Yap.Town

ils dormaient

were sleeping, slept

→ dormir
dorm sleep + aient they were ...ing (imperfect past)
verb · third plural · imperfect indicative Rare #37,529
were sleeping, slept Imperfect tense (used for ongoing or habitual actions in the past).
FR: Quand je suis arrivé, ils dormaient déjà.
EN: When I arrived, they were already sleeping.
Conjugation of dormir
Indicative imperfect
SingularPlural
First dormais —
Second dormais —
Third dormait dormaient

Elles dormaient.

They were sleeping.

Ils dormaient, ils ont rien senti.

They were asleep; they didn't feel a thing.

— Volver (2006)

Ils dormaient.

They were sleeping.

Les enfants dormaient en haut.

The children were sleeping upstairs.

Sa femme et son fils dormaient déjà profondément.

His wife and son were already fast asleep.

Les enfants dormaient lorsque leurs grands-parents les appelèrent.

The children were asleep when their grandparents called them.