Review French grammar mistakes: one correction, one new sentence

Edited by Chris Lee · Updated · About the library

Use a short French draft to build a useful correction log. Repair agreement and qui/que, preserve valid phrases, then try new examples in a quiz.

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In short

Keep the sentence, the intended meaning, the correction and one short reason. Then make a new sentence that tests the same choice. Start with a few corrections you understand: a useful log might say “feminine plural adjective”, “qui as subject” or “que as direct object”.

Yellow the idea to rememberBlue French to learnRed watch out

Two sisters chat warmly at a French kitchen table beside closed course books.
Mes sœurs sont gentilles keeps the adjective in agreement. Illustration: Atelier

Start with this short draft

  • Mes sœurs sont gentil.Mes sœurs sont gentilles.

    Sœurs is feminine plural. Gentil becomes gentilles to agree with it.

  • Je cherche un cours que explique les règles.Je cherche un cours qui explique les règles.

    The course performs the action explique. The relative pronoun is the subject: qui.

  • Le cours qui je suis est utile.Le cours que je suis est utile.

    Here je suis un cours means “I take a course”. Je is the subject and the course is the object: que.

Keep the surrounding message: the sisters are kind, the writer wants explanations, and the current course is useful. These three corrections change agreement or a relative pronoun. They leave the writer’s ideas and chosen tense intact.

How do you keep a log of French grammar mistakes?

Three corrections become three recall prompts
DecisionReason to keepNew prompt
Adjective agreementThe adjective follows the noun’s gender and number.Mes amies sont gentil___.
Relative subjectThe noun before the relative performs the action.Je cherche une leçon ___ explique ce point.
Relative objectA different subject performs the action on that noun.La leçon ___ nous préparons est courte.

Cover the corrections before trying the new prompts. Keep each task small enough to explain: identify the noun for agreement, or reconstruct the subject and object inside the relative clause. A fresh noun tests the choice again instead of inviting you to copy a familiar sentence.

Keep valid French in your log too

Mon amie est gentille.

My friend is kind.

Mon is correct before feminine amie, which begins with a vowel. Gentille stays feminine.

Je ne trouve pas les réponses.

I cannot find the answers.

Les is correct for particular answers. A negative sentence can keep a definite article.

These examples show the limits of a correction. “Feminine noun” does not always mean ma, and “negative verb” does not always mean de. Keep a comparison beside the rule when it helps you avoid applying it too widely.

Try the decisions with new sentences

Question 1No account needed
Agree with mes amies.Mes amies sont ___.

Choose one answer.

Answer and explanation

gentilles. Amies is feminine plural, so the adjective needs the feminine plural form gentilles.

Question 2No account needed
Choose the subject relative.Je cherche une leçon ___ explique ce point.

Choose one answer.

Answer and explanation

qui. The lesson itself explains the point. It is the subject of explique, so use qui.

Question 3No account needed
Choose the direct-object relative.La leçon ___ nous préparons est courte.

Choose one answer.

Answer and explanation

que. Nous is the subject of préparons. The lesson is what we prepare, so use que.

Question 4No account needed
Keep the noun feminine and choose the possessive before a vowel.___ amie est patiente.

Choose one answer.

Answer and explanation

mon. Before feminine singular amie, which starts with a vowel, use mon.

Use the log on your next draft

One focused review

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

On your next draft, make one pass for noun groups and another for verb clauses. If agreement is the recurring issue, check the article, noun and adjective together. If qui and que keep getting mixed up, write the two short underlying clauses before joining them. Keep a corrected example only when its reason is clear.

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