CEFR B1 · Intermédiaire

B1 French - Intermediate

The threshold. You can hold an opinion, tell a story that lasts more than one sentence, and be understood.

Levels: 14
Grammar points: 90
Active vocabulary: ≈2,000 words
Certified by: DELF B1

Where B1 counts. The level asked for France's 10-year carte de résident.

What you can do at B1

Follow the main points of clear standard French on familiar matters.
Deal with most situations that come up while travelling in France.
Produce connected text on topics you know, and explain a point of view.
Describe experiences, plans and ambitions, and give reasons for them.

Story length

350–650 words · 7–10 pages

Typical study time

350–400 guided hours

French you meet here

cependant · réussir · il faudrait

Study-time figures are the guided-hour ranges commonly published by French language schools, counted cumulatively from zero. They describe a classroom average, not a promise.

Why B1 is the level it is

B1 is the threshold the CEFR is named after - the point where French becomes a language you use rather than a subject you study. The grammar shifts from describing to arguing: the conditional for hypotheses and politeness, relative pronouns to build sentences longer than one clause, the future for plans, and reported speech for repeating what somebody else said.

The step-change at B1 is structural. Below it you produce sentences; at B1 you produce paragraphs, and that requires an inventory of connectors - cependant, en revanche, c'est-à-dire, d'ailleurs - that no beginner course covers properly. They carry almost no meaning on their own, which is precisely why lists fail to teach them and why reading does.

It is also the level at which passive comprehension outruns active production for the first time. You will understand far more than you can say, and that gap is normal and temporary. It closes by continuing to read, not by stopping to drill.

The B1 curriculum, unit by unit

14 levels and 90 grammar points, in the order Gallus teaches them. Each unit lists its must-know forms with a real example - the supporting points are covered inside the stories.

B1.1 Plus-que-Parfait 7 points

Plus-que-parfait (formation)

j'avais parlé, tu étais arrivé(e), il avait fait, elle était partie

PQP: imperfect of avoir/être + past participle

PQP pour antériorité dans le passé

Quand je suis arrivé, il était déjà parti. Elle avait fini avant que nous arrivions.

PQP = action completed before another past action (narrative sequence)
B1.2 Gérondif & Participe Présent 7 points

Gérondif: en + participe présent

Il chante en travaillant. Elle est tombée en courant. C'est en forgeant...

en + -ant form: while doing / by doing (same subject)

Gérondif de simultanéité

Je lis en mangeant. Il écoute de la musique en conduisant.

Two simultaneous actions by the same subject
B1.3 Discours Indirect au Présent 7 points

Discours indirect: il dit que + indicatif

«Je suis fatigué» → Il dit qu'il est fatigué. «J'ai faim» → Elle dit qu'elle a faim.

Reporting statements (main verb present): tenses unchanged

Discours indirect: il demande si (oui/non)

«Tu viens ?» → Il demande si je viens. «Elle est là ?» → Il demande si elle est là.

Reporting yes/no questions: si + indicatif (no inversion)
B1.4 Pronoms Relatifs: Dont & Lequel 6 points

DONT (remplace de + nom)

Le film dont je parle. L'homme dont j'ai oublié le nom. La chose dont j'ai besoin.

dont = of which/of whom/whose - after verbs/adj requiring de

CE QUI / CE QUE / CE DONT

Je ne sais pas ce qui se passe. Tu comprends ce qu'il dit ? C'est ce dont j'avais besoin.

Neutral relative pronouns when no antecedent noun
B1.5 La Voix Passive 6 points

Voix passive - présent, PC, imparfait

Le gâteau est mangé (prés.). La lettre a été envoyée (PC). Il était critiqué (imp.).

Passive: être (conjugated) + past participle (agrees with subject)

Complément d'agent: par + agent

Le livre a été écrit par Camus. Elle a été vue par ses collègues.

par = by (active agent performing the action)
B1.6 Adjectifs avancés - Position & Double Sens 6 points

Adjectifs qui changent de sens selon la position

un ancien ami (ex-ami) / un ami ancien (âgé) - un homme pauvre (sans argent) / un pauvre homme (pitoyable)

ancien, pauvre, cher, propre, grand, seul, certain, vrai, même change meaning by position
B1.7 Superlatifs & Comparatifs Irréguliers 7 points

Superlatif d'adjectif: le/la/les plus - le/la/les moins

C'est le film le plus intéressant. La moins chère des options.

Superlative adjectives - article agrees with noun

Meilleur / Mieux / Pire / Plus mauvais

C'est le meilleur restaurant. Il parle mieux. C'est pire que je pensais.

Irregular superlatives and comparatives
B1.8 Pronoms - Celui/Celle & Indéfinis B1 6 points

Celui / Celle / Ceux / Celles (de / qui / que)

Je préfère celui de Paris. C'est celle qui est rouge. Prends ceux que tu veux.

Demonstrative pronouns: the one(s) - followed by de/qui/que/-ci/-là
B1.9 Cause & Conséquence 7 points

Cause: parce que / car / puisque / comme

Je reste parce que j'ai du travail. Comme il pleuvait, nous sommes restés.

because (parce que = answer to pourquoi; car = formal; puisque = shared knowledge; comme = fronted cause)

Cause: à cause de / grâce à

À cause de la pluie, le match est annulé. Grâce à toi, j'ai réussi.

à cause de = because of (negative connotation); grâce à = thanks to (positive)
B1.10 Concession & Opposition 7 points

Mais / Cependant / Pourtant / Néanmoins

Il est riche mais pas heureux. Il travaille dur, pourtant il échoue.

but / however / yet / nonetheless (contrast connectors)

Malgré + nom

Malgré la pluie, nous sommes sortis. Malgré son talent, il échoue.

Despite + noun (no verb following)
B1.11 Prépositions & Verbes de Déplacement 6 points

Verbes de déplacement + prépositions

entrer dans, sortir de, passer par, monter dans, descendre de, partir pour

Movement verbs each take a specific preposition
B1.12 Négations B1 & Omission du NE 6 points

Ne...nulle part (nowhere)

Il n'est nulle part. Je ne le trouve nulle part.

ne...nulle part = nowhere (vs quelque part = somewhere)
B1.13 Faire Causatif & Verbes de Perception 6 points

Faire + infinitif (causatif)

Je fais réparer ma voiture. Il fait travailler ses employés. Elle m'a fait rire.

Causative faire: to have/get/make someone do something
B1.14 Hypothèses & Condition B1 6 points

Si + imparfait → conditionnel (révision approfondie)

Si j'avais le temps, je viendrais. Si elle travaillait plus, elle réussirait.

Unreal present condition: if + imperfect → conditional present

How to actually get through B1

Hunt connectors, not just words

When you meet en revanche or d'ailleurs, note the whole sentence, not the word. Connectors only mean anything relative to what came before, so a bare definition is close to useless.

Let subordinate clauses get long

B1 writing that still reads like A2 is usually a run of short sentences. Deliberately join two with qui, que, dont or où - dont in particular is the one learners avoid for years.

Use the conditional for politeness first

The conditional is easier to install as a register than as a tense. Je voudrais, pourriez-vous, il faudrait - get those automatic, and the hypothetical uses follow with almost no extra effort.

Switch your input to native material

B1 is where graded content stops being the whole diet. Add real French with a familiar structure - news written for a broad audience, podcast transcripts, blogs on a subject you already know - and let the stories keep covering the grammar systematically.

B1 French - frequently asked questions

What level is B1 French, in practice?

B1 means you can deal with most situations that arise while travelling in France, follow the main points of clear standard speech on familiar topics, produce connected text about your experiences, and give and justify an opinion. It is the level generally described as conversational fluency, and it is what the 10-year carte de résident asks for.

Is B1 enough for French citizenship?

It was, until recently. Since 1 January 2026 naturalisation requires B2 across all four skills, not B1 - a candidate who scores B2 in three skills and B1 in speaking does not qualify. B1 remains the level for the 10-year carte de résident. Files that were complete before 31 December 2025 are still assessed under the old rule, and requirements change, so verify with the préfecture before booking anything.

How many hours does B1 French take?

About 350–400 cumulative guided hours from zero, plus independent study, which typically works out at two to three years of consistent part-time learning. The US Foreign Service Institute budget of 600–750 hours to professional proficiency puts B1 a little past the halfway mark.

How many words do I need at B1?

Around 2,000 active words, but the more useful number is coverage: the 2,000 most frequent French words account for the large majority of running text in ordinary prose. What separates B1 from A2 is less raw vocabulary than the ability to build long sentences out of it.

What grammar is tested at B1?

The conditional present and past, the simple future, relative pronouns including dont and lequel, reported speech and the tense shifts it forces, the passive, si clauses, and the first genuinely required uses of the subjunctive after expressions of will and emotion.

Previous level

A2 - Elementary

Next level

B2 - Advanced

The whole roadmap: 61 levels, 424 grammar points

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