DELF B1 Reading Comprehension: Strategies and Practice Exercises
The compréhension des écrits of DELF B1 tests your ability to understand texts more complex than at A2: press articles, letters, guides and informative documents. Here are the most effective strategies to maximise your score.
Types of Text in B1 Reading Comprehension
B1 includes two reading comprehension exercises: (1) An informative or descriptive text (article, guide, leaflet) with 5-6 questions. (2) An opinion or argumentative text (letter to the editor, opinion article) with 4-5 comprehension and inference questions. Texts are between 200 and 350 words long.
Reading Strategies for B1
The most effective strategy for B1: (1) Read the title and first paragraph to grasp the general topic. (2) Read all the questions before reading the full text. (3) Underline the key words in the questions. (4) Read the text looking for the information each question needs. (5) Never answer from memory: always locate the information in the text.
Inferring the Meaning of Unknown Words
At B1 you will meet unknown words. Strategies for inferring them: (1) Context: the rest of the sentence gives clues. (2) Cognates: many French words look like their English equivalents. (3) Morphology: prefixes (re-, dé-, in-) and suffixes (-tion, -ment, -eur) help you work out meaning. (4) Word type: is it a noun, verb or adjective? What role does it play in the sentence?
Practice exercises
"Ce projet ambitieux a suscité des interrogations parmi la population." What does "susciter" mean?
The main idea of a text is...
"Bien que favorable à ce projet, la maire n'a pas caché ses inquiétudes." What is the mayor's attitude?
Exam tips
- Always read headings, footnotes and text boxes: they give important context
- Underline the key words in each question before reading the text: they guide your reading
- In "true / false / not stated" questions, "not stated" is a valid answer if the text gives no information on the point
- Practise with articles from RFI, Le Figaro Junior or 1jour1actu to get used to journalistic French
- Transition vocabulary (*cependant*, *or*, *alors que*) is key to following the logic of the text
Prepara el DELF B1 con DelfOnline
Ejercicios interactivos, simulacros reales y preparación completa desde A1 hasta DALF C2.