like?
Il fait beau / mauvais / chaud / froid / frais / doux — it's nice / bad / hot / cold / cool / mild.
Il pleut (eel PLUH) — it's raining; Il neige (eel NEZH) — it's snowing.
Il y a du vent / du soleil / des nuages / du brouillard — it's windy / sunny / cloudy / foggy.
Il fait vingt degrés — it's 20 degrees; il fait moins cinq — it's minus 5.
Les saisons: le printemps, l'été, l'automne, l'hiver — spring, summer, autumn, winter.
au printemps, en été, en automne, en hiver — in spring/summer/autumn/winter.
la météo (la may-tay-OH) — the (weather) forecast.
Demain, il va pleuvoir / il va faire chaud — Tomorrow it's going to rain / be hot.
J'aime l'été parce qu'il fait chaud — I like summer because it's hot.
aujourd'hui (today), demain (tomorrow), ce matin (this morning), ce soir (this evening).

How it’s examined

Weather is a high-frequency theme that appears across all four papers of Cambridge IGCSE French 0520.

Paper 1 (Listening): Forecasts (la météo) are common. You must catch the weather and the place/time/temperature — e.g. distinguishing il fait chaud from il fait froid, hearing moins for negative temperatures, and not confusing demain (tomorrow) with aujourd'hui (today). Number traps (deux/douze) are deliberate.
Paper 2 (Reading): Weather appears in postcards, blogs and forecasts. Recognise the three patterns (il fait / il pleut / il y a) and seasonal vocabulary, and match weather to the right day or region in matching tasks.
Paper 3 (Speaking): You may be asked Quel temps fait-il aujourd'hui ? or to describe the weather in your country by season. Combine description + opinion + reason, and try one near-future sentence (demain il va pleuvoir).
Paper 4 (Writing): Describing the weather and seasons supports tasks on holidays, daily life and your region. Spelling counts: il fait (not il fais), the accents in l'été and préférée, and the apostrophe in parce qu'il.

Examiner reports note that candidates lose marks by using être instead of faire for weather, by writing il fait pleut, and by forgetting the au/en season rule.

Sources: Cambridge IGCSE French 0520 Syllabus 2025-2027; Cambridge 0520 Paper 1 (Listening) & Paper 2 (Reading) Specimen 2025-2027; Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports 2022-2024. Last reviewed 2026-06-02.

Master this Topic

Worked examples, formulae, definitions and the mistakes examiners flag — everything you need to push from a pass to an A*.

Take this whole topic with you

Download a branded revision sheet — worked examples, formulae, definitions and common mistakes for Weather and climate, ready to print or save as PDF.

Step-by-step worked examples — Weather and climate

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

1Answer 'Quel temps fait-il ?' for a sunny day
Getting started
Question
The examiner asks Quel temps fait-il aujourd'hui ? (What's the weather like today?). It is a bright, warm day. Give a correct two-part answer in French.
Step-by-step solution
1. Step 1
  Choose the right verb. Weather uses faire, not être. The 'it' form is il fait (eel feh) — the final t is silent.
2. Step 2
  Pick the adjectives. 'Bright/fine' = beau; 'warm/hot' = chaud. Both go in the il fait + adjective box.
3. Step 3
  Join them with et (and) and start with the time word aujourd'hui (today) for a fuller answer.
Answer
Aujourd'hui, il fait beau et il fait chaud. (Today, the weather is fine and it's hot.)
Examiner tip
Using faire (not être or c'est) for the weather is the single most-tested point here. Starting with a time word (aujourd'hui) and joining two ideas with et turns a one-word reply into a fuller, mark-worthy sentence.
2Choose the correct weather pattern (il fait / il pleut / il y a)
Getting started
Question
Translate into French: (a) it's raining; (b) it's windy; (c) it's cold. Choose the right pattern for each.
Step-by-step solution
1. Step 1
  (a) 'it's raining' uses the special one-word verb: il pleut — do NOT add il fait.
2. Step 2
  (b) 'it's windy' = 'there is wind'. Wind is a noun (le vent), so use il y a du vent.
3. Step 3
  (c) 'it's cold' uses an adjective (froid), so use il fait froid.
Answer
(a) il pleut · (b) il y a du vent · (c) il fait froid.
Examiner tip
The trap is writing il fait pleut. Pleut and neige are complete verbs and stand alone. Adjectives (froid, chaud, beau) take il fait; nouns (vent, soleil, nuages) take il y a.
3Describe the weather in two seasons with the right preposition
Building confidence
Question
Complete in French: 'In winter it's cold and it snows. In spring it often rains.' Be careful with the season prepositions.
Step-by-step solution
1. Step 1
  'In winter' = en hiver. Winter takes en. 'It's cold' = il fait froid; 'it snows' = il neige (special verb).
2. Step 2
  'In spring' is the exception — spring takes au, so it's au printemps (not en printemps).
3. Step 3
  'It often rains' = il pleut souvent. The adverb souvent (often) comes after the verb.
Answer
En hiver, il fait froid et il neige. Au printemps, il pleut souvent.
Examiner tip
Three seasons use en (en été, en automne, en hiver) but spring is au printemps. Examiner reports list en printemps as a recurring slip. Note also il neige / il pleut stand alone with no il fait.
4Decode a temperature from a listening transcript
Building confidence
Question
A forecast says: « À Lyon, il fait moins trois degrés et il neige. » Is it warm or cold in Lyon, and what is the temperature? Answer in English.
Step-by-step solution
1. Step 1
  Spot moins. Moins (mwan) means 'minus/less', so the temperature is negative: −3°C, not +3°C.
2. Step 2
  Read the second clue. Il neige means 'it's snowing', which confirms it is cold, not warm.
3. Step 3
  Combine the clues. Minus three degrees plus snow = clearly cold weather in Lyon.
Answer
It is cold in Lyon: −3°C (minus three degrees) and it's snowing.
Examiner tip
Listening for moins is essential — it flips a temperature from positive to negative and changes the whole answer. Always cross-check the number against a feeling word (il neige, il fait froid) to confirm you heard it correctly.
5Write a two-day forecast with opinion and reason
Stretch
Question
Write a short forecast: today it's fine and 22 degrees; tomorrow it's going to rain. Add which day you prefer and why.
Step-by-step solution
1. Step 1
  Today (present tense). Aujourd'hui, il fait beau et il fait vingt-deux degrés. Start with the time word.
2. Step 2
  Tomorrow (near future). Use il va + infinitive: Demain, il va pleuvoir. Signal the change with mais (but).
3. Step 3
  Opinion + reason. Je préfère aujourd'hui parce que j'aime le soleil. Justify with parce que (→ parce que j'aime).
Answer
Aujourd'hui, il fait beau et il fait vingt-deux degrés. Mais demain, il va pleuvoir. Je préfère aujourd'hui parce que j'aime le soleil. (Today it's fine and 22 degrees. But tomorrow it's going to rain. I prefer today because I like the sun.)
Examiner tip
This answer earns top marks by mixing tenses (present + near future il va pleuvoir), using a contrast connector (mais), and adding an opinion justified with parce que. Even one accurate near-future weather phrase lifts a candidate above a present-only description.

Model Answers — Weather and climate

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

Question 1
Paper 3 (Speaking) style. Quel temps fait-il aujourd'hui chez toi ? (What's the weather like where you live today?)
Model answer
Aujourd'hui, il fait beau et il fait du soleil. (Today, it's fine and sunny.) Il fait environ vingt degrés. (It's about 20 degrees.) J'aime ça parce que j'adore le soleil ! (I like that because I love the sun!)
Why this scores
Why this scores. It uses faire correctly, combines two weather phrases, adds a temperature, and finishes with an opinion + reason (parce que). The phrase environ (about) shows extra range. A complete, natural answer rather than a single fact.
Question 2
Paper 4 (Writing) style. Describe your favourite season and say why (about two sentences).
Model answer
Ma saison préférée est l'été parce qu'il fait chaud et il y a du soleil. (My favourite season is summer because it's hot and sunny.)

Je n'aime pas l'hiver parce qu'il fait froid et il neige souvent. (I don't like winter because it's cold and it often snows.)
Why this scores
Why this scores. It gives a clear opinion with two justified reasons, contrasts a liked and disliked season, and spells the accents correctly (l'été, préférée with feminine agreement after saison). The elision in parce qu'il must be written with the apostrophe.
Question 3
Paper 3 (Speaking) style. Give a short weather forecast (la météo) for tomorrow, mentioning two different regions.
Model answer
Demain, dans le nord, il va pleuvoir et il va faire froid. (Tomorrow, in the north, it's going to rain and be cold.)

Par contre, dans le sud, il va faire beau et chaud. (On the other hand, in the south, it's going to be fine and hot.)
Why this scores
Why this scores. It uses the near future (il va pleuvoir, il va faire), names two regions (le nord, le sud) and links them with the contrast connector par contre (on the other hand). Handling place + future + contrast is exactly the range a forecast task rewards.

Key Definitions and Keywords — Weather and climate

Definitions to memorise and the exact keywords mark schemes credit for weather and climate answers — sharpened from recent examiner reports for the 2026 0520 sitting.

Quel temps fait-il ?
Examiner keyword
The standard question 'What's the weather like?'. Note le temps means both 'weather' and 'time'.
Example
— Quel temps fait-il ? — Il fait beau. (What's the weather like? — It's fine.)
il fait (+ adjectif)
Examiner keyword
The weather form of the verb faire (to do/make). Used with adjectives for general weather and temperature; literally 'it makes'.
Example
il fait beau (it's nice), il fait chaud (it's hot), il fait froid (it's cold).
il pleut
Examiner keyword
'It's raining' — the il form of the verb pleuvoir (to rain). A complete verb: never add il fait.
Example
Il pleut à Londres. (It's raining in London.)
il neige
Examiner keyword
'It's snowing' — the il form of the verb neiger (to snow). Like il pleut, it stands alone.
Example
En hiver, il neige souvent. (In winter, it often snows.)
il y a (+ nom)
Examiner keyword
'There is / there are' — used before a weather noun such as wind, sun or clouds.
Example
il y a du vent (it's windy), il y a des nuages (it's cloudy).
les degrés / moins
Examiner keyword
Degrees of temperature, given with il fait + number + degrés. Moins (minus) marks temperatures below zero.
Example
Il fait vingt degrés. (20°) · Il fait moins cinq. (−5)
les saisons
Examiner keyword
The four (masculine) seasons. Three take en, but spring takes au.
Example
le printemps (au printemps), l'été (en été), l'automne (en automne), l'hiver (en hiver).
la météo
The weather forecast — the word you'll hear introducing a Listening forecast clip.
Example
Voici la météo pour demain. (Here's the forecast for tomorrow.)
il va (+ infinitif)
Examiner keyword
The near future: 'it's going to…'. Used for forecasts with pleuvoir, neiger or faire.
Example
Demain, il va pleuvoir. (Tomorrow it's going to rain.) Il va faire chaud. (It's going to be hot.)
parce que
Examiner keyword
'Because' — the connector that justifies an opinion. Becomes parce qu' before a vowel (elision).
Example
J'aime l'été parce qu'il fait chaud. (I like summer because it's hot.)

Common Mistakes and Misconceptions — Weather and climate

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

✕Using être (il est chaud / c'est chaud) instead of faire for the weather
Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports — Papers 3 & 4
Why it happens
In English we say 'it IS hot', so beginners reach for the verb 'to be'.
How to avoid it
Learn the chunk il fait for weather: il fait chaud / froid / beau. Reserve il est for a thing (a hot drink). For the weather, faire is the rule.
✕Writing 'il fait pleut' or 'il fait neige'
Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports — Paper 4 (Writing)
Why it happens
Learners assume every weather phrase starts with il fait.
How to avoid it
Pleut and neige are complete verbs. Say il pleut and il neige with nothing in front. Use il fait only before an adjective.
✕Saying 'en printemps' instead of 'au printemps'
Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports — Paper 3 (Speaking)
Why it happens
Three of the four seasons take en, so learners apply en to all of them.
How to avoid it
Memorise the exception: au printemps, but en été / en automne / en hiver. A quick rhyme keeps spring separate: 'au printemps'.
✕Missing 'moins' and getting temperatures the wrong way round in Listening
Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports — Paper 1 (Listening)
Why it happens
Moins is short and easy to miss at speed, but it flips a temperature to negative.
How to avoid it
Listen for moins first — it signals a below-zero temperature (il fait moins cinq = −5). Cross-check with a feeling word like il fait froid or il neige.
✕Describing the weather but giving no opinion or reason
Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports — Papers 3 & 4
Why it happens
Beginners stop at the safe sentence il fait beau and don't develop it.
How to avoid it
Add j'aime / je n'aime pas and a reason with parce que: J'aime l'été parce qu'il fait chaud. Opinions with reasons are easy communication marks.
✕Dropping accents and apostrophes (ete for été, parce quil for parce qu'il)
Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports — Paper 4 (Writing), accuracy
Why it happens
English has no accents, so they're treated as optional.
How to avoid it
Spell high-frequency words by heart: l'été, la météo, les degrés, préférée, and the elision parce qu'il. Accents are part of the spelling and are marked in Writing.

Past paper style quiz

Get a report showing which sub-topics you've nailed and which ones still need work.

Weather and climate

Detailed Notes

What you’ll learn

How it’s examined

1Answer 'Quel temps fait-il ?' for a sunny day

2Choose the correct weather pattern (il fait / il pleut / il y a)

3Describe the weather in two seasons with the right preposition

4Decode a temperature from a listening transcript

5Write a two-day forecast with opinion and reason

Quel temps fait-il ?

il fait (+ adjectif)

il pleut

il neige

il y a (+ nom)

les degrés / moins

les saisons

la météo

il va (+ infinitif)

parce que

✕Using être (il est chaud / c'est chaud) instead of faire for the weather

✕Writing 'il fait pleut' or 'il fait neige'

✕Saying 'en printemps' instead of 'au printemps'

✕Missing 'moins' and getting temperatures the wrong way round in Listening

✕Describing the weather but giving no opinion or reason

✕Dropping accents and apostrophes (ete for été, parce quil for parce qu'il)

Past paper style quiz