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OCR · GCSE · French

Free OCR GCSE French
Practice Paper

8 mixed-difficulty practice questions in the style of real OCR GCSE papers — answers, mark-scheme-style explanations, and the official exam structure all on one page.

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What the real OCR GCSE French paper looks like

Paper 1
Approximately 1 hour 30 minutes, ~70-100 marks. Covers Topics 1-4 of the specification.
Paper 2
Approximately 1 hour 30 minutes, ~70-100 marks. Covers Topics 5-8 of the specification.
Paper 3
Where applicable — e.g. Combined Science, Languages. Includes synoptic and applied questions.
Total exam time: ~3 hours across two or three papers.
Grading: Grades: 9 (highest) to 1 (lowest), with U (ungraded). A grade of 4 is a standard pass; 5 is a strong pass.

Mini practice paper: 6 questions

Mixed-difficulty questions from across the French syllabus. Tap "Show answer" after each to check yourself.

Q1 · Difficulty 2/3

A student reads: 'Dans ma région, il y a beaucoup de chômage à cause de la fermeture des usines.' What problem does the writer describe?

  1. High unemployment due to factory closures
  2. Housing shortages due to population growth
  3. Traffic congestion due to road closures
  4. High crime rates due to lack of police
Show answer & explanation
✓ Answer: A — High unemployment due to factory closures
'Chômage' means unemployment and 'fermeture des usines' means closure of factories. Option B confuses 'chômage' with crime, a common mix-up. Option C incorrectly links 'fermeture' to road rather than factory closures. Option D introduces housing vocabulary not present in the source text.
Q2 · Difficulty 2/3

Which sentence correctly uses the conditional tense to suggest an environmental solution in French?

  1. On a recyclé plus pour protéger l'environnement.
  2. On devrait recycler plus pour protéger l'environnement.
  3. On recycle plus pour protéger l'environnement.
  4. On recyclait plus pour protéger l'environnement.
Show answer & explanation
✓ Answer: B — On devrait recycler plus pour protéger l'environnement.
'On devrait' is the conditional form of 'devoir', meaning 'one should', which is the correct form for making suggestions. Option B uses the perfect tense (has recycled), describing a past action. Option C uses the present tense (recycles), stating a current fact. Option D uses the imperfect tense (used to recycle), describing a habitual past action.
Q3 · Difficulty 2/3

A student wants to express that immigration has both advantages and disadvantages in French. Which phrase best introduces a contrasting point?

  1. Donc, certains pensent que l'immigration pose des défis.
  2. Alors, certains pensent que l'immigration pose des défis.
  3. Ensuite, certains pensent que l'immigration pose des défis.
  4. Par contre, certains pensent que l'immigration pose des défis.
Show answer & explanation
✓ Answer: D — Par contre, certains pensent que l'immigration pose des défis.
'Par contre' means 'on the other hand' and is the correct connective to introduce a contrasting viewpoint. 'Donc' (option B) means 'therefore' and introduces a conclusion, not a contrast. 'Alors' (option C) means 'so/then' and indicates consequence or sequence. 'Ensuite' (option D) means 'then/next' and indicates sequence rather than contrast.
Q4 · Difficulty 3/3

A student is asked to evaluate whether tourism benefits or harms local communities in a French-speaking country. Which response demonstrates the highest level of evaluation?

  1. Le tourisme est bien parce que les gens visitent les pays.
  2. Le tourisme apporte de l'argent mais peut aussi endommager la culture locale et l'environnement.
  3. Le tourisme est mauvais pour les communautés locales.
  4. Beaucoup de touristes visitent les pays francophones chaque année.
Show answer & explanation
✓ Answer: B — Le tourisme apporte de l'argent mais peut aussi endommager la culture locale et l'environnement.
Option A demonstrates evaluation by acknowledging a benefit ('apporte de l'argent') and weighing it against drawbacks ('peut aussi endommager la culture locale et l'environnement'), showing balanced reasoning. Option B gives a vague positive opinion without evidence or balance. Option C states a one-sided negative opinion without development. Option D is a factual statement with no evaluative language whatsoever.
Q5 · Difficulty 3/3

Read this sentence: 'Si tout le monde prenait les transports en commun, il y aurait moins de pollution.' Which tense structure is used here?

  1. Future tense followed by imperfect tense
  2. Imperfect tense followed by conditional tense
  3. Perfect tense followed by future tense
  4. Present tense in both clauses
Show answer & explanation
✓ Answer: B — Imperfect tense followed by conditional tense
'Prenait' is the imperfect tense of 'prendre' and 'il y aurait' is the conditional tense of 'il y a'. Together they form a hypothetical 'si' clause structure (si + imperfect → conditional), used to describe unlikely or imagined conditions. This is a key grammar structure for expressing environmental opinions at GCSE. Option A is wrong as neither clause uses the present. Option C incorrectly identifies a perfect + future structure. Option D reverses the order of the tenses.
Q6 · Difficulty 2/3

Which French phrase correctly means 'the environment is threatened by pollution'?

  1. L'environnement est protégé par la pollution.
  2. La pollution est menacée par l'environnement.
  3. L'environnement menace la pollution.
  4. L'environnement est menacé par la pollution.
Show answer & explanation
✓ Answer: D — L'environnement est menacé par la pollution.
The correct passive construction uses 'est menacé par' to mean 'is threatened by'. Option B reverses the meaning using 'protégé' (protected). Option C incorrectly makes 'pollution' the thing threatened. Option D makes 'l'environnement' the active subject threatening pollution, reversing the intended meaning.
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OCR GCSE French FAQ

What does the OCR GCSE French exam look like?
The OCR GCSE French exam is structured across 3 components. Paper 1: Approximately 1 hour 30 minutes, ~70-100 marks. Covers Topics 1-4 of the specification. Paper 2: Approximately 1 hour 30 minutes, ~70-100 marks. Covers Topics 5-8 of the specification. Paper 3: Where applicable — e.g. Combined Science, Languages. Includes synoptic and applied questions. Total exam time: ~3 hours across two or three papers.
Can I download a free OCR GCSE French past paper?
Real OCR past papers are published directly by OCR on their official website. Kramizo doesn't redistribute copyrighted past papers, but we do generate free AI-written practice papers in the exact same style — same command words, same difficulty tier, same mark conventions. Use this practice paper as warm-up, then time yourself on official past papers before exam day.
How is OCR GCSE French graded?
Grades: 9 (highest) to 1 (lowest), with U (ungraded). A grade of 4 is a standard pass; 5 is a strong pass. Kramizo's practice questions are tagged with difficulty 1-3 mapping roughly to the lower, middle, and top grade boundaries you'll encounter in the real exam.