Volver Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Spanish

volver — to return — is one of the verbs you will use every day in Spanish. Volver means to return and to come back: volver a casa, volver a hacer (to do again). It is an o → ue stem-changing verb (vuelvo, vuelves, vuelve) and its participle is vuelto. Volver a + infinitive is the standard way to say to do something again. On this page you will find volver in real sentences, grouped by meaning and tense, two short texts that show it in context, the mistakes learners actually make with it, and a ten-question quiz with explained answers. Start with the examples, say them aloud, and then test yourself.

Example sentences with volver

In the present tense

  • “Yo vuelvo a casa a las diez.” — “I return home at ten.”
  • “Ella vuelve del trabajo cansada.” — “She comes back from work tired.”
  • “Nosotros volvemos a Madrid cada año.” — “We return to Madrid every year.”
  • “Ellos vuelven a estudiar después del verano.” — “They go back to studying after the summer.”
  • “¿Tú vuelves pronto?” — “Will you be back soon?”
  • “Vosotros volvéis a intentarlo mañana.” — “You will try again tomorrow.”

In the preterite

  • “Ayer yo volví tarde del viaje.” — “Yesterday I came back late from the trip.”
  • “Ella volvió a casa después de la fiesta.” — “She returned home after the party.”
  • “Nosotros volvimos al hotel a medianoche.” — “We returned to the hotel at midnight.”
  • “Ellos volvieron a España en 2020.” — “They returned to Spain in 2020.”
  • “¿Tú volviste a tiempo para la cena?” — “Did you get back in time for dinner?”
  • “El equipo volvió a ganar después de meses.” — “The team returned to winning ways after months.”

In other tenses

The same verb in the imperfect, the future, the conditional and the present perfect — the four tenses that complete the picture. All forms come from the verified tables.

  • “De niño, yo volvía a casa a las diez.” — “As a child, I used to return home at ten.”
  • “Mañana, yo volveré a casa a las diez.” — “Tomorrow, I will return home at ten.”
  • “Si pudiera, yo volvería a casa a las diez.” — “If I could, I would return home at ten.”
  • “Yo he vuelto a casa a las diez.” — “I have returned home at ten.”

Volver in context

Cada día, yo vuelvo a casa a las diez. Mi amigo también vuelve a casa a las diez cuando tiene tiempo. Después, yo vuelvo a casa de nuevo por la tarde. Es una parte normal de mi rutina, y por eso el presente de volver es la primera forma que conviene aprender.

Ayer, yo volví a casa a las diez. Mi amigo volvió a casa a las diez también, y por la noche yo volví a casa otra vez. Fue un día normal, pero es justo en días así cuando el pretérito de volver aparece una y otra vez: una acción terminada, un momento concreto, y la historia sigue.

Common mistakes with volver

Mistake 1

Wrong: Yo volvo a casa.

Right: Yo vuelvo a casa.

Volver changes o to ue: vuelvo, not volvo.

Mistake 2

Wrong: He volvido a casa — wrong participle.

Right: He vuelto a casa.

The participle is vuelto, not volvido — use the dump form vuelto.

Mistake 3

Wrong: Using the plain stem instead of the changed stem.

Right: Use the changed stem in the stressed forms: vuelvo.

The o → ue stem change applies to volver in the present — the yo form is vuelvo, not the infinitive stem.

Mistake 4

Wrong: Treating volver as a regular verb.

Right: Learn the irregular forms: present vuelvo, preterite volví.

volver is irregular — its present and preterite do not follow the regular endings, so they have to be memorised as a set.

Quiz: volver in everyday use

Ten questions on volver across the tenses. Answers with explanations follow each question.

1. What is the yo form of volver in the present tense?

  • A) vuelvo
  • B) vuelves
  • C) vuelve
  • D) volvemos

Answer: A — The yo form in the present tense is vuelvo.

2. What is the él/ella/Ud. form of volver in the present tense?

  • A) vuelvo
  • B) vuelves
  • C) volvemos
  • D) vuelve

Answer: D — The él/ella/Ud. form in the present tense is vuelve.

3. What is the yo form of volver in the preterite?

  • A) volvió
  • B) volvimos
  • C) volví
  • D) volviste

Answer: C — The yo form in the preterite is volví.

4. What is the ellos/ellas/Uds. form of volver in the preterite?

  • A) volvió
  • B) volvieron
  • C) volví
  • D) volviste

Answer: B — The ellos/ellas/Uds. form in the preterite is volvieron.

5. What is the yo form of volver in the imperfect?

  • A) volvía
  • B) volvías
  • C) volvía
  • D) volvíamos

Answer: A — The yo form in the imperfect is volvía.

6. What is the tú form of volver in the future?

  • A) volveré
  • B) volverá
  • C) volveremos
  • D) volverás

Answer: D — The tú form in the future is volverás.

7. What is the él/ella/Ud. form of volver in the conditional?

  • A) volverías
  • B) volveríamos
  • C) volvería
  • D) volvería

Answer: C — The él/ella/Ud. form in the conditional is volvería.

8. What is the nosotros/as form of volver in the present perfect?

  • A) ha vuelto
  • B) hemos vuelto
  • C) he vuelto
  • D) has vuelto

Answer: B — The nosotros/as form in the present perfect is hemos vuelto.

9. Fill in the blank: “Yo ___ a casa a las diez.” (I return home at ten.)

  • A) vuelvo
  • B) vuelves
  • C) vuelve
  • D) volvemos

Answer: A — The sentence needs vuelvo.

10. Which sentence is correct?

  • A) Yo vuelvo a casa.
  • B) Yo volvo a casa.

Answer: A — Volver changes o to ue: vuelvo, not volvo.

Frequently asked questions

What does volver mean?

volver means “to return” in English. Volver means to return and to come back: volver a casa, volver a hacer (to do again). It is an o → ue stem-changing verb (vuelvo, vuelves, vuelve) and its participle is vuelto. Volver a + infinitive is the standard way to say to do something again.

Is volver regular?

No. volver is an o → ue stem-changing irregular -er verb (irregular in past-participle, present-perfect, pluperfect, future-perfect, conditional-perfect). It is irregular in past-participle, present-perfect, pluperfect, future-perfect, conditional-perfect, and those forms have to be learnt as a set rather than built by rule. The full conjugation page shows every tense.

When do I use volver in the past — preterite or imperfect?

Use the preterite — volví, volviste, volvió — for a finished action at a specific moment, and the imperfect — volvía, volvías, volvía — for what was happening, what used to happen, or the background. The same rule applies to volver as to every Spanish verb; the tense changes the meaning, not the verb.

How can I practise volver?

Start with the examples above, say them aloud, then take the quiz on this page. For more practice, use the Spanish Verb Quiz and the Volver Conjugator, and read the full conjugation page for volver to see the verb in every tense.

Say it yourself

Reading is not enough — say the verb aloud before you move on. Use the forms from the tables on this page and answer these three prompts as full sentences. First, say a sentence about yourself in the present tense: “Yo vuelvo…”. Second, say a sentence about yesterday in the preterite: “Ayer yo volví…”. Third, say a sentence about tomorrow in the future: “Mañana yo volveré…”. If you can answer all three without looking at the tables, the forms are starting to stick. If you hesitate, go back to the examples above, read them aloud twice, and try again. Speaking the forms is what turns a table you have seen into a verb you can use.

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