Inklingo

volvió

bol-vee-OHbolˈβjo

volvió means he/she/it returned in Spanish. It has 2 different meanings depending on context:

he/she/it returned, he/she/it came back

Also: you (formal) returned
A1irregular (stem-changing in present, regular in preterite except for the vowel sound) er
A small child is happily walking back into their brightly colored yard through a white picket gate, signifying a return.
infinitivevolver
gerundvolviendo
past Participlevuelto

📝 In Action

Mi hermana volvió de viaje el lunes pasado.

A1

My sister returned from her trip last Monday.

¿Vio a Carlos? Volvió al trabajo después de una semana.

A2

Did you see Carlos? He came back to work after one week.

Volvió la paz al vecindario cuando se fueron.

B1

Peace returned to the neighborhood when they left.

Word Connections

Synonyms

Antonyms

Common Collocations

  • volvió a casareturned home
  • volvió en sícame to / regained consciousness

he/she/it turned, he/she/it changed

Also: he/she/it drove (someone) crazy
B1transitive usage of 'volver' er
A cartoon hand is shown actively turning over a large, brightly colored square red wooden block on a blue surface.
infinitivevolver
gerundvolviendo
past Participlevuelto

📝 In Action

La cocinera volvió la tortilla en la sartén.

B1

The cook flipped the omelet in the frying pan.

La noticia lo volvió completamente melancólico.

B2

The news made him completely melancholy (literally: turned him melancholy).

El perro se asustó y volvió la cabeza de golpe.

A2

The dog got scared and turned its head suddenly.

Word Connections

Synonyms

Common Collocations

  • volvió la caraturned his/her face
  • volvió locodrove crazy

🔄 Conjugations

indicative

present

él/ella/ustedvuelve
yovuelvo
vuelves
ellos/ellas/ustedesvuelven
nosotrosvolvemos
vosotrosvolvéis

imperfect

él/ella/ustedvolvía
yovolvía
volvías
ellos/ellas/ustedesvolvían
nosotrosvolvíamos
vosotrosvolvíais

preterite

él/ella/ustedvolvió (THIS WORD)
yovolví
volviste
ellos/ellas/ustedesvolvieron
nosotrosvolvimos
vosotrosvolvisteis

subjunctive

present

él/ella/ustedvuelva
yovuelva
vuelvas
ellos/ellas/ustedesvuelvan
nosotrosvolvamos
vosotrosvolváis

imperfect

él/ella/ustedvolviera / volviese
yovolviera / volviese
volvieras / volvieses
ellos/ellas/ustedesvolvieran / volviesen
nosotrosvolviéramos / volviésemos
vosotrosvolvierais / volvieseis

✏️ Quick Practice

Quick Quiz: volvió

Question 1 of 2

Which sentence correctly uses 'volvió' to mean 'to return'?

📚 More Resources

👥 Word Family
🎵 Rhymes
📚 Etymology

Comes from the Latin verb *volvere*, which meant 'to roll,' 'to turn,' or 'to spin.' This gives us the modern Spanish meanings of turning, flipping, and rolling back to a previous location (returning).

First recorded: Earliest use of forms related to 'volver' dates back to early Romance languages around the 10th century.

Cognates (Related words)

Italian: volgereFrench: tourner

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Frequently Asked Questions

Why does 'volvió' have an accent mark?

The accent mark on the 'ó' is essential to show where the emphasis falls. In the Spanish past tense (preterite) for 'er' and 'ir' verbs, the 'él/ella/usted' form always has the stress on the final 'ó' (vol-VIÓ). Without the accent, it would be mispronounced.

Is 'volver' regular or irregular?

'Volver' is considered an irregular verb because its stem changes from 'o' to 'ue' in the present tense (e.g., 'yo vuelvo'). However, in the preterite tense, where 'volvió' comes from, the stem is regular ('volv-') but it maintains the irregular stress pattern common to the third person preterite.