Of great renown throughout the French-speaking world, the dictée first saw the light of day in 1850s France. Initially, it was conceived to replace cacography, where mistakes were purposefully introduced into texts for students to come correct them. Before long, there were dictées targeting specific facets of French spelling and grammar, each adapted to a different class or academic establishment. Since then, la dictée has become a truly iconic exercise, proudly standing above other tests and examinations..

Under Napoleon III, the dictée became a pastime for people of all ages. Individuals spiced it up with orthographical challenges–rare or antiquated words were thrown in to trip people up, and obscure grammar rules and exceptions only made things trickier. The most notable of these was the famous dictée de Mérimée, personally commissioned by Empress Eugénie in 1857. In the 1980s, the dictée was given new life by Bernard Pivot and today, you can find dictée championships organized across the whole Francophone world.