Technology and the Internet in Everyday Life
Technology and the internet in everyday life is the translation topic covering present-tense descriptions of using phones, apps and the internet, direct object pronoun placement when referring back to a device or app already mentioned, negative structures (ne...plus, ne...jamais) for changing digital habits, and the idiom être accro à (to be addicted to). Examiners are testing whether students place object pronouns correctly before the verb (and before the auxiliary in compound tenses, with agreement) and translate negatives that wrap around the verb.
Before you start
Make sure you're comfortable with these topics first:
Method
- Read the whole sentence/passage first.
- Identify tense/person; note that describing habits ('I use my phone every day') is present tense, while a change in habit ('I no longer use... / I have stopped using...') often needs ne...plus with the present or perfect tense.
- When a noun (a phone, an app, a website) has already been mentioned, French replaces it with a direct object pronoun (le, la, les) placed immediately before the verb: mon portable, je l'utilise tous les jours (not je utilise le after the verb).
- In a compound tense, the pronoun goes before the auxiliary and the past participle agrees with it: je l'ai acheté (masculine) / je l'ai achetée (feminine, e.g. an application).
- Translate negatives by wrapping the conjugated verb (or the auxiliary in a compound tense) with ne...pas/ne...plus/ne...jamais: je ne regarde plus la télévision (I no longer watch television).
- Translate être accro à by meaning (to be addicted to/hooked on), not word for word.
- Write a full draft, check agreements last, then read the sentence back for natural phrasing.
Worked example
Translate into French: I bought a new phone last month and I use it every day, but my parents think I am addicted to social media and I should stop checking it so often.
- Chunk the sentence: 'I bought a new phone last month' / 'I use it every day' / 'my parents think I am addicted to social media' / 'I should stop checking it so often'.
- 'I bought... last month' is a completed past action, so perfect tense: j'ai acheté un nouveau portable le mois dernier.
- 'I use it every day' - 'it' refers back to the phone, so the object pronoun le goes before the verb: je l'utilise tous les jours.
- 'addicted to social media' is être accro à: mes parents pensent que je suis accro aux réseaux sociaux.
- 'I should stop checking it' uses devoir + infinitive, with arrêter de + infinitive, and the pronoun le for 'it' before the infinitive vérifier: je devrais arrêter de le vérifier si souvent.
- Full translation: J'ai acheté un nouveau portable le mois dernier et je l'utilise tous les jours, mais mes parents pensent que je suis accro aux réseaux sociaux et je devrais arrêter de le vérifier si souvent.
Practice questions
Try each question, then tap to reveal the answer.
Q1Translate into English: Je passe trop de temps sur mon portable, donc je ne le regarde plus le soir.Show answer
Answer: I spend too much time on my phone, so I no longer look at it in the evening.
Q2Translate into French: I no longer use that application.Show answer
Answer: Je n'utilise plus cette application.
Q3Translate into English: Elle est accro aux jeux vidéo et elle y joue tous les jours.Show answer
Answer: She is addicted to video games and she plays them every day.
Q4Spot the error and correct it: 'J'ai acheté le portable et je utilise le tous les jours.'Show answer
Answer: The object pronoun le must come before the verb it belongs to; it should read: J'ai acheté le portable et je l'utilise tous les jours.
Q5Translate into French: My little brother spends hours watching videos on his tablet.Show answer
Answer: Mon petit frère passe des heures à regarder des vidéos sur sa tablette.
Q6Translate into English: Nous ne communiquons plus par lettre, nous envoyons des messages.Show answer
Answer: We no longer communicate by letter, we send messages.
Q7Translate into French: I bought that laptop two years ago and I still use it every day.Show answer
Answer: J'ai acheté cet ordinateur portable il y a deux ans et je l'utilise encore tous les jours.
Exam-style questions
Written in the style of a GCSE French exam paper, with a full mark scheme.
Translate this passage into English: J'ai un nouveau smartphone depuis trois mois et je l'utilise pour tout: pour communiquer avec mes amis, pour faire mes devoirs et pour regarder des vidéos. Mes parents disent que je suis accro à mon portable et que je devrais l'éteindre plus souvent. Ils ont peut-être raison, parce que je ne lis plus de livres.
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Translate this passage into French: Social media is very important for young people today. I check my phone all the time and I have used the same application for two years. However, my grandmother thinks that we spend too much time online and that we should switch off our phones more often. She never uses the internet.
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See real GCSE French past-paper questions, with official mark schemes →
Free printable worksheet
Want more practice on paper? Download the technology and the internet in everyday life worksheet pack - 8 pages of exam-style questions with a full mark scheme. One email opens every download in this browser for 14 days - no account, no card. Print it for personal and classroom use.
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