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ne put

could not

→ ne
phrase Very common #1,603
could not A literary or formal past-tense form of « ne peut pas »; usually followed by an infinitive.
FR: Il ne put pas venir à la réunion.
EN: He could not come to the meeting.

Personne ne put dormir cette nuit là.

No one could sleep that night.

Elle ne put surmonter le décès de son époux.

She could not get over her husband's death.

Elle ne put le convaincre d'accepter le pot-de-vin.

She couldn't persuade him to accept the bribe.

Aucun étudiant ne put répondre à la question.

No student could answer the question.

Elle ne put retenir ses larmes.

She couldn't hold back her tears.

Il eut beau essayer, il ne put pas s'extirper du labyrinthe.

Try as he might, he couldn't escape the labyrinth.

Elle ne put le convaincre d'accepter un chèque personnel.

She couldn't persuade him to accept a personal check.

Tom ne put s'empêcher d'être impressionné.

Tom couldn't help but be impressed.

Il ne put.

He couldn't.

Il ne put ni dormir, ni manger, ni travailler.

He could neither sleep, eat, nor work.

— Mysterious Object at Noon (2000)

Elle ne put se retenir d'éclater de rire.

She couldn't help bursting out laughing.

Tom essaya de le faire, mais il ne put pas.

Tom tried to do it, but he couldn't.

Elle ne put le convaincre de monter à cheval.

She couldn't persuade him to get on a horse.

Personne ne put trouver la caverne.

No one could find the cave.

L'orateur ne put se faire entendre.

The speaker could not make himself heard.

Même la mort ne put mettre fin à son amour et à sa fidélité.

Not even death could put an end to his love and faithfulness.

— Nang Nak (1999)

Elle ne put surmonter la mort de son mari.

She could not overcome the death of her husband.

Tom ne put trouver personne avec qui danser.

Tom couldn't find anyone to dance with.

Passepartout ne put plus y tenir.

Passepartout couldn't take it anymore.

Elle ne put venir parce qu'il était malade.

She couldn't come because he was sick.

Il ne put trouver ce que j'avais caché.

He couldn’t find what I had hidden.

Il ne put se résigner à tirer sur le cerf.

He could not bring himself to shoot the deer.

Tom essaya de le faire, mais ne put pas.

Tom tried to do it, but couldn't.

Il ne put résister à la tentation.

He could not resist the temptation.

Il ne put répondre à cette question.

He could not answer this question.

Elle ne put tenir sa promesse.

She could not keep her promise.

Elle chercha ses enfants mais ne put les trouver nulle part.

She looked for her children but couldn't find them anywhere.