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New
New
Year 10
AQA

Il faut agir : Infinitives as nouns

Learning outcomes

I can use infinitives as nouns to express activities to help the environment.

I can recognise, write and pronounce infinitives ending in -er.

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New
New
Year 10
AQA

Il faut agir : Infinitives as nouns

Learning outcomes

I can use infinitives as nouns to express activities to help the environment.

I can recognise, write and pronounce infinitives ending in -er.

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Lesson details

Vocabulary and transcripts for this lessons

Key learning points

  1. [é], [er], and [ez] all sound like 'écrire'.
  2. An infinitive can be used as the subject of a sentence to express an activity.
  3. The infinitive functions like a noun in such sentences: ‘Être poli, c’est important’ - being polite is important.
  4. We normally translate French infinitives used as nouns with the -ing form of the verb in English.

Keywords

  • -er verb - a verb whose infinitive form ends in -er

  • Infinitive - form of the verb giving its general meaning, with no subject or tense

Common misconception

The subject of a sentence can only be a noun or pronoun.

A verb can be used as the subject of a sentence. In French, it must be in its infinitive form. When translated to English, use the -ing form of the verb.

There is a theme about the death of a sibling in this lesson. You may wish to check for pupils in the intended class who might be impacted by this content.
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Equipment

Mini whiteboards and pen.

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Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2025), licensed on
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except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Lesson video

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6 Questions

Q1.
What is an infinitive?
A verb whose spelling has changed to match the subject.
A verb in the past tense.
Correct answer: A verb whose spelling is unchanged for subject or tense.
A verb whose spelling matches a plural subject.
Q2.
Which words are verbs in their infinitive form?
décrit
Correct answer: accompagner
Correct answer: lire
lu
Correct answer: mourir
Q3.
Match the French words with their English meanings.
Correct Answer:détruire,to destroy, destroying
tick

to destroy, destroying

Correct Answer:abandonner,to give up, abandon
tick

to give up, abandon

Correct Answer:tuer,to kill, killing
tick

to kill, killing

Correct Answer:écrit,wrote, written
tick

wrote, written

Correct Answer:inquiétant,worrying
tick

worrying

Correct Answer:oser,to dare, daring
tick

to dare, daring

Q4.
Which tense is used with 'depuis' to say how long or since when you have been doing something?
Correct answer: Present
Perfect
Simple future
Conditional
Q5.
Complete this translation to English: 'Je fais mon lit depuis l'âge de trois ans.' my bed since the age of three.
Correct Answer: I have been making, I've been making
Q6.
Which verb phrase is needed to complete this sentence: He has been dead for over 100 years? ' depuis plus de cent ans.' He has been dead for over 100 years.
Correct Answer: Il est mort

6 Questions

Q1.
Match the French words with their English meanings.
Correct Answer:la terre,earth
tick

earth

Correct Answer:les déchets,rubbish
tick

rubbish

Correct Answer:le réchauffement,warming
tick

warming

Correct Answer:la lutte,battle, fight
tick

battle, fight

Correct Answer:augmenter,to increase, increasing
tick

to increase, increasing

Correct Answer:éviter,to avoid, avoiding
tick

to avoid, avoiding

Q2.
Which item of vocabulary from question 1 best fits in the gap in this sentence? 'Il est nécessaire d' les impôts sur le pétrole.'
Correct Answer: augmenter
Q3.
Which form of verb can be used as the subject of a sentence?
A past participle
Correct answer: An infinitive
A conjugated regular -er verb
A conjugated regular -ir verb
Q4.
Which type of word can be the subject of a sentence?
Correct answer: Noun
Correct answer: Pronoun
Adjective
Verb
Correct answer: Adverb
Q5.
When translating a sentence where the verb 'donner' being used as the subject, which way should the verb be translated?
Give
Gave
Given
To give
Correct answer: Giving
Q6.
Which is the right order to translate this sentence? Driving an electric car pollutes less.
1 - conduire
2 - une
3 - voiture
4 - électrique,
5 - ça
6 - pollue
7 - moins

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