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il a fallu

it took

→ il
phrase Uncommon #15,337
it took Past tense of falloir. Used impersonally to say that something was needed or required.
FR: Il a fallu beaucoup de travail pour finir à temps.
EN: It took a lot of work to finish on time.

Devant l'urgence, il a fallu agir rapidement.

Given the urgency of the situation, it was necessary to act quickly.

Il a fallu que Chikako me quitte pour que je réalise à quel point je l'aimais.

It took Chikako leaving me for me to realize how much I loved her.

Il a fallu le traîner pour l'interroger.

They had to drag him in for questioning.

— Lust, Caution (2007)

Il a fallu du temps pour que les choses reviennent à la normale.

It took a while for things to get back to normal.

Il a fallu trois jours pour peindre toute la maison.

It took three days to paint the whole house.

Il a fallu que je le voie par moi-même.

I had to see it for myself.

Il a fallu longtemps pour faire progresser la médecine moderne.

It took a long time for modern medicine to advance.

Jeune, il a fallu que je me débrouille par moi-même.

When I was young, I had to fend for myself.

Et il a fallu en abattre par millions !

And millions of them had to be killed!

— Jean de Florette (1986)

Il a fallu faire des choix.

Choices had to be made.

— Rang de Basanti (2006)

Il a fallu un certain temps pour que je pige ce qu'elle voulait dire.

It took me a while to figure out what she meant.

Il a fallu amputer la jambe de Sami.

Sami’s leg had to be amputated.

Il a fallu que ça t'arrive à toi !

Of all people, it had to happen to you!

— Le Scaphandre et le Papillon (2007)

Il a fallu lui mettre les fers, il se présentait par les fesses.

We had to put him in irons, he was presenting himself buttocks first.

— Les Quatre Cents Coups (1959)

Mais il a fallu me rencontrer d'abord.

But you had to meet me first.

— Anatomie d'une chute (2023)

Il a fallu le sauver.

He had to be rescued.

— Avengers : Infinity War (2018)

Il a fallu vingt ans pour recueillir cette quantité.

It took twenty years to collect this quantity.

Il a fallu beaucoup de cran.

It took a lot of guts.

Il a fallu tout ce temps à la police pour retrouver la trace de mon grand-père.

It took the police all this time to track down my grandfather.

— Le Tambour (1979)