Méritaient

Méritaient is the third-person plural imperfect indicative form of the French verb "mériter," which translates to "to deserve" or "to merit" in English. This verb conjugation is used to describe an action or state that was happening or was true in the past, specifically when referring to multiple subjects deserving or meriting something.

For example, in the sentence "Les élèves méritaient une bonne note pour leurs efforts," the word "méritaient" indicates that multiple students deserved a good grade for their hard work. The imperfect tense suggests that this deserving state was ongoing or a background condition in the past, rather than a single completed event. It implies a past situation where the deservedness was a fact or a continuous reality.

The imperfect tense in French is often used to describe habitual actions, ongoing states, descriptions, and background information in past narratives. Therefore, "méritaient" would be employed in contexts that describe past situations where a group or multiple entities were seen as deserving of praise, reward, punishment, or any other form of merit. Its usage is crucial for conveying a nuanced understanding of past events and circumstances in French.