This is the 8629th most frequent French word.
arrivaient
"Arrivaient" means "were arriving" in English.
Imperfect tense to describe a recurring or habitual action in the past.
Les invités arrivaient tôt pour préparer la fête.
The guests used to arrive early to prepare for the party.
Imperfect tense to indicate a regular occurrence in the past.
Les oiseaux arrivaient en grand nombre chaque printemps.
The birds would arrive in large numbers every spring.
Imperfect tense to describe situations or general background conditions in the past.