N'avaient (en. Had not)

/n‿avɛ/

Meaning & Definition

EnglishFrench

verb

Indicates the absence of possession or experience in the past.

They had never visited Paris.

Ils n'avaient jamais visité Paris.

Expresses an unrealized condition in the past.

They did not have enough time to finish the project.

Ils n'avaient pas assez de temps pour finir le projet.

Used to talk about past events that did not happen.

They had no idea what was happening.

Elles n'avaient pas d'idée de ce qui se passait.

Contraction of 'ne' and the pleonastic form 'avaient' of the verb avoir.

had nothing to do with

This expression means that something is not relevant or related to the subject.

n'avaient rien à voir

had no choice

Indicates that there was no alternative available.

n'avaient pas le choix

no longer had hope

Expresses the absence of hope or optimism.

n'avaient plus d'espoir

to have

Verb meaning to possess or occupy.

avoir

had

Conjugated form of the verb avoir in the third person plural in the imperfect tense.

avaient

negation

Grammatical term indicating absence or refusal.

négation

Didn't have any luck

They didn't have any luck for the holidays.

Ils n'avaient pas de bol pour les vacances.

Didn't have the cards in hand

He didn't have the cards in hand to negotiate.

Il n'avaient pas les cartes en main pour négocier.