Clothes and accessories

Personal and Social Life – Clothes and Accessories

Learning objectives (Cambridge IGCSE French 0520 – AO1‑AO5)

• Identify and name a wide range of clothing and accessories in French (AO1).
• Apply correct gender, singular and plural forms, including irregular plurals (AO1).
• Use adjectives with accurate agreement and placement, remembering the pre‑posed adjectives required by the syllabus (AO2).
• Describe what someone is wearing, give opinions and make comparisons in full sentences (AO3‑AO4).
• Complete typical IGCSE tasks – reading, writing, listening and speaking – using the appropriate language structures (AO5).

Key vocabulary – Clothing and accessories

All nouns are given with gender, singular article, plural article and a note on any irregular plural spelling.

Quick reference for irregular plurals

• un manteau → des manteaux
• un chapeau → des chapeaux
• un jean → des jeans (spelling unchanged)
• un short → des shorts (spelling unchanged)
• un casque → des casques

Adjectives – Agreement, placement and pre‑posed list

Adjectives normally follow the noun, but a small group is placed before the noun. All adjectives must agree in gender and number.

Quick reference – Pre‑posed adjectives (syllabus)

• beau / bel – beautiful, handsome
• grand – tall, big
• petit / petite – small, short
• jeune – young
• vieux / vieil – old

Grammar toolbox for the clothing theme

1. Partitive article

Used when talking about an unspecified amount of a material or a category of clothing.

• J’achète du jean. (I buy some denim.)
• Elle veut de la laine pour son pull.
• Il y a de l’écharpe rouge dans la vitrine.
• Nous n’avons pas de chaussures à la bonne taille.

2. Demonstrative adjectives

Important for the speaking paper when pointing out items.

• Ce manteau est chaud. (masc. sing.)
• Cet écran est petit. (masc. sing. before vowel/h)
• Cette robe est jolie. (fém. sing.)
• Ces chaussures sont neuves. (plural)

3. Quantifiers (price, amount, opinion)

• beaucoup de vêtements – a lot of clothes
• un peu de cuir – a little leather
• trop de couleur – too much colour
• pas assez de taille – not enough size
• c’est trop cher – it’s too expensive

Useful set phrases for describing clothing and shopping

• Il/elle porte… – He/she is wearing…
• Il/elle a mis… – He/she has put on…
• Je porte… – I am wearing…
• Je mets… – I put on…
• Je cherche… – I am looking for…
• Quelle taille ? – What size?
• C’est trop cher. – That’s too expensive.
• Ça me va bien / Ça ne me va pas. – It suits me / It doesn’t suit me.
• J’aime bien… / Je n’aime pas… – I like / I don’t like…
• Je préfère… – I prefer…
• C’est à la mode. – It’s fashionable.
• Quel style ? – What style?
• Quel est ton/votre vêtement préféré ? – What is your favourite piece of clothing?
• Je voudrais essayer… – I would like to try on…
• Quel prix ? – How much?
• Vous avez une taille plus grande ? – Do you have a larger size?

Cultural tip – Shopping & fashion in the Francophone world

Mini‑checklist for writing tasks (AO3/4)

• ✅ At least 5 adjectives, correctly gender‑ and number‑agreed.
• ✅ Minimum 3 different clothing items from the vocabulary table.
• ✅ Correct article (definite, indefinite, partitive) before each noun.
• ✅ Use of both pre‑posed and post‑posed adjectives where appropriate.
• ✅ Include at least one demonstrative adjective (ce, cet, cette, ces).
• ✅ One opinion sentence using set phrases (e.g., “J’aime bien… parce que…”).
• ✅ Check spelling of irregular plurals (manteaux, chapeaux, etc.).

Typical IGCSE exam tasks (linked to Assessment Objectives)

1. Reading comprehension (AO1‑AO2) – A short passage describing a person’s outfit. Students answer multiple‑choice or short‑answer questions focusing on vocabulary, gender/plural, and adjective agreement.
2. Writing – description (AO3‑AO4) – Write 80‑100 words describing what a classmate is wearing. Must use at least five adjectives (with correct placement) and three different clothing items.
3. Writing – opinion (AO3‑AO4) – Write a 50‑70 word paragraph stating whether you like a particular style of clothing and why, using set‑phrases such as “J’aime bien… parce que…”.
4. Listening (AO1‑AO2) – Listen to a dialogue in a shop. Fill in a table with the items mentioned, their quantities, any adjectives used and the price.
5. Speaking (AO5) – Role‑play a shop‑assistant and a customer. Use expressions like “Je cherche…”, “Quelle taille ?”, “C’est trop cher”, “Ça me va bien”. Assessment focuses on fluency, appropriate register and grammatical accuracy.

Practice activities

1. Vocabulary matching – Create cards with French words on one side and English translations on the other. Include the full list (shoes, gloves, montre, parapluie, etc.) and shuffle for matching.
2. Adjective‑agreement race – In pairs, give a mixed list of nouns and adjectives (both pre‑ and post‑posed). Students write the correct masculine/feminine singular and plural forms as quickly as possible, then check for agreement and placement.
3. Describe the picture – Provide a diagram of three people (male, female, teenager) wearing distinct outfits. Students write a paragraph (~100 words) describing each outfit, using at least six different clothing items, four adjectives, one demonstrative adjective and one opinion sentence.
4. Role‑play shop – One student is the shop assistant, the other a customer. Supply a price list and a set of “customer needs” (e.g., “Je cherche un manteau chaud, taille M”). Students must negotiate price, ask for size, and express approval or rejection using the set phrases.
5. Exam simulation – Distribute a past IGCSE writing prompt. Students write a timed response, then exchange papers for peer‑review using the mini‑checklist above.
6. Listening drill – Play a short audio clip of a shopping conversation. Students fill a table with item, adjective, price, quantity. Afterwards, compare answers and discuss any mis‑heard gender agreements.