Yap.Town

ils tenaient

stood, were standing, mattered, were dear to

→ tenir
ten to hold out + aient they imperfect tense
verb · 3rd-person plural, imperfect tense Rare #28,618
stood, were standing With se tenir debout, means “to stand.”
FR: Ils se tenaient près de la porte.
EN: They were standing near the door.
mattered, were dear to In the expression tenir à cœur, something matters deeply to someone.
FR: Ces projets lui tenaient à cœur.
EN: These projects mattered deeply to them.
Conjugation of tenir
Indicative imperfect
SingularPlural
First tenais —
Second tenais —
Third tenait tenaient

Les passagers se tenaient debout dans le couloir bondé.

The passengers were standing in the crowded corridor.

Tous ces rêves qui me tenaient tant à cœur.

All those dreams that meant so much to me.

— Black (2005)

Mes amis se tenaient à mes cotés lors du processus.

My friends stood by me during the process.

Ils se tenaient au haut de la colline.

They stood at the top of the hill.

Quand j'avais ton âge, les livres tenaient lieu de télévision.

When I was your age, books took the place of television.

— Princess Bride (1987)

Mais d'autres lui tenaient vraiment à cœur.

But others really mattered to him.

— Love Actually (2003)

Ils se tenaient les mains.

They were holding hands.

Les gens qui tenaient, qui tenaient, en arrivant ici, ils ne tenaient plus.

The people who had been holding on, who had been holding on, couldn’t hold on anymore once they got here.

— The Salt of the Earth (2014)

Ils tenaient pas en place.

They couldn't sit still.

— Apocalypse Now (1979)

Les premiers essais d'humains tenaient à peine debout.

The first human trials could barely stand upright.

— Bugonia (2025)

Les sentinelles se tenaient droites comme des piquets et immobiles.

The sentries stood as straight as pickets and motionless.

Ils ne tenaient pas à faire du tourisme.

They weren’t interested in sightseeing.

Un groupe de gens se tenaient à l'extérieur, à attendre.

A group of people were standing outside, waiting.