Opinions about jobs (Edexcel GCSE French): Revision Notes
Opinions about jobs
Essential job vocabulary
Understanding job-related vocabulary is crucial for expressing opinions about different careers. The ability to discuss employment confidently requires mastering these fundamental terms that appear frequently in both written and spoken French.
| French | English |
|---|---|
| argent (m) | money |
| chercher | to look for |
| client(e) (m/f) | customer |
| emploi (m) | employment, job |
| gagner | to earn |
| heure (f) | hour |
| payer | to pay |
| poste (m) | job, position, post |
| salaire (m) | salary |
| travail (m) | work |
Example sentences using this vocabulary:
- Je cherche un emploi bien payé. (I'm looking for a well-paid job.)
- Les clients sont très sympas dans ce magasin. (The customers are very nice in this shop.)
- Mon salaire n'est pas assez élevé. (My salary isn't high enough.)
More job-related verbs
These additional verbs are essential for discussing job-related activities and financial aspects of employment:
| French | English |
|---|---|
| trouver | to find |
| dépenser | to spend (money) |
| désirer | to desire |
Practice with context:
- Je veux trouver un travail intéressant. (I want to find an interesting job.)
- Il dépense tout son argent. (He spends all his money.)
Expressing opinions about jobs
When discussing jobs, you need to express both positive and negative opinions using different tenses. The key to successful communication is combining opinion starters with appropriate adjectives while maintaining correct grammar throughout.
Opinion sentence starters
| French expressions | English |
|---|---|
| C'est... | It's... |
| C'était... | It was... |
| Ça va être... | It is going to be... |
| Ce sera... | It will be... |
Positive opinion adjectives
| French | English |
|---|---|
| agréable | pleasant |
| excellent | excellent |
| génial | great |
| facile | easy |
| utile | useful |
| bien payé | well paid |
Negative opinion adjectives
| French | English |
|---|---|
| nul | rubbish |
| difficile | difficult |
| inutile | useless |
| mal payé | badly paid |
Combining starters and adjectives:
- Ce sera très intéressant. (It will be very interesting.)
- C'était difficile mais utile. (It was difficult but useful.)
- Mon travail est bien payé. (My job is well paid.)
Important grammar rule: adjective agreement
Critical Grammar Rule: Adjectives must agree with the noun they describe. This means they change their endings based on whether the noun is masculine, feminine, singular, or plural.
Examples:
- Les emplois sont bien payés (emplois is masculine and plural)
- L'expérience était excellente (expérience is feminine and singular)
Pay particular attention to this rule in exam questions, as incorrect adjective agreement is a common mistake that can cost valuable marks.
Understanding exam-style questions
In listening exercises, you might hear people discussing their jobs and need to identify who says what. This requires careful attention to details and the ability to match speakers with their specific opinions.
Sample dialogue:
- Patrick: "Je trouve mon travail inutile. Je travaille dans une banque."
- Richard: "Je travaille dans un magasin de mode. C'est amusant."
- Sylvie: "Je veux travailler dans un bureau car c'est intéressant."
Exam tip: Questions often mix up the order of information from the text, so listen carefully to match each person with their correct opinion. Don't assume the questions follow the same sequence as the audio.
Sample opinion text
Learning to structure your own opinions effectively is essential for exam success. Here's how to build a complete opinion with supporting reasons:
Expressing a negative opinion:
"À mon avis, travailler dans un café, c'est nul. Les clients se disputent et ne sont pas sympa."
Translation: "In my opinion, working in a café is rubbish. The customers argue and are not nice."
This demonstrates how to:
- Give a personal opinion (À mon avis...)
- State your view about a specific job
- Provide reasons to support your opinion
Translation practice
Developing strong translation skills requires regular practice with job-related vocabulary in both directions:
Practice Translations:
French to English:
- Je cherche un emploi bien payé.
- C'est très difficile mais intéressant.
English to French:
- The work is useful.
- I want to find a job in an office.
Answers:
- I'm looking for a well-paid job.
- It's very difficult but interesting.
- Le travail est utile.
- Je veux trouver un emploi dans un bureau.
Exam guidance
Understanding what examiners are looking for can significantly improve your performance across all skill areas:
Speaking exam tip: Be prepared to give your opinion about different jobs and explain why you hold that view. Examiners want to hear both your opinion and your reasoning.
Listening exam tip: Pay attention to opinion words and who is expressing each view - the order might be mixed up in the questions compared to the audio sequence.
Writing tip: Always check adjective agreements, especially with job-related vocabulary. This is a frequent requirement that can easily improve your accuracy marks.
Key takeaways
Essential Points to Master:
- Master key job vocabulary - focus on common terms like emploi, travail, salaire, and gagner
- Learn both positive and negative opinion adjectives to express a full range of views about jobs
- Always check adjective agreement - this is a frequent exam requirement and common mistake
- Practice using different tenses when expressing opinions (present, past, and future)
- Support your opinions with reasons - explain why you think a job is good or bad