Volverse Conjugation in Spanish

The Spanish verb volverse means to become — it also means to turn, and it is a verb you will use again and again once you know it. Volverse is an irregular -er, stem-changing (o → ue), reflexive verb, so the tables below show you exactly how it behaves in every tense. It is a stem-changing verb (o → ue), so the stem vowel changes in the present, the present subjunctive and the imperative — the tables below show exactly where. Volverse is reflexive, so it always takes a reflexive pronoun that matches the person: me, te, se, nos, os or se. For example, me vuelvo loco means "I become mad". Without the pronoun, the verb changes meaning or stops making sense. On this page you will find the full conjugation of volverse in all thirteen tenses, notes on when to use each one, example sentences, the mistakes learners make most often, a ten-question quiz and answers to the questions students ask about this verb. For example, in the present tense you say Yo me vuelvo loco — "I become mad" — and in the preterite you say Yo me volví famoso — "I became famous". Work through the tables below, read the notes for each tense, and then test yourself with the examples, the common mistakes and the quiz at the end of the page.

Quick facts

  • Infinitive: volverse
  • English: to become, to turn
  • Verb type: irregular -er, stem-changing (o → ue), reflexive verb
  • Ending: -er
  • Gerund: volviendo
  • Past participle: vuelto
  • Auxiliary verb: haber (all perfect tenses are formed with haber + vuelto)
  • Reflexive pronouns: me, te, se, nos, os, se — one before every conjugated form, matching the person.

Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for volverse, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one. Volverse is reflexive: me vuelvo, te vuelves. Without the pronoun, volver means something else — it acts on someone or something else, not on yourself.

Full conjugation tables

Every form below comes from the verified conjugation tables for volverse. The imperfect subjunctive is shown in its -ra forms; the -se forms use the same stem. For reflexive verbs, the pronoun column shows the reflexive pronoun that goes before each form.

Gerund: volviendo · Past participle: vuelto

Present indicative

Person Pronoun Form
yo me vuelvo
tú te vuelves
él/ella/Ud. se vuelve
nosotros/as nos volvemos
vosotros/as os volvéis
ellos/ellas/Uds. se vuelven

Preterite

Person Pronoun Form
yo me volví
tú te volviste
él/ella/Ud. se volvió
nosotros/as nos volvimos
vosotros/as os volvisteis
ellos/ellas/Uds. se volvieron

Imperfect

Person Pronoun Form
yo me volvía
tú te volvías
él/ella/Ud. se volvía
nosotros/as nos volvíamos
vosotros/as os volvíais
ellos/ellas/Uds. se volvían

Future

Person Pronoun Form
yo me volveré
tú te volverás
él/ella/Ud. se volverá
nosotros/as nos volveremos
vosotros/as os volveréis
ellos/ellas/Uds. se volverán

Conditional

Person Pronoun Form
yo me volvería
tú te volverías
él/ella/Ud. se volvería
nosotros/as nos volveríamos
vosotros/as os volveríais
ellos/ellas/Uds. se volverían

Present perfect

Person Pronoun Form
yo me he vuelto
tú te has vuelto
él/ella/Ud. se ha vuelto
nosotros/as nos hemos vuelto
vosotros/as os habéis vuelto
ellos/ellas/Uds. se han vuelto

Pluperfect

Person Pronoun Form
yo me había vuelto
tú te habías vuelto
él/ella/Ud. se había vuelto
nosotros/as nos habíamos vuelto
vosotros/as os habíais vuelto
ellos/ellas/Uds. se habían vuelto

Future perfect

Person Pronoun Form
yo me habré vuelto
tú te habrás vuelto
él/ella/Ud. se habrá vuelto
nosotros/as nos habremos vuelto
vosotros/as os habréis vuelto
ellos/ellas/Uds. se habrán vuelto

Conditional perfect

Person Pronoun Form
yo me habría vuelto
tú te habrías vuelto
él/ella/Ud. se habría vuelto
nosotros/as nos habríamos vuelto
vosotros/as os habríais vuelto
ellos/ellas/Uds. se habrían vuelto

Present subjunctive

Person Pronoun Form
yo me vuelva
tú te vuelvas
él/ella/Ud. se vuelva
nosotros/as nos volvamos
vosotros/as os volváis
ellos/ellas/Uds. se vuelvan

Imperfect subjunctive (-ra)

Person Pronoun Form
yo me volviera
tú te volvieras
él/ella/Ud. se volviera
nosotros/as nos volviéramos
vosotros/as os volvierais
ellos/ellas/Uds. se volvieran

Imperative (affirmative)

Person Pronoun Form
tú te vuelve
él/ella/Ud. se vuelva
nosotros/as nos volvamos
vosotros/as os volved
ellos/ellas/Uds. se vuelvan

Imperative (negative)

Person Pronoun Form
tú te vuelvas
él/ella/Ud. se vuelva
nosotros/as nos volvamos
vosotros/as os volváis
ellos/ellas/Uds. se vuelvan

Gerund and past participle

Form Spanish Use
Gerund volviendo with estar for the progressive: estoy volviendo (or me estoy volviendo for this reflexive verb)
Past participle vuelto with haber for the perfect tenses: he vuelto

How to use each tense

Present indicative

Use the present for routines, general facts and what is happening right now. It is the tense you will use most often in everyday conversation, for habits with words like todos los días and for statements that are true in general. For volverse, the present indicative looks like this in a real sentence: Yo me vuelvo famoso — "I become famous". Learn the present indicative forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense. The stem changes in this tense (o → ue): the affected forms are vuelvo, vuelves, vuelve, vuelven.

Preterite

Use the preterite for finished actions in the past — things that started and ended, often with time words like ayer, anoche or la semana pasada. The preterite moves a story forward, one completed event at a time. For volverse, the preterite looks like this in a real sentence: Yo me volví hacia la puerta — "I became towards the door". Learn the preterite forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Imperfect

Use the imperfect for background, habits and actions in progress in the past, often with words like antes, de niño or mientras. It describes how things used to be, not one finished event. For volverse, the imperfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo me volvía loco — "I used to become mad". Learn the imperfect forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Future

Use the future for plans, predictions and promises, often with mañana, el año que viene or pronto. It talks about what will happen, not what is happening now. For volverse, the future looks like this in a real sentence: Yo me volveré famoso — "I will become famous". Learn the future forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Conditional

Use the conditional for polite requests, hypotheticals and what would happen, often in si clauses. It softens a request and describes imagined situations. For volverse, the conditional looks like this in a real sentence: Yo me volvería hacia la puerta — "I would become towards the door". Learn the conditional forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Present perfect

Use the present perfect for recent actions and experiences, often with hoy, esta semana or ya. It connects the past with the present moment. For volverse, the present perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo me he vuelto loco — "I have become mad". Learn the present perfect forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense. The past participle is irregular: vuelto, not the regular form, so every perfect tense uses vuelto after haber.

Pluperfect

Use the pluperfect when one past action happened before another past action. It is the past of the past, and it usually appears with antes de or ya. For volverse, the pluperfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo me había vuelto famoso — "I had become famous". Learn the pluperfect forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense. The past participle is irregular: vuelto, not the regular form, so every perfect tense uses vuelto after haber.

Future perfect

Use the future perfect for something that will already be finished by a future time, often with para mañana or para el viernes. For volverse, the future perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo me habré vuelto hacia la puerta — "I will have become towards the door". Learn the future perfect forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense. The past participle is irregular: vuelto, not the regular form, so every perfect tense uses vuelto after haber.

Conditional perfect

Use the conditional perfect for what would have happened under different conditions. It looks back at a past that never happened. For volverse, the conditional perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo me habría vuelto loco — "I would have become mad". Learn the conditional perfect forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense. The past participle is irregular: vuelto, not the regular form, so every perfect tense uses vuelto after haber.

Present subjunctive

Use the present subjunctive after expressions of wish, doubt, emotion and hope, such as espero que or quiero que. The subjunctive does not state a fact; it states an attitude towards the action. For volverse, the present subjunctive looks like this in a real sentence: Espero que él se vuelva famoso — "I hope he becomes famous". Learn the present subjunctive forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense. The stem change (o → ue) applies in the subjunctive too, but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: volvamos and volváis.

Imperfect subjunctive (-ra)

Use the imperfect subjunctive after past wishes and in si clauses about the past, and note the -ra forms shown here; the -se forms use the same stem. For volverse, the imperfect subjunctive (-ra) looks like this in a real sentence: Si yo me volviera hacia la puerta, todo cambiaría — "If I became towards the door, everything would change". Learn the imperfect subjunctive (-ra) forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Imperative (affirmative)

Use the affirmative imperative for direct commands, instructions and invitations. It tells someone to do something, and it has no yo form. For volverse, the imperative (affirmative) looks like this in a real sentence: Que se vuelva loco — "Let him become mad". Learn the imperative (affirmative) forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Imperative (negative)

Use the negative imperative, always with no, to tell someone not to do something. It uses the subjunctive forms, so it looks different from the affirmative commands. For volverse, the imperative (negative) looks like this in a real sentence: No te vuelvas famoso — "Don't become famous". Learn the imperative (negative) forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Example sentences

Ten natural sentences with volverse, covering different tenses and persons. Each one uses a form from the tables above.

  1. Yo me vuelvo hacia la puerta — "I become towards the door"
  2. Él se vuelve loco — "He becomes mad"
  3. Yo me volví famoso — "I became famous"
  4. Yo me volvía hacia la puerta — "I used to become towards the door"
  5. Tú te volverás loco — "You will become mad"
  6. Yo me volvería famoso — "I would become famous"
  7. Él se ha vuelto hacia la puerta — "He has become towards the door"
  8. Espero que él se vuelva loco — "I hope he becomes mad"
  9. Yo me había vuelto famoso — "I had become famous"
  10. Ellos se volvían hacia la puerta — "They used to become towards the door"

Common mistakes

  1. Wrong: Yo vuelvo loco — Right: Yo me vuelvo loco — Volverse is reflexive, so the pronoun me is required: without it the verb means something else, or nothing at all.
  2. Wrong: Ayer, yo me vuelvo — Right: Ayer, yo me volví — The present tense cannot describe a finished action yesterday. Ayer forces the preterite, so the form must change to volví.
  3. Wrong: De niño, yo me volví todos los días. — Right: Todos los días, yo me volvía — For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect (volvía), not the preterite. The preterite (volví) is for one finished action.
  4. Wrong: Yo soy vuelto famoso. — Right: Yo me he vuelto famoso. — Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: he vuelto, has vuelto, ha vuelto. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.
  5. Wrong: Espero que él vuelve loco. — Right: Espero que él se vuelva loco. — After espero que, Spanish needs the subjunctive: vuelva. The indicative vuelve is wrong here.

Quiz: test yourself

Ten questions on volverse. Choose the right form, then check the answer key below.

  1. Complete the sentence: Yo me ___ loco. (present tense) A. has vuelto B. habrán vuelto C. vuelvo D. habrás vuelto

  2. Complete the sentence: Él se ___ loco. (preterite) A. habréis vuelto B. volvió C. volverá D. han vuelto

  3. Complete the sentence: Nosotros nos ___ loco. (imperfect) A. volvíamos B. habría vuelto C. has vuelto D. volvieras

  4. Complete the sentence: Tú te ___ loco. (future) A. volved B. volvimos C. volverás D. volvíamos

  5. Complete the sentence: Yo me ___ loco. (conditional) A. volvería B. volvíais C. volvías D. volvían

  6. Complete the sentence: Espero que él se ___ loco. (present subjunctive) A. volveréis B. volví C. vuelva D. volveré

  7. Complete the sentence: Si yo me ___ loco, todo cambiaría. (imperfect subjunctive, -ra form) A. habías vuelto B. volvemos C. habrán vuelto D. volviera

  8. Complete the sentence: Nosotros nos ___ loco. (present perfect) A. han vuelto B. hemos vuelto C. habrá vuelto D. vuelvo

  9. Complete the command: No te ___ loco. (negative imperative, tú) A. volvamos B. volváis C. vuelvan D. vuelvas

  10. Which is the gerund of volverse, used with estar for the progressive? A. volviendo B. volví C. vuelvo D. volvía

Answer key

  1. me vuelvo — The yo present tense of volverse is me vuelvo.
  2. se volvió — The él/ella/Ud. preterite of volverse is se volvió.
  3. nos volvíamos — The nosotros/as imperfect of volverse is nos volvíamos.
  4. te volverás — The tú future of volverse is te volverás.
  5. me volvería — The yo conditional of volverse is me volvería.
  6. se vuelva — The él/ella/Ud. present subjunctive of volverse is se vuelva.
  7. me volviera — The yo imperfect subjunctive, -ra form of volverse is me volviera.
  8. nos hemos vuelto — The nosotros/as present perfect of volverse is nos hemos vuelto.
  9. te vuelvas — The negative tú imperative uses the present subjunctive form with no before it: te vuelvas.
  10. volviendo — The gerund of volverse is volviendo: estoy volviendo. The participle vuelto is used with haber instead.

Frequently asked questions

What does volverse mean in English?

Volverse means to become, to turn. It is used in everyday situations such as Yo me vuelvo loco. The exact English wording depends on the context, but the core meaning stays the same across the tenses.

Is volverse a reflexive verb?

Yes. Volverse is reflexive, so it always takes a reflexive pronoun that matches the person: me, te, se, nos, os or se. For example, Yo me vuelvo loco and Él se vuelve famoso. If you leave the pronoun out, the verb changes meaning or stops making sense.

What is the gerund and the past participle of volverse?

The gerund is volviendo, used with estar for the progressive: estoy volviendo. The past participle is vuelto, used with haber in the perfect tenses: he vuelto.

How do I say “I become” in the past?

It depends on the kind of past. For one finished action, use the preterite: Yo me volví famoso. For a repeated habit or background in the past, use the imperfect: Yo me volvía hacia la puerta. For something that has just happened, use the present perfect: Yo me he vuelto loco.

How do I practise volverse?

Start with the present tense table, then drill the preterite and the imperfect, since those two past tenses cause the most mistakes. Try the volverse examples and quiz page for more sentences, and use the Spanish Verb Quiz to test the forms under pressure.

Related links