loro prendevano

made fun of, caught, thought, considered

→ prendere
prend to take, to catch + evano 3rd-person plural imperfect
verb · 3rd-person plural, imperfect tense Rare #37,621
made fun of In the phrase prendere in giro, meaning to make fun of someone.
IT: I miei compagni mi prendevano in giro.
EN: My classmates made fun of me.
caught Can mean caught or arrested, depending on context.
IT: Lo prendevano ogni volta che usciva.
EN: They caught him every time he went out.
thought, considered In the phrase prendere qualcuno per qualcosa, meaning to consider someone to be something.
IT: Mi prendevano per un turista.
EN: They thought I was a tourist.
Conjugation of prendere

Prendevano in giro la nuova studentessa.

They were making fun of the new student.

Ogni volta che lo prendevano, veniva picchiato.

Every time they caught him, he was beaten.

— The Host (2006)

Loro prendevano in giro la nuova studentessa.

They were making fun of the new student.

Tutti a scuola mi prendevano in giro per questo.

Everyone at school made fun of me for this.

— पीके (2014)

Ero la migliore nella mia classe d'inglese, ma tutti mi prendevano in giro.

I was the best in my English class, but everyone made fun of me.

— I fiori della guerra (2011)

Quando l'ho ordinata, qui mi prendevano tutti per pazzo.

When I ordered it, everyone here thought I was crazy.

— La vita va così (2025)