Yap.Town

ils cherchaient

were looking for, were searching for

→ chercher
cherch search + aient 3rd person plural imperfect
verb · third plural · imperfect indicative Rare #23,616
were looking for, were searching for Imperfect tense (past ongoing/habitual) for “they/you (formal plural)”.
FR: Ils cherchaient leurs clés partout.
EN: They were looking for their keys everywhere.
Conjugation of chercher
Indicative imperfect
SingularPlural
First cherchais cherchions
Second cherchais cherchiez
Third cherchait cherchaient

Je savais qu'ils me cherchaient.

I knew they were looking for me.

Ils cherchaient la clef.

They were looking for the key.

— Ne le dis à personne (2006)

Elles cherchaient toutes des généraux.

They were all looking for generals.

— Une grande fille (2019)

Que cherchaient-ils ?

What were they looking for?

— Indiana Jones et la dernière croisade (1989)

Ils te cherchaient.

They were looking for you.

Ils me cherchaient et ils sont tombés sur lui.

They were looking for me and they came across him.

— Dans ses yeux (2009)

Ils ont réalisé ce qu'ils cherchaient à faire.

They achieved what they set out to do.

Ils cherchaient tous après l'enfant disparu.

They were all looking for the missing child.

Ceux qui voulaient y bâtir une taverne le cherchaient.

Those who wanted to build a tavern there were looking for him.

— Vivre (1952)

Qu'est-ce qu'ils cherchaient ?

What were they looking for?

Ils cherchaient un bout de chiffon blanc pour l'agiter en l'air.

They were looking for a piece of white cloth to wave in the air.

— Des hommes d'honneur (1992)

Elles cherchaient des ennuis.

They were looking for trouble.

Mais ils ne cherchaient qu'un pot-de-vin.

But they were only looking for a bribe.

— Les Affranchis (1990)

Ils cherchaient à s'enfuir.

They were trying to escape.

Normal, ils en cherchaient pas.

That's normal, they weren't looking for any.

— Reconnu coupable (2026)