Plan a French dictation: check sounds, grammar and spelling separately

Edited by Chris Lee · Updated · About the library

Plan a short dictation with matching audio and text. Use parlé, parler and parlez to check grammar, and separate time values from spelling choices.

B1Practical guide2 min readIn the B1 notebook →

In short

Choose a short recording with a matching transcript, hide the text and write what you hear. Check the message first, then the spelling. Separate a missed sound or word boundary from a grammar choice such as parler, parlé or parlez, which share /paʁle/.

Yellow the idea to rememberBlue French to learn

A learner listens through headphones with a pen and notebook ready.
Listening closely prepares the learner for une dictée. Illustration: Atelier

Set up one short attempt

A plan you can reuse
StepWhat to doWhat to keep
ChooseSelect one or two complete turns with a checked transcript.Source and passage location
ListenListen once for who does what, then write your attempt.Your first wording
ReplayReturn to the uncertain stretch with its surrounding words.A gap or a revised word
CheckReveal the matching transcript and compare.One difference to explain
Follow upPractise the sound sequence, construction or spelling behind it.One next action

Decide the written format before starting. For a time, will you accept digits as well as words? Keep the listening result visible: hearing the right time and writing an unexpected format are separate observations. If you compare attempts over several sessions, note how many replays you used.

How do you practise French dictation?

Study first: grammar chooses the spelling
SentenceJob of the highlighted formClue
Vous parlez avec Nora.Present-tense verbSubject vous
Elle a parlé avec Nora.Past participleAuxiliary a
Elle va parler avec Nora.InfinitiveConjugated va before the verb

All three forms end in /e/. Listen to the surrounding words to recover the construction, then use grammar to write the ending. Likewise, elle parle and elles parlent share the verb sound /paʁl/; the subject and context guide the written agreement.

Explain the difference you found

Three corrections, three follow-ups
AttemptChecked wordingReview action
Elle a parler.Elle a parlé.Review auxiliary + past participle; keep the accent.
La réunion commence à deux heures.La réunion commence à douze heures.Replay deux/douze and retain the full time phrase.
10 hdix heuresIf digits were allowed, keep the correct time; if words were requested, practise the written format.
Before closing the dictation

A self-review aid, not a grade. Ticks are not saved.

Question 1No account needed
You wrote Elle a parler after hearing the complete sentence. What needs correcting?

Choose one answer.

Answer and explanation

The past-participle spelling. After auxiliary a, the required form is the past participle parlé.

Question 2No account needed
The task accepts digits. You wrote 10 h for dix heures. What should the check record?

Choose one answer.

Answer and explanation

A correct time in an accepted format. Both give ten o’clock, and h supplies the unit. The instructions accept this format.

Question 3No account needed
The transcript gives douze heures, but you wrote deux heures. Which follow-up fits?

Choose one answer.

Answer and explanation

Compare the number words in the full time phrase. The difference changes the time value. Replay the number contrast within its phrase.

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