Essential Grammar for the Bac
Fiche de grammaire anglaise Terminale : temps, modaux, conditionnels, voix passive, discours indirect — tous les points grammaticaux essentiels pour le bac.
Programme officiel
Compétences linguistiques — Maîtrise des structures grammaticales essentielles pour l'expression écrite et orale au bac.
Cours complet
I. Tenses — When to Use What
Present simple: habits, general truths ("Water boils at 100°C"). Present continuous: actions in progress, temporary situations ("I'm studying for the bac"). Present perfect: past action with present relevance ("I have read three novels this year"). Past simple: completed actions ("Shakespeare wrote Hamlet in 1601"). Past continuous: background actions ("While I was reading, the phone rang"). Past perfect: action before another past action ("By the time I arrived, the exam had started"). Future: will (spontaneous decision), going to (planned intention), present continuous (arrangements).
II. Modals — Expressing Certainty, Obligation and Possibility
Certainty: must (strong), should (probable), may/might (possible), can't (impossible). Obligation: must (strong), have to (external), should/ought to (advice). Permission: can, may (formal), could (polite). Ability: can (present), could (past), be able to (all tenses). Past modals: must have + past participle (certainty about past), should have (regret), could have (missed opportunity). "He must have forgotten" vs. "He should have remembered" vs. "He could have called".
III. Conditionals
Type 0: If + present, present ("If you heat water, it boils" — general truth). Type 1: If + present, will + infinitive ("If I study hard, I will pass" — likely). Type 2: If + past, would + infinitive ("If I were president, I would change the law" — hypothetical). Type 3: If + past perfect, would have + past participle ("If I had studied, I would have passed" — regret about the past). Mixed conditional: "If I had studied medicine (past), I would be a doctor (present)".
IV. Passive Voice and Reported Speech
Passive: subject receives the action. "The novel was written by Orwell" (focus on novel, not author). Use in formal/academic writing and when the agent is unknown or unimportant. Reported speech: shift tenses back. "I love English" → She said (that) she loved English. "I will study" → He said he would study. "Have you finished?" → She asked if I had finished. Watch for changes in pronouns, time expressions (today → that day, tomorrow → the next day).
Key Vocabulary
Méthode bac
La grammaire anglaise au bac n'est pas testée de façon isolée mais à travers l'expression écrite et orale. Un essai truffé d'erreurs de temps ou de modaux fait mauvaise impression. Relisez-vous en vérifiant : 1) Concordance des temps, 2) Usage correct des modaux, 3) Structures conditionnelles, 4) Accords sujet-verbe. Astuce : lisez à voix haute pour repérer les erreurs.
Exercices d'entraînement
Q1 : Correct the errors: "If I would have known, I will come earlier."
Answer: Correct: "If I had known, I would have come earlier." (Type 3 conditional: If + past perfect, would have + past participle.) The original mixes conditional types and uses "would" in the if-clause, which is incorrect in standard English.
Q2 : Rewrite in reported speech: "I am studying for my English exam," she told me.
Answer: She told me (that) she was studying for her English exam. Rules applied: present continuous → past continuous, "I" → "she", "my" → "her".
Q3 : Choose the correct modal: "You ___ have told me earlier!" (obligation/regret)
Answer: "You should have told me earlier!" — "Should have" expresses regret about a past action that didn't happen. "Must have" would express certainty ("You must have told someone" = I'm sure you told someone). "Could have" would express a missed possibility.
Q4 : Transform to passive: "Scientists have discovered a new species."
Answer: "A new species has been discovered (by scientists)." Present perfect active → present perfect passive (have/has + been + past participle). The agent "by scientists" is optional since it's obvious.
Q5 : Explain the difference: "I've been to London" vs "I've gone to London."
Answer: "I've been to London" = I visited London and returned (experience). "I've gone to London" = I went to London and I'm still there (current location). "Been" emphasises the experience; "gone" emphasises the current state. This distinction is frequently tested and commonly confused by French speakers.
À retenir pour le bac
- •Tenses — notion clé à maîtriser pour cet axe.
- •Modals — notion clé à maîtriser pour cet axe.
- •Conditionals — notion clé à maîtriser pour cet axe.
- •Passive voice — notion clé à maîtriser pour cet axe.
- •Reported speech — notion clé à maîtriser pour cet axe.
Autres fiches d'anglais Terminale
Fiche complète sur le thème Identités et échanges en anglais Terminale : mondialisation, multiculturalisme, migrations et identité culturelle dans le monde anglophone.
Private and Public SpheresFiche de révision anglais Terminale sur l'espace privé et l'espace public : surveillance, réseaux sociaux, vie privée et libertés individuelles dans les pays anglophones.
Art and PowerFiche anglais Terminale sur Art et pouvoir : comment l'art conteste, soutient ou subvertit le pouvoir politique dans le monde anglophone — street art, musique, littérature engagée.
Citizenship and Virtual WorldsFiche de révision anglais Terminale sur citoyenneté et mondes virtuels : activisme en ligne, démocratie numérique, fake news et identité digitale.
Citizenship and Virtual WorldsFiche de révision anglais Terminale sur citoyenneté et mondes virtuels : activisme en ligne, démocratie numérique, fake news, intelligence artificielle et identité digitale.
