je ne pus

D'abord, je ne pus entrer.

At first, I couldn't get in.

— Rebecca (1940)

Non, je ne pus la souffler.

No, I couldn’t blow it out.

Je ne pus trouver sa maison.

I couldn't find his house.

Je ne pus pas saisir ce qu'il disait.

I couldn't make out what he was saying.

Je ne pus le convaincre de son erreur.

I could not convince him of his mistake.

Je ne pus me tenir debout plus longtemps.

I could not stand any longer.

Les enfants faisaient tant de bruit que je ne pus étudier.

The children were making so much noise that I couldn’t study.

Je ne pus m'empêcher de rire.

I couldn't help laughing.

Pour le coup, je ne pus m'empêcher de rire.

I couldn't help laughing, for once.

Je ne pus entrer car la porte était fermée.

I couldn't get in because the door was closed.