French reading comprehension exercises graded A1 through B2 — 10 free French passages with questions, answers, vocabulary grids, and English translations. Read in your browser with no signup.
Prefer narrative format? Try French stories for beginners or French reading practice for more leveled input.
By the numbers
Source: Vocabulary research (Paul Nation, 2006)
Source: Word frequency research (Paul Nation, 2006)
Source: Language learning research on reading in context
Learning loop
Texts work differently from stories — shorter, topical, and built for vocabulary mining. Read first, confirm meaning, then lock in words.
What you get
Full passages
Tap highlighted words for glosses. Open one passage at a time — only the active reader stays expanded.
Quick drills
Compact French paragraphs for a five-minute session — same tap-to-learn tools as the full passages.
Prefer stories?
Narrative arcs with cover art and glossary — a different format, same Melolingua reading tools. Browse all A1 stories →
On a rainy Clichy bus, Nora must choose between helping with a stroller and arriving on time.
Yanis, with a crisp tie and calm demeanor, navigates a pivotal interview, leaving a lasting impression with his poised follow-up.
Sophie boards the early bus, hunts for coins in one pocket, and still keeps her window seat ritual before school.
Noah follows the aroma of cheese, tastes a nutty slice, and learns to wrap cheese like a local.
Continue reading
Story hub
Free graded French short stories from A1 through C1 — the narrative complement to these texts.
Reading hub
Leveled passages with glosses — pair with these texts for daily input volume.
Story format
Short A1–A2 narratives with full translations and glossed vocabulary.
By level
Beginner paragraphs and passages — start here if you need an easy French text.
Answers
Right here—eight graded French texts with translation for A1–B2, plus bonus paragraph drills. For story libraries with narration, open the French reader routes linked above or launch MeloLingua.
Aim for seventy to ninety words about concrete routines—cafés, commutes, neighbors—with present tense dominance and glossed connectors so liaison-heavy lines stay approachable.
Stick with the eighty-percent rule: miss roughly two lines worth of nouns—not whole paragraphs—and graduate upward only after comfortable second-pass reads without peeking.
They prime decoding, but listening locks liaison and intonation—carry vocabulary straight into MeloLingua French stories where narration mirrors what you read.
Melolingua delivers fresh French texts matched to your level, with native audio, tap-to-translate vocabulary, and speaking practice built in.