Picture-matching questions test your ability to connect everyday French vocabulary, public signs, and short activity phrases to illustrations or photos. You may be asked to match pictures with French labels, using letters or numbers as instructed.
Signs and Places in Town
Many matching questions test public buildings, transport hubs, and street signs. Instead of translating every detail, focus on the core noun that names the location.
| French Sign | English Meaning |
|---|---|
| La gare | Train station |
| Le bureau de poste | Post office |
| La station-service | Petrol station |
| L'église | Church |
| Le terrain de foot | Football pitch |
| Rue piétonne | Pedestrian street |
Similar-looking words can help: le restaurant means restaurant, and l'hôpital means hospital. Check the whole label before choosing.
Recognising Chores and Hobbies
Another regular question type presents people carrying out everyday routines, sports, or hobbies. Look closely at the main action rather than small items in the background.
- Faire la cuisine: Cooking food with pots, pans, or a cooker.
- Faire les devoirs: Doing homework at a study desk.
- Faire les courses: Buying groceries at a shop or supermarket.
- Laver la voiture: Washing a car with water or a sponge.
- Écouter de la musique: Listening to music, often shown with headphones.
- Aller au cinéma: Going to the cinema to watch a film.
Notice the difference between games and instruments. French uses jouer à for sports (jouer au foot), but jouer de for musical instruments (jouer de la guitare).
Notices, Warnings, and Qualifying Words
Public notices often signal permissions, directions, or strict prohibitions. Read the whole label, including any words that narrow or change its meaning.
- Interdit and défense de: Both mean forbidden, often shown with a red diagonal slash, such as défense de fumer (no smoking) or stationnement interdit (no parking).
- Ouvert and fermé: Ouvert means open; fermé means closed.
- Entrée and sortie: Entrée marks an entrance; sortie marks an exit.
- Commercial and direction signs: Maison à vendre means house for sale, bateaux à louer means boats for hire, tournez à gauche means turn left, and tournez à droite means turn right.
Read the whole label: sortie de camions means a lorry exit, not a pedestrian exit.
Key terms
- Panneau
- A public sign or notice giving directions, warnings, or information.
- Faux ami
- A word that resembles an English word but has a different meaning: librairie means bookshop; bibliothèque means library.
- Infinitif
- The basic form of a verb, used on signs and activity labels, e.g. nager, laver.
- Interdit / Défense de
- French phrases meaning forbidden, indicating a prohibition or restriction.
- Ouvert / Fermé
- Opposite terms indicating whether a venue is open (ouvert) or closed (fermé).
Check yourself
Which French phrase describes a student working on school assignments at home?
Faire les devoirs.
What does a sign stating 'Défense de fumer' mean?
No smoking (smoking is forbidden).
Which preposition structure describes playing a musical instrument: 'jouer à' or 'jouer de'?
'Jouer de' (e.g. jouer de la guitare).
What is the English meaning of 'rue piétonne'?
Pedestrian street.