This book is intended for intermediate and more advanced students of French, both those
approaching the end of high-school or secondary education and those in their first or second
year at university, who need to consolidate and extend their knowledge of French grammar and
to develop their ability to use this knowledge in speech and writing. Unlike a reference grammar,
it does not aim to be exhaustive in its coverage. Instead, it focuses on key areas of grammar,
selected both for their perceived usefulness and for the difficulties which they often cause the
Anglophone student.
The starting point is always an authentic text, chosen for its intrinsic interest no less than for
its richness as a source of examples of grammar in context. In the analysis which follows the text,
the function and form of the relevant grammar topic are first explored as seen in the text, before
a development section headed ‘Discover more about X’ amplifies the coverage with illustrated
commentary on further important points, including any significant divergences of practice
between different registers both in writing and in speech. Page references to the relevant sections
of five standard reference grammars are provided, so that students may seek further information
as they require. Cross-references are also made to relevant sections of other grammar units
within the book itself. It is essential that both sections of analysis, ‘X in the text’ and ‘Discover
more about X’, should be studied before the student attempts any of the exercises which follow.
The exercises continue the emphasis on grammar in context by including a considerable
proportion of text-based exercises and also some communicative activities and translation
exercises. A key is provided to all the exercises, except for the more open-ended communicative
ones, so that students may use the book for private study. However, there is ample scope for the
book to be used also in class. For example, each text naturally contains examples of other
grammar points apart from the main point which it has been chosen to illustrate. Accordingly, a
detailed listing of the further grammatical features of each text is provided as guidance for
teachers, so that they may exploit the material in different ways.
The revision texts at the end of the book provide students with an opportunity to integrate the
work which they have done in the preceding units. First, a series of analysis questions exploits the
fact that each text contains examples of many different grammatical features. Students are
required to demonstrate their understanding by providing their own commentary on highlighted
features. A key with cross-references back to the analysis sections in the various units enables
them to check their work. Finally, in order to ensure that passive knowledge and understanding
have been translated into an ability to make active use of language, and that language observed
has been internalized, a series of gap-filling exercises based on the texts is provided.
In the revision section, as in the rest of the book, the emphasis is on grammar in context and
on grammar with a functional and communicative purpose. This is reflected most importantly in
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(lu)
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