he had
Il eut l'honneur d'être présenté à un grand écrivain.
He had the honor of being introduced to a great writer.
Elle lui recommanda d'aller au poste de police mais il eut peur de le faire.
She advised him to go to the police station, but he was afraid to do so.
Il eut un accident du travail.
He had an accident at work.
Il eut beau essayer, il ne put pas s'extirper du labyrinthe.
Try as he might, he couldn't escape the labyrinth.
He seemed to appreciate it.
He had a new idea.
Il eut beau essayer, mon opinion ne changea pas.
No matter how hard he tried, my opinion didn’t change.
Il eut de la chance et remporta la compétition.
He was lucky and won the competition.
Hélas, il eut moins de chance que son père.
Alas, he was less fortunate than his father.