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va-et-vient

coming and going

noun vah-eh-VYAHN Rare
Travel & Places Movement

Also means

to-and-fro

Usage Note

Va-et-vient is invariable in both gender and number — des va-et-vient stays unchanged. It describes continuous back-and-forth movement (people, traffic, doors) and is also used for a two-way electrical switch (interrupteur va-et-vient) that controls a light from two locations.

Examples

"Le va-et-vient des clients animait le café."

Natural Translation

The coming and going of customers animated the café.

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