Tu ________ tard hier soir, Marc.

Question

I got the following question on a test:Tu ________ tard hier soir, Marc.You came back late yesterday evening, Marc.(HINT: Conjugate "rentrer" (to come back) in the compound past (Passé Composé))Why are we not using revenir which means to come back instead of rentrer which means  to re-enter?

Accepted Answer

Bonjour Roshni,
That's a very interesting question! You're right that both can mean "to come back", yet, their meaning slightly differ.
in this context, "rentrer" emphasizes that Marc returned to a specific place, likely his home, rather than just coming back in a general sense (where "revenir" would be used).
Tu es rentré tard hier soir = You came back late last night
-> implying their home
Tu es revenu tard hier soir  = You returned late last night
 -> general sense
 
I hope this is helpful.
Bonne journée !