No. 269 in Italian
avevano
"Had" (third person plural, imperfect tense of "avere").
In a sentence
Avevano già completato il loro lavoro quando arrivò.
They had already completed their work when he arrived.
The word 'avevano' is used as the auxiliary verb in the pluperfect tense to indicate that the action of completing work occurred before another past event.
Le ragazze avevano dei vestiti molto eleganti per la festa.
The girls had very elegant dresses for the party.
In this example, 'avevano' describes possession in the past, indicating the girls owned elegant dresses.
Avevano paura di rimanere soli durante la notte.
They were afraid of staying alone during the night.
Here, 'avevano' is used to describe an emotional state or experience in the past, conveying the sensation of fear.
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