A nice table "à la française"

"Une belle table à la française"
French B2 writing exercise

Jacqueline explains the intricacies of setting the table the French way.

Pay attention to the hints!

Some vocabulary you may want to look up before or during this exercise: "to lay [US: set] a table", "basic principles", "cutlery", "to be arranged (objects)", "a blade", "prongs (fork)", "a fish knife".

Written by Qualified French Expert Aurélie Drouard HKH, Licence d'anglais LLCE
Last updated: 2023-03-13

I’ll give you some sentences to translate into French

  • I’ll show you where you make mistakes
  • I’ll keep track of what you need to practise
  • Change my choices if you want
Start the exercise
How the test works
You’ll practise: Le Futur Simple (Indicatif), Le Subjonctif Présent, Verbes réguliers avec -ER

Here's a preview of the text for the writing challenge, when you're ready click the start button above:

How to lay [US: set] a pretty table the French way Whether you're having friends for lunch or you're organising an elegant dinner, the basic principles remain the same. The cutlery will surround the dinner plate. It's important for it to be arranged from the outside to the inside, following the order of its use. Thus, the cutlery most distant from the plate will be that with which you'll enjoy your starter. You'll place knives on the right, blade towards the plate, and forks on the left, prongs facing the table. If you're serving seafood or fish, you'll add a "fish knife" with a flat blade. Above the plate will be the dessert cutlery, spoon and fork.

Clever stuff happening!