English–French
“happen” in French
French
Pronunciation
IPA/ɛ̃tɛʁvəniʁ/
Example
Un incident est intervenu hier pendant la réunion.
An incident happened yesterday during the meeting.
How to say “happen” in French
“Happen” in French is intervenir.
A person or event enters an ongoing course and changes what follows.
Example sentences with intervenir
Une panne est intervenue sur la ligne ce matin.
A breakdown occurred on the line this morning.
Tips for using intervenir
- For an event, intervenir is relatively formal; everyday French often uses survenir or avoir lieu for simple occurrence.