fallait

/falɛ/falloir
1.
verbINDG3ImparfaitSing3p

was necessary

needed to

had to

Il fallait partir tôt pour éviter les bouchons.

It was necessary to leave early to avoid traffic jams.

Synonyms:il était nécessaire de, il fallait que
2.
verbINDG3ImparfaitSing3p

(colloquial reproach) should have / ought to have (used elliptically to mean 'you should have…')

Fallait me le dire plus tôt !

You should have told me sooner!

Synonyms:tu aurais dû, il aurait fallu (que)