Volver means to come back, to return. Learn five tenses, then practise each person.
Present: vuelvo, vuelves, vuelve, volvemos, volvéis, vuelven.
Volver in the present tense
Use the present for current states, habits and actions. The subject can be omitted when the verb makes it clear.
Vosotros is informal plural you in Spain. Ustedes uses the ellos/ellas form and is the usual plural you in Latin America.
Volver in the preterite tense
Use the preterite for a completed event in the past, viewed as a whole.
Volver in the imperfect tense
Use the imperfect for past habits, ongoing situations and background descriptions, without marking their endpoint.
Volver in the future tense
Use the simple future for what will happen. Spanish also uses this tense for a guess about the present.
Volver in the conditional tense
Use the conditional for what would happen, a polite request or a hypothetical situation.
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All six persons. Blue, bold forms differ from regular endings, including spelling changes that preserve pronunciation.
| Person | Present | Preterite | Imperfect | Future | Conditional |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| yo | vuelvo | volví | volvía | volveré | volvería |
| tú | vuelves | volviste | volvías | volverás | volverías |
| él / ella / usted | vuelve | volvió | volvía | volverá | volvería |
| nosotros / nosotras | volvemos | volvimos | volvíamos | volveremos | volveríamos |
| vosotros / vosotras | volvéis | volvisteis | volvíais | volveréis | volveríais |
| ellos / ellas / ustedes | vuelven | volvieron | volvían | volverán | volverían |
| Person | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| yo | vuelvo | I come back |
| tú | vuelves | you come back |
| él / ella / usted | vuelve | he/she comes back |
| nosotros / nosotras | volvemos | we come back |
| vosotros / vosotras | volvéis | you all (vosotros) come back |
| ellos / ellas / ustedes | vuelven | they come back |
| Person | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| yo | volví | I came back |
| tú | volviste | you came back |
| él / ella / usted | volvió | he/she came back |
| nosotros / nosotras | volvimos | we came back |
| vosotros / vosotras | volvisteis | you all (vosotros) came back |
| ellos / ellas / ustedes | volvieron | they came back |
| Person | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| yo | volvía | I used to come back |
| tú | volvías | you used to come back |
| él / ella / usted | volvía | he/she used to come back |
| nosotros / nosotras | volvíamos | we used to come back |
| vosotros / vosotras | volvíais | you all (vosotros) used to come back |
| ellos / ellas / ustedes | volvían | they used to come back |
| Person | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| yo | volveré | I will come back |
| tú | volverás | you will come back |
| él / ella / usted | volverá | he/she will come back |
| nosotros / nosotras | volveremos | we will come back |
| vosotros / vosotras | volveréis | you all (vosotros) will come back |
| ellos / ellas / ustedes | volverán | they will come back |
| Person | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| yo | volvería | I would come back |
| tú | volverías | you would come back |
| él / ella / usted | volvería | he/she would come back |
| nosotros / nosotras | volveríamos | we would come back |
| vosotros / vosotras | volveríais | you all (vosotros) would come back |
| ellos / ellas / ustedes | volverían | they would come back |
Volver differs from the regular endings in the present. Changed forms include present: vuelvo, vuelves, vuelve. Highlighted forms include spelling changes that preserve pronunciation as well as irregular stems and endings.
The present forms are vuelvo, vuelves, vuelve, volvemos, volvéis, vuelven, in the order yo, tú, él/ella/usted, nosotros, vosotros and ellos/ellas/ustedes.
volví, volviste, volvió, volvimos, volvisteis, volvieron. For example, volví means “I came back”.
Volver differs from the regular endings in the present. Changed forms include present: vuelvo, vuelves, vuelve. Highlighted forms include spelling changes that preserve pronunciation as well as irregular stems and endings.
The preterite (volví) presents a completed event; the imperfect (volvía) gives a past habit or background situation. The English glosses are “I came back” and “I used to come back”, but context determines the best translation.
The yo forms are volveré (“I will come back”) and volvería (“I would come back”). The full charts above include every person.
Volver means to come back, to return.
Updated · English prompts, Spanish answers.