Cambridge IGCSE French 0520
Verb conjugations, grammar rules, topic vocabulary and exam technique for listening, reading, writing and speaking — your complete Cambridge IGCSE French 0520 reference for 2026.
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Aligned with the latest 2026 syllabus and board specifications. This sheet is prepared to match your exam board’s official specifications for the 2026 exam series.
Cambridge IGCSE French (0520) tests four skills — listening, reading, speaking and writing — across five broad topic areas. This reference sheet brings together every essential tense, grammar rule and topic vocabulary you need, plus exam technique for each paper.
All exam tenses: present, perfect, imperfect, future, conditional, subjunctive
Articles, agreement, pronouns and key grammar rules
Topic vocabulary across the five Cambridge topic areas
Exam technique for listening, reading, writing and speaking
Master the regular endings first; irregular verbs build on this foundation.
What you do/are doing now.
-ER (parler)
je parle · tu parles · il/elle parle · nous parlons · vous parlez · ils/elles parlent -IR (finir)
je finis · tu finis · il/elle finit · nous finissons · vous finissez · ils/elles finissent -RE (vendre)
je vends · tu vends · il/elle vend · nous vendons · vous vendez · ils/elles vendent Completed actions in the past.
Formula
Subject + AVOIR/ÊTRE (present) + past participle Past participle (-ER)
parler → parlé Past participle (-IR)
finir → fini Past participle (-RE)
vendre → vendu ÊTRE verbs
MRS VANDERTRAMP — aller, venir, arriver, partir, entrer, sortir, monter, descendre, naître, mourir, rester, tomber, retourner + reflexive verbs (must agree with subject) Used to describe what was happening, used to happen, or background.
Formula
Take 'nous' present-tense stem (drop -ons) + endings: -ais, -ais, -ait, -ions, -iez, -aient Example: parler
je parlais · tu parlais · il parlait · nous parlions · vous parliez · ils parlaient Trigger words: souvent, toujours, tous les jours, quand j'étais petit(e)
What WILL happen.
Formula
Infinitive (drop -e on -re verbs) + -ai, -as, -a, -ons, -ez, -ont Example: parler
je parlerai · tu parleras · il parlera · nous parlerons · vous parlerez · ils parleront Near future (futur proche)
ALLER (present) + infinitive — 'je vais manger' = I'm going to eat What WOULD happen / polite requests.
Formula
Future stem + imperfect endings (-ais, -ais, -ait, -ions, -iez, -aient) Example: parler
je parlerais · tu parlerais · il parlerait · nous parlerions · vous parleriez · ils parleraient Had done — completed before another past action.
Formula
AVOIR/ÊTRE in the imperfect + past participle j'avais parlé = I had spoken Used after expressions of doubt, emotion, necessity. 'Il faut que...', 'Je veux que...'
Formation (regular)
Take 'ils' present stem + -e, -es, -e, -ions, -iez, -ent Recognise it; for top marks, attempt at least one example in writing.
These appear in every IGCSE paper — memorise them in present, perfect, imperfect and future.
je suis · tu es · il/elle est · nous sommes · vous êtes · ils/elles sont Past participle
été j'ai · tu as · il/elle a · nous avons · vous avez · ils/elles ont Past participle
eu je vais · tu vas · il/elle va · nous allons · vous allez · ils/elles vont Past participle
allé(e)(s) — uses ÊTRE je fais · tu fais · il/elle fait · nous faisons · vous faites · ils/elles font Past participle
fait VENIR → je viens · POUVOIR → je peux · VOULOIR → je veux · DEVOIR → je dois PRENDRE → je prends · METTRE → je mets · VOIR → je vois · DIRE → je dis · LIRE → je lis · ÉCRIRE → j'écris · BOIRE → je bois · CONNAÎTRE → je connais · SAVOIR → je sais le (m. sing) · la (f. sing) · l' (vowel/h) · les (plural) un (m.) · une (f.) · des (pl.) — becomes 'de' after a negative du (m.) · de la (f.) · de l' (vowel) · des (pl.) — used for 'some' food/drink Add -e (feminine) · -s (plural) · -es (feminine plural) — petit, petite, petits, petites Most adjectives go AFTER the noun. Common exceptions: BAGS (Beauty, Age, Goodness, Size) — beau, jeune, bon, grand, petit, joli, nouveau, vieux.
Comparative
plus + adjective + que (more than) · moins + adjective + que (less than) · aussi + adjective + que (as...as) Superlative
le/la/les plus + adjective (the most) · le/la/les moins + adjective (the least) Irregular
bon → meilleur(e) → le/la meilleur(e) · mauvais → pire je · tu · il/elle/on · nous · vous · ils/elles me · te · le/la/l' · nous · vous · les Position: BEFORE the verb. 'Je le vois' = I see him/it.
me · te · lui · nous · vous · leur Replace 'à + person'. 'Je lui parle' = I speak to him/her.
Y
Replaces 'à + place/thing' — j'y vais (I'm going there) EN
Replaces 'de + thing' or quantities — j'en mange (I'm eating some) me/te/se/nous/vous → le/la/les → lui/leur → y → en ne...pas (not) · ne...jamais (never) · ne...rien (nothing) · ne...personne (nobody) · ne...plus (no more) · ne...que (only) · ne...ni...ni (neither...nor) qui (who) · que/qu' (what) · quand (when) · où (where) · pourquoi (why) · comment (how) · combien (how much/many) · quel(le) (which) Build vocabulary banks for each — examiners reward range and accuracy.
Home life, school, food and drink, health and fitness.
Sub-themes
la maison, la routine quotidienne, l'école, les matières, les repas, la santé, le sport Key verbs
se lever, prendre le petit déjeuner, étudier, jouer, manger, faire du sport Self, family and personal relationships, holidays and special occasions.
Sub-themes
la famille, les amis, les fêtes, les vacances, le caractère, l'apparence Key verbs
s'entendre avec, se disputer, fêter, partir en vacances Home town and local area, the natural environment, people, places and customs.
Sub-themes
ma ville, le quartier, les magasins, les transports, l'environnement, le climat Key verbs
habiter, recycler, polluer, protéger, prendre le bus Continuing education, careers and employment, language and communication in the workplace.
Sub-themes
les métiers, le stage, l'université, l'avenir, l'argent, les langues Key verbs
travailler, gagner, étudier, devenir, espérer Tourism at home and abroad, life in other countries, world events and issues.
Sub-themes
le tourisme, les pays francophones, les actualités, la pauvreté, la guerre, les médias Key verbs
voyager, visiter, découvrir, s'informer, comprendre These give your writing and speaking sophistication — drop several into every essay/conversation.
Je pense que... · Je crois que... · À mon avis... · Selon moi... · D'après moi... Je suis d'accord (avec) · Je ne suis pas d'accord · Je trouve que... et · mais · ou · car · parce que · donc · alors · cependant · en effet · pourtant · néanmoins · par exemple d'abord · ensuite · puis · après · enfin · finalement · au début · à la fin hier · aujourd'hui · demain · le week-end dernier · l'année prochaine · il y a deux ans · pendant · depuis il est essentiel de... · il faut que (+ subjunctive) · si j'avais le choix... · ce qui m'intéresse, c'est... · non seulement... mais aussi... Different papers need different strategies. Match yours to the question type.
~50 minutes. Multiple-choice and short-answer questions.
Read all questions BEFORE the audio plays · Predict vocabulary · Listen for negatives, time markers, qualifiers You hear each section twice. Use the second listen to confirm, not start from scratch.
~1 hour. Short tasks and a longer text response.
Skim for gist → scan for specific information → read carefully for inference Beware false friends and watch for negatives that flip meaning.
Role play + topic presentation + general conversation.
Role play tip
Prepare 2 sentences per cue. Use 'je voudrais', 'pourriez-vous', polite forms Presentation
Plan a 1–2 minute presentation with intro, 3 ideas with examples, conclusion. Use a range of tenses. Conversation
Aim for at least one example each of: opinion, past tense, future tense, justification Short and longer written tasks.
Plan: introduction · 2–3 main points (each in different tense) · conclusion Range = different tenses · varied vocabulary · connectives · opinion + justification · subjunctive (one example) Re-read your work: check verb endings, agreements, accents.
Boost your Cambridge exam confidence with these proven study strategies from our tutoring experts.
Even 10 minutes of speaking in French daily — about your day, opinions, plans — builds the fluency examiners reward in Paper 3.
For each of the 5 topics, build a list of 30+ words organised by sub-theme. Add useful verbs and connectives next to each.
Top-band writing uses present, perfect, imperfect AND future tenses. Plan to include each in every long writing answer.
Use slow news, French podcasts (e.g. News in Slow French) or short YouTube videos. Ear training is the most-skipped revision step.
Quick answers about this free PDF and how to use it for exam revision and active recall.
Yes. This Tutopiya formula sheet is free to use and you can download it as a PDF from this page for offline revision. There is no payment or account required for the PDF download.
This page groups key French formulas in one place for revision. Master Cambridge IGCSE French (0520) with this 2026 reference sheet. Covers verb conjugations across all tenses, key grammar rules, the five topic areas, exam technique for listening, reading, writing and speaking. Always cross-check with your official syllabus and past papers for your exam session.
No. In the exam you must follow only what your exam board allows in the hall—usually the official formula booklet or data sheet where provided. This page is a revision and teaching aid, not a replacement for board-issued materials.
It is written for students preparing for assessments at Secondary in French, including classroom revision, homework support, and independent study. Teachers and tutors can also share it as a quick reference.
Work through past paper questions, quote the correct formula before substituting values, and check units and notation every time. Pair this sheet with timed practice and mark schemes so you see how examiners expect working to be set out.
Explore Tutopiya’s study tools, past paper finder, and revision checklists linked from our tools hub, or book a trial lesson with a subject specialist for personalised support alongside this formula reference.
Practice Cambridge-style role plays, presentations and writing tasks with a native or near-native French tutor. We focus on tense range, vocabulary breadth and exam technique.
Pair this reference sheet with past papers, revision checklists, and planners — all free on our study tools hub.
This reference sheet aligns with Cambridge Assessment International Education IGCSE French (0520) syllabus content for 2026 examinations.
Always include examples of past, present AND future tenses in every long writing answer — range of tenses is heavily rewarded.