il venait

he was coming

→ il

phrase Uncommon #21,611

he was coming Imperfect tense of venir, used for an ongoing or habitual action in the past; depending on context, it can also mean “he used to come.”

FR: Il venait souvent dîner chez nous le vendredi soir.

EN: He often used to come to our house for dinner on Friday evenings.

Il venait du futur, lui aussi.

He came from the future, too.

Le gars était là, il venait pour son flingue.

The guy was there, he came for his gun.

— Léon (1994)

Il venait d'un autre pays.

He came from another country.

Il venait souvent à notre club de football.

He often came to our football club.

— Secret Sunshine (2007)

Et il venait à cheval.

And he came on horseback.

— Les Diaboliques (1955)

Je ne sais pas d'où il venait, mais il est arrivé dans cette ville tout seul.

I don't know where he came from, but he arrived in this city all by himself.

— Departures (2008)

Il venait et peignait.

He used to come and paint.

— The Man from Earth (2007)

Il venait de nulle part.

He came from nowhere.

— Qui suis-je (2014)

Il venait voir Padmé.

He was coming to see Padmé.

— Star Wars, épisode I - La Menace fantôme (1999)

Il me fallut longtemps pour comprendre d'où il venait.

It took me a long time to understand where he came from.

Il venait la rejoindre chaque nuit dans sa chambre.

He came to join her every night in her room.

Il venait du Canada.

He came from Canada.

— L'Échine du diable (2001)

Quand il venait, j'étais heureux.

Whenever he came, I was happy.

— Les Anges déchus (1995)

J'ai demandé à l'inconnu d'où il venait.

I asked the stranger where he was from.

Il venait à cette mine.

He used to come to this mine.

— Pour une poignée de dollars (1964)

Tu ne t'es pas demandé d'où il venait ?

Didn't you wonder where he came from?

— Il est de retour (2015)

Il venait souvent discuter le dimanche.

He often came to chat on Sundays.