Breakdown of Les parents étaient sévères ; ils ne toléraient pas les caprices.
être
to be
ils
they (masculine/mixed)
sévère
strict
le parent
the parent
ne
not (used before the verb)
pas
not (used after the verb)
le caprice
the tantrum
tolérer
to tolerate
Questions & Answers about Les parents étaient sévères ; ils ne toléraient pas les caprices.
Why are étaient and toléraient in the imparfait (imperfect) tense instead of the passé composé?
The imparfait is used here because it describes a past state and a habitual behavior. The sentence tells us how the parents used to be in general, rather than describing a single, isolated event that started and finished at a clear point in time.
The word caprices translates to "tantrums" here. Does it mean the same as the English word "caprice"?
They are related, but used differently. In English, a "caprice" is a sudden whim or change of mood. In French, while un caprice can mean a whim, when talking about children it is the standard, everyday word for a "tantrum" or a "fit." You will often hear the phrase faire un caprice (to throw a tantrum).
Does sévères mean "severe" or "strict"?
Why is there a space before the semicolon (;) in the French sentence?
This is a standard quirk of French typography! In French, punctuation marks that are made of two parts (like the semicolon ;, colon :, exclamation mark !, and question mark ?) require a space before them. In English, these marks attach directly to the end of the previous word.
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