Technology in Everyday Life: Social Media and the Internet
Vocabulary for social media and the internet, part of the Technology in Everyday Life theme, covers nouns such as un réseau social (a social network), un compte (an account), un mot de passe (a password), la vie privée (privacy) and le harcèlement en ligne (cyberbullying); verbs including télécharger (to download), partager (to share), s'inscrire à (to sign up to) and publier (to post); and the language of opinion and debate around online life, including the false friend supporter, which means to tolerate or put up with, not to support. Examiners test both comprehension of internet-themed texts and the ability to give a balanced opinion on the benefits and dangers of social media.
Before you start
Make sure you're comfortable with these topics first:
Method
- Learn the core nouns with gender: un réseau social (masculine), un compte, un mot de passe, la vie privée (feminine), le harcèlement en ligne (masculine), un(e) abonné(e) (a subscriber/follower), un(e) influenceur/influenceuse.
- Learn the key verbs: télécharger (to download), partager une photo/une vidéo, s'inscrire à un réseau social (reflexive, irregular - je m'inscris), publier un post, commenter.
- Learn the false friend supporter: it means to tolerate or put up with, not to support (which is soutenir) - je ne supporte pas les commentaires méchants means 'I cannot stand nasty comments', not 'I support' them.
- Build balanced-opinion phrases used across social media tasks: d'un côté... de l'autre côté... (on one hand... on the other hand...), le plus grand avantage/inconvénient c'est que...
- Learn the vocabulary of safety and risk together, since exam texts often pair a benefit with a danger: protéger sa vie privée, le harcèlement en ligne, partager trop d'informations personnelles.
- Practise a full opinion sentence combining a verb, a noun and a justification: 'Je passe trop de temps sur les réseaux sociaux, ce qui m'empêche de dormir suffisamment.'
- When reading or listening, watch for a speaker qualifying their opinion mid-sentence with même si (even though) - this signals a nuanced view rather than a simple for/against statement, which is often what the higher-mark question is testing.
Worked example
Build a balanced opinion paragraph on social media using at least one advantage, one disadvantage and the false friend supporter used correctly.
- State the topic and a first advantage: les réseaux sociaux nous permettent de rester en contact avec nos amis.
- Add a second advantage using partager: on peut aussi partager des photos et des idées facilement.
- Pivot with d'un côté... de l'autre côté... to introduce a disadvantage: d'un côté c'est positif, mais de l'autre côté, il y a le problème du harcèlement en ligne.
- Use supporter correctly to add a personal reaction: je ne supporte pas les gens qui laissent des commentaires méchants.
- Close with a balanced conclusion: 'En général, je pense que les réseaux sociaux sont utiles, mais il faut protéger sa vie privée.'
Practice questions
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Q1What does supporter mean in French, and what English word does it NOT mean here?Show answer
Answer: It means to tolerate/put up with; it does not mean 'to support', which is soutenir.
Q2Translate into English: 'Je me suis inscrit(e) sur ce réseau social la semaine dernière.'Show answer
Answer: I signed up to this social network last week.
Q3Give the French for 'to download' and 'to share.'Show answer
Answer: télécharger; partager
Q4Translate into French: 'On the one hand it is useful, on the other hand it can be dangerous.'Show answer
Answer: D'un côté c'est utile, de l'autre côté ça peut être dangereux.
Q5What is le harcèlement en ligne, and what is its gender?Show answer
Answer: Cyberbullying/online harassment - masculine (le harcèlement).
Q6Give one French phrase meaning 'a follower/subscriber.'Show answer
Answer: un(e) abonné(e)
Q7Correct the error: 'Je supporte totalement mon influenceur préféré.' (intended meaning: I fully support my favourite influencer)Show answer
Answer: Je soutiens totalement mon influenceur préféré (supporter would mean 'I tolerate', which is not the intended meaning).
Exam-style questions
Written in the style of a GCSE French exam paper, with a full mark scheme.
Lisez ce texte, puis répondez aux questions en anglais. 'Je passe environ deux heures par jour sur les réseaux sociaux, surtout pour parler avec mes amis et partager des photos de vacances. Mais le mois dernier, j'ai reçu des commentaires méchants sous une photo, et je ne les ai pas supportes du tout. Depuis, je fais plus attention à ce que je publie, et j'ai change les paramètres de ma vie privée.' (a) How much time does the writer spend on social media each day, and for what two purposes? (3 marks) (b) What happened last month, and how did the writer react? (2 marks) (c) What two things has the writer done since then? (2 marks)
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Écrivez environ 90 mots en français sur les réseaux sociaux. Mentionnez: comment vous utilisez les réseaux sociaux; un avantage et un inconvénient; et ce que vous pensez du harcèlement en ligne.
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See real GCSE French past-paper questions, with official mark schemes →
Free printable worksheet
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