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recobrar

rre-ko-brar/rekoˈβɾaɾ/

“recobrar” means “to recover” in Spanish (getting back a lost physical object).

to recover, to regain

Also: to get back, to retrieve
VerbB1regular ar
General
A child happily finding their lost teddy bear under a wooden bench.
gerundrecobrando
past Participlerecobrado
infinitiverecobrar

📝 In Action

Después de buscar por horas, logré recobrar mis llaves.

B1

After searching for hours, I managed to recover my keys.

El paciente está empezando a recobrar las fuerzas.

B1

The patient is starting to regain his strength.

Esperamos que la ciudad recobre su antigua belleza.

B2

We hope the city regains its former beauty.

Word Connections

Synonyms

Antonyms

  • perder (to lose)
  • extraviar (to misplace)

Common Collocations

  • recobrar el conocimiento – to regain consciousness
  • recobrar el sentido – to come to one's senses
  • recobrar el tiempo perdido – to make up for lost time

Idioms & Expressions

  • recobrar el aliento – To catch one's breath after running or a shock.

🔄 Conjugations

subjunctive

imperfect

ellos/ellas/ustedesrecobraran
yorecobrara
túrecobraras
vosotrosrecobrarais
nosotrosrecobráramos
él/ella/ustedrecobrara

present

ellos/ellas/ustedesrecobren
yorecobre
túrecobres
vosotrosrecobréis
nosotrosrecobremos
él/ella/ustedrecobre

indicative

preterite

ellos/ellas/ustedesrecobraron
yorecobré
túrecobraste
vosotrosrecobrasteis
nosotrosrecobramos
él/ella/ustedrecobró

imperfect

ellos/ellas/ustedesrecobraban
yorecobraba
túrecobrabas
vosotrosrecobrabais
nosotrosrecobrábamos
él/ella/ustedrecobraba

present

ellos/ellas/ustedesrecobran
yorecobro
túrecobras
vosotrosrecobráis
nosotrosrecobramos
él/ella/ustedrecobra
View All Tenses & Moods →

Translate to Spanish

Words that translate to "recobrar" in Spanish:

to recover→to regain→to retrieve→

✏️ Quick Practice

Quick Quiz: recobrar

Question 1 of 3

Which of these is the most likely thing you would 'recobrar'?

📚 More Resources

👥 Word Family▼
recobro(recovery/recovery of a debt) — Noun
recobramiento(the act of recovering) — Noun
recobrable(recoverable) — Adjective
🎵 Rhymes▼
📚 Etymology▼

From the Latin word 'recuperāre', which is made of 're-' (meaning 'again') and 'capere' (meaning 'to take'). It literally means to take something back again.

First recorded: 13th century

Cognates (Related words)

English: recoverFrench: recouvrer

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Frequently Asked Questions

Is 'recobrar' the same as 'recuperar'?

Almost! They are synonyms. 'Recuperar' is used more often in daily conversation, while 'recobrar' sounds a bit more formal or poetic.

Can I use 'recobrar' for people?

Generally, no. You recobrar things or states (like health). If you want to say you 'got a person back' (like an ex), you would usually use 'recuperar'.

Is it a 'stem-changing' verb?

No, it is a perfectly regular 'ar' verb. The root 'recobr-' never changes.