The fait divers
You retell a news item in the past. Graders look for the passé composé on the events and the imparfait on the setting. Mixing the two is the most common tense error in TEF writing.
- Passé composé
- Imparfait
- Futur simple
Le Bon Temps: the French tenses game
Short stories shaped like real TEF and TCF tasks, with the verbs taken out. Choose the tense that fits, keep your streak, and read the rule behind every answer.
Le Bon Temps
Salut ! Moi, c’est Mocko.
Pick a level and fill the story with the right tense. Three lives, one streak, and I explain every answer.
- 3 lives
- streak bonus
- 3 stars per story
- 24 exam-style stories
- 195 blanks across 10 tenses
- The rule after every answer
How to play
- 1
Pick a level
Niveau 1 covers the present, passé composé, imparfait and futur proche. Niveau 2 adds the futur simple, conditionnel and impératif. Niveau 3 is the subjonctif, plus-que-parfait and si-clauses.
- 2
Fill the story
Each round is one short text in the shape of a real exam task: a fait divers, an email to a landlord, an invitation. Tap the verb form that fits each blank. Three forms, one tense is right.
- 3
Read the rule
Every answer comes with the one-line rule behind it. A wrong tense costs a life; three lives and the story is over. Your streak and best scores stay on this device.
Why tense choice decides your writing score
Every TEF and TCF writing task has a tense pattern the graders expect. The game's stories follow those patterns, so each level maps onto a task you will meet on exam day.
Messages and letters
A booking, a complaint, an invitation. Politeness lives in the conditionnel (je voudrais), instructions in the impératif, and promises in the futur simple (vous trouverez ci-joint).
- Conditionnel présent
- Impératif
- Futur simple
- Présent
Opinions and arguments
Il faut que, bien que, je doute que: the subjonctif marks a B2 writer. Regrets and hypotheses bring in the plus-que-parfait and the conditionnel passé.
- Subjonctif présent
- Plus-que-parfait
- Conditionnel passé
The ten tenses in the game
One line on when to use each tense, an example from the stories, and where it shows up in the exam.
Présent
Niveau 1What is true now, habits, and fixed plans with a time marker.
« J'habite à Montréal depuis un an. »
Every task: introductions, requests, opinions.
Passé composé
Niveau 1A completed event or a sequence of events in the past.
« Hier, je suis arrivé à la gare à vingt heures. »
TEF Section A fait divers, TCF Tâche 2 stories.
Imparfait
Niveau 1Background, descriptions, habits and actions in progress in the past.
« Il faisait froid et la rue était vide. »
Setting the scene in any past narrative.
Futur proche
Niveau 1Aller + infinitive for a plan or something about to happen.
« Ce soir, je vais envoyer les photos. »
Messages to friends, simple plans.
Futur simple
Niveau 2Predictions, promises, and the result of "si + présent"; also after "quand" about the future.
« Vous trouverez ci-joint mon billet. »
Formal letters, TEF Section A closing lines.
Conditionnel présent
Niveau 2Polite requests, wishes, and the result of "si + imparfait".
« Je voudrais savoir quand un technicien pourra passer. »
TCF Tâche 2 and TEF Section B formal requests.
Impératif
Niveau 2Instructions, advice and invitations.
« Apportez quelque chose à boire. »
Invitations and advice tasks.
Subjonctif présent
Niveau 3After il faut que, bien que, pour que, and verbs of doubt, wish or emotion.
« Il faut que vous me remboursiez le billet. »
TCF Tâche 3 and TEF Section B argumentation.
Plus-que-parfait
Niveau 3An action completed before another past moment; "si + plus-que-parfait" for unreal past conditions.
« Personne ne m'avait prévenu. »
Reported speech and causes in past narratives.
Conditionnel passé
Niveau 3Regrets and the result of an unreal past condition.
« Si j'avais reçu un message, j'aurais pu rester chez moi. »
B2 narratives and complaint letters.
Frequently asked questions
Which French tenses does the game practise?
Ten tenses across three levels: présent, passé composé, imparfait and futur proche at Niveau 1; futur simple, conditionnel présent and impératif at Niveau 2; subjonctif présent, plus-que-parfait and conditionnel passé at Niveau 3. Each blank asks you to choose between three forms of the same verb in different tenses, so the game trains the choice of tense, not just the spelling of the ending.
Is it free? Do I need an account?
Yes, it is free, and no account is needed. Your best scores, streaks and the stories you have already played are saved in your browser only.
Where do the verb forms come from?
Every form is produced by a conjugation table built into the page, not by an AI model, so the spelling of each option is checked. The stories themselves are written to match the task types of the TEF Canada and TCF Canada writing tests.
What is the difference between the passé composé and the imparfait?
The passé composé reports an event that happened and finished: hier, je suis arrivé à vingt heures. The imparfait describes the background around it: il faisait froid, la rue était vide, je dormais quand le téléphone a sonné. In a fait divers, the events are in the passé composé and the scene is in the imparfait.
When do I need the subjunctive?
After expressions of necessity, wish, doubt and emotion followed by que: il faut que, je voudrais que, je doute que, je suis heureux que, and after conjunctions like bien que and pour que. The game shows the trigger in the sentence, so you learn to spot it.
How does this help with my TEF or TCF score?
Writing and speaking graders assess grammatical control, and tense choice is the most visible part of it. Practising the choice in exam-shaped texts, with the rule explained every time, builds the reflex you need under time pressure. To see how your own writing scores, try a timed task on Mocko and read the corrected draft.
More free French resources
French dictionaryWords, examples and meanings for the vocabulary in these stories.TEF and TCF lessonsFree lessons on each section of the exams, with sample answers.Sample examsFull TEF and TCF papers to download and time yourself on.TEF and TCF statisticsWhat 2,091 scored mock sections say about reaching B2.
Now use those tenses in a real task
Mocko gives you timed TEF and TCF writing and speaking tasks with instant AI feedback. Every tense slip is marked and explained on your own draft. Free to start.
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