CEFR B2
What you will learn
- Interpret the journalistic conditional as epistemic distancing rather than an automatic hypothesis.
- Choose simple or compound conditional by event time and attribute the source without strengthening certainty.
Before you start
- Have studied “Future and conditional: stems, endings and uses”.
The idea
In a French news report, a conditional is not setting up a hypothesis: it is warning you that the paper could not confirm the fact.
You already know two uses of the conditional: the hypothesis — “je viendrais si j'avais le temps” — and politeness — “je voudrais un café”. There is a third, and it does not follow from the other two.
In the press, putting the verb in the conditional means “apparently” or “according to sources we have not verified”. “Le président serait malade” is not saying the president would be ill under some circumstance: it is saying that he is reported to be ill and that the paper is not vouching for it.
For a past event the compound conditional is used: “le suspect aurait quitté le pays”, “il y aurait eu trois blessés”. This is what you will see in headlines on day one of any incident, before anything is confirmed.
And it is a way of writing, not an ornament. A French journalist who wrote “le président est malade” without having confirmed it would be asserting something he cannot stand behind; with the conditional he reports it and separates himself from it at the same time. That is why it appears so often: it is a precision tool.
When reading, the conditional form is a cue, not an automatic interpretation: context decides among hypothesis, politeness and reporting distance. In writing, markers such as “selon la police” or “d’après le journal” attribute the source and make that distance explicit.
Working paradigm
| Event time | Form | Reading |
|---|---|---|
| actuel / simultané | serait, aurait | non confirmé maintenant |
| antérieur | aurait été, aurait quitté | non confirmé dans le passé |
| confirmé | est, a quitté | assertion à l’indicatif |
The conditional form alone does not identify this value: news context and the absence of a condition are essential.
How it sounds
- Selon des sources locales, la route aurait été fermée pendant la nuit.The report comes from sources and is unconfirmed. The closure happened before the reporting time. Use the compound conditional: aurait été fermée.
Check objective 1Another case
Mark the journalist’s reservation about a present state grammatically: D’après plusieurs témoins, mais sans confirmation officielle, un second véhicule ___ impliqué.
Mark the journalist’s reservation about a present state grammatically: D’après plusieurs témoins, mais sans confirmation officielle, un second véhicule ___ impliqué.
Answer available without interaction
Answer: serait — The explicit lack of confirmation and witness attribution present an unconfirmed current state, so the simple conditional is used.
The explicit lack of confirmation and witness attribution present an unconfirmed current state, so the simple conditional is used.
Answer: serait — The explicit lack of confirmation and witness attribution present an unconfirmed current state, so the simple conditional is used.
The explicit lack of confirmation and witness attribution present an unconfirmed current state, so the simple conditional is used.
Check objective 2Another case
Mark the journalist’s reservation about a past sale grammatically: Selon le quotidien, sans confirmation indépendante, la société ___ vendu sa filiale en avril.
Mark the journalist’s reservation about a past sale grammatically: Selon le quotidien, sans confirmation indépendante, la société ___ vendu sa filiale en avril.
Answer available without interaction
Answer: aurait — The sale is earlier and explicitly unconfirmed: conditional avoir plus vendu.
The sale is earlier and explicitly unconfirmed: conditional avoir plus vendu.
Answer: aurait — The sale is earlier and explicitly unconfirmed: conditional avoir plus vendu.
The sale is earlier and explicitly unconfirmed: conditional avoir plus vendu.
When it doesn't hold
What breaks the rule, said out loud. Hiding it is what makes you feel cheated in the exam.
- Unconfirmed current reportLe dispositif serait défaillant.
- Unconfirmed earlier reportLe dispositif aurait cessé de fonctionner.
- ConditionIl fonctionnerait avec une batterie neuve.
What your own language pushes you to say
Wrong Selon une rumeur non vérifiée, le musée a fermé définitivement.
Right Selon une rumeur non vérifiée, le musée aurait fermé définitivement.
The indicative turns the report into an assertion; the compound conditional preserves both anteriority and lack of confirmation.
Challenge: apply both rules
Solve both cases and justify each choice: 1) Una propuesta responde «est» a este caso: «D’après plusieurs témoins, mais sans confirmation officielle, un second véhicule est impliqué.». Elige la única forma válida. 2) Una propuesta responde «aura» a este caso: «Selon le quotidien, sans confirmation indépendante, la société aura vendu sa filiale en avril.». Elige la única forma válida.
Answer available without interaction
- Interpret the journalistic conditional as epistemic distancing rather than an automatic hypothesis.
- Choose simple or compound conditional by event time and attribute the source without strengthening certainty.
Answer: serait · aurait
The explicit lack of confirmation and witness attribution present an unconfirmed current state, so the simple conditional is used. The sale is earlier and explicitly unconfirmed: conditional avoir plus vendu.
Curriculum alignment and sources
- CEFR B2 · understand complex texts, interact fluently and produce clear, detailed texts; B2.2 is an internal editorial sequence. · Common European Framework of Reference for Languages: Companion Volume
- French-specific reference descriptions used to cross-check B2 forms; they are not a universal school curriculum. · Reference Level Descriptions · French
- La norma estatal usa el MCER como referencia, pero no asigna B2.1/B2.2 a un curso. Este catálogo no crea esa equivalencia. · Real Decreto 243/2022, currículo básico de Bachillerato
- Las fuentes oficiales distinguen recorridos. Este paquete no publica una equivalencia universal B2→ano. · Organização curricular · Francês · iniciação e continuação
- La fuente reutilizada fija A1 al final del primer ciclo y no acredita B2 de Francés en una clase italiana concreta. · Decreto 9 dicembre 2025, n. 221 · nuove Indicazioni nazionali
Continue along this corridor
Practise this: The conditional for unconfirmed informationAdvanced French negation: restriction, combinations and expletive neDepuis, pendant, il y a, dans and en: duration, origin and deadlineGérondif, participe présent and adjectif verbal: three -ant formsPronominal verbs: classes, auxiliary and participle agreementNominalisation in written French: formation, complements and style