Matching game
Cahier des charges: what the French work term means
Read cahier des charges as a specification document. Match concrete requirements to features and distinguish obligations from optional suggestions.
- B2
- 5 pairs
- Tap to match
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In short
Un cahier des charges sets out the requirements for a project, service or product. Read the force of each clause: doit states a requirement, while pourrait may introduce a suggestion. A proposed feature becomes an agreed requirement only through the project’s change process.
Yellow the idea to rememberBlue French to learn
A designer receives a brief for a public workshop booking tool. The document lists access, deadlines, data export and support. A colleague then adds “perhaps a map would be useful”. Both texts may matter to the project, but they do not have the same status. A clear reading separates what has been requested from what is still being discussed.
Extrait · outil de réservation
Exigences convenues
AccèsL’usager doit pouvoir réserver sans créer de compte.
ConfirmationUn courriel doit confirmer chaque réservation.
ExportLes inscriptions doivent être exportables au format CSV.
LivraisonLa version de test doit être disponible le 14 juin.
Suggestion à examiner
CarteUne carte interactive pourrait faciliter l’accès au lieu.
Tap one on the left, then its partner on the right.
The verb carries the strength of the clause
Doit permettre de and est requis make the expected function explicit. Il serait souhaitable de expresses a preference; the project may still need to decide whether to include it. Labels such as obligatoire, optionnel or hors périmètre can help, but read them with the document’s own definitions. A polite sentence can state a firm requirement; politeness does not automatically make a clause optional.
La carte ne figure pas dans le cahier des charges validé. Souhaitez-vous l’ajouter au périmètre et revoir le calendrier ?
The map is not in the approved specification. Would you like to add it to the scope and revise the schedule?
The phrase cahier des charges is not an account book and does not list financial “charges” alone. It can include technical functions, service conditions, quality criteria and deadlines. Respecter le cahier des charges means meeting the specifications. Faire évoluer le cahier des charges means changing them; that can affect cost and timing, so name the change rather than hiding it in an informal message.
When you hand over the work, quote the relevant clause and its current version. Conforme à la version du 6 mai gives a concrete reference. If a request is unclear, ask what successful delivery should look like: who must be able to do what, by which date, and in which format? That question turns the document label into a practical acceptance discussion.