Inklingo
A colorful gift box being covered with bright blue wrapping paper and a red ribbon.

envolver Preterite Conjugation

envolver — to wrap

A2irregular (stem-changing) -er★★★★★
Quick answer:

Envolver is regular in the preterite, but remember that the past participle is the irregular 'envuelto'.

envolver Preterite Forms

yoenvolví
túenvolviste
él/ella/ustedenvolvió
nosotrosenvolvimos
vosotrosenvolvisteis
ellos/ellas/ustedesenvolvieron

When to Use the Preterite

Use the preterite for completed actions in the past, like that one time you wrapped a specific present or finished packing a box.

Notes on envolver in the Preterite

Envolver follows the standard -er verb endings in the preterite. The stem change (o > ue) does NOT happen in this tense.

Example Sentences

  • Ayer envolví todos los paquetes.

    Yesterday I wrapped all the packages.

    yo

  • Ella envolvió el regalo con mucho cuidado.

    She wrapped the gift very carefully.

    él/ella/usted

  • Envolvimos la frágil vasija en plástico de burbujas.

    We wrapped the fragile vase in bubble wrap.

    nosotros

Common Mistakes

  • Mistake: Saying 'envuelví' with a stem change.

    Correct: envolví

    Why: Stem-changing -er verbs like envolver do not change in the preterite.

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Related Tenses

Present

yo: envuelvo

Envolver is a stem-changing verb in the present tense, changing 'o' to 'ue' in all forms except nosotros and vosotros.

Imperfect

yo: envolvía

Envolver is completely regular in the imperfect: envolvía, envolvías, envolvía, envolvíamos, envolvíais, envolvían.

Future

yo: envolveré

The future tense of envolver is regular: just add -é, -ás, -á, -emos, -éis, -án to the full infinitive.

Conditional

yo: envolvería

The conditional is regular: envolvería, envolverías, envolvería, envolveríamos, envolveríais, envolverían.

Present Subjunctive

yo: envuelva

The present subjunctive follows the 'yo' form of the present (envuelvo) and changes the ending to -a.

Imperfect Subjunctive

yo: envolviera

The imperfect subjunctive is formed from the third-person plural preterite: envolvier-.

Affirmative Imperative

yo: envuelve

Use 'envuelve' for informal commands (tú) and 'envuelva' for formal ones (usted).

Negative Imperative

yo: no envuelvas

Negative commands for envolver always use the present subjunctive forms.