Verb drill
French register drill: rewrite a job update for a recruiter
Rewrite a casual French job-search update in standard French. Restore complete negatives, replace work slang and preserve dates, progress and availability.
- B1
- 12 answers
- Checked all at once
- Accents count
- Learn this in the B1 notebook →
In short
For a recruiter, use complete sentences, restore ne in negatives and replace expressions such as bosser with precise standard wording. Keep the same facts: J’ai presque fini still means “I’ve nearly finished”, even in a more formal message. Normal elisions such as j’ai and l’équipe stay.
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- Message to a friend
Salut ! Je bosse sur ma candidature. J’ai presque fini, mais j’ai pas encore envoyé le dossier.
Hi! I’m working on my application. I’ve nearly finished, but I haven’t sent the application documents yet.
- Message to the recruiter
Bonjour Madame Martin, je prépare ma candidature. J’ai presque terminé, mais je n’ai pas encore envoyé le dossier.
Hello Ms Martin, I’m preparing my application. I’ve nearly finished, but I haven’t sent the application documents yet.
| Casual wording | Standard wording | Keep this meaning |
|---|---|---|
| je bosse sur | je travaille sur | Work is in progress. |
| j’suis dispo | je suis disponible | Availability is confirmed. |
| j’ai pas encore | je n’ai pas encore | It has not happened yet. |
| j’ai un souci | je rencontre une difficulté | There is a difficulty. |
| ça bloque | cela retarde | Something causes a delay. |
| je vous tiens au courant | je vous informerai de la suite | A promise to send an update. |
A standard email can be warm and direct. Bonjour Madame Martin suits this named recipient; Cordialement closes the message simply. A friendly expression such as je vous tiens au courant is already usable at work. Here you will practise a more explicit alternative. Use the replacement specified in each cue so the checker can compare your wording.
1 · Restore complete standard forms
- . (J’suis dispo mardi après-midi. Restore je suis and replace dispo with disponible.)
- . (J’peux pas vous répondre aujourd’hui. Restore je and the complete negative.)
- . (J’ai pas encore terminé ma candidature. Add the missing negative word.)
- . (Vous trouverez mon CV en PJ. Write pièce jointe in full.)
- . (Merci pour votre retour. Begin Je vous remercie and retain pour votre retour.)
- . (J’reste dispo pour un entretien. Restore je reste and replace dispo with disponible.)
2 · Rewrite the progress update one sentence at a time
- . (Je bosse sur le projet depuis lundi. Replace bosse with travaille.)
- . (J’ai presque fini l’analyse. Replace fini with terminé; retain presque.)
- . (J’ai un souci avec la dernière étape. Replace J’ai un souci with Je rencontre une difficulté.)
- . (Ça bloque la validation finale. In this context, validation is delayed: use Cela retarde.)
- . (Je pense pouvoir boucler ça vendredi. Use terminer in place of boucler ça; keep je pense pouvoir.)
- . (Je vous tiens au courant lundi. Use Je vous informerai de la suite and retain lundi.)
How do you write a formal update for a recruiter in French?
- Presque terminé means nearly finished. Removing presque turns progress into completion.
- Pas encore means not yet. Keep the possibility of later completion.
- Je pense pouvoir gives an expectation. Keep those words when the original message leaves the timing uncertain.
- A change of register should retain the named reader, the work completed, the current difficulty and the next update.
- Je ai terminé l’analyse.J’ai terminé l’analyse.
J’ai is a normal required elision. Standard writing keeps it.
- Je vous transmets le dossier terminé.Je n’ai pas encore terminé le dossier.
If the original says the work is unfinished, an elegant sentence announcing completion changes the facts.