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SPANISH VERB

devolver

to return, to give back

  • #292 most used
  • Irregular -er verb
  • Gerund: devolviendo
  • Past participle: devuelto

Conjugation

Tap any form to hear it. The part that changes is in colour.

Present

Presente · now, habits and facts

  1. yo I return
  2. tú you return
  3. usted, él, ella he/she returns
  4. nosotros we return
  5. vosotros Spain you all return
  6. ustedes, ellos, ellas they return

Past

Pretérito indefinido · finished actions

  1. yo I returned
  2. tú you returned
  3. usted, él, ella he/she returned
  4. nosotros we returned
  5. vosotros Spain you all returned
  6. ustedes, ellos, ellas they returned

Imperfect

Pretérito imperfecto · “used to” and “was …ing”

  1. yo I used to return
  2. tú you used to return
  3. usted, él, ella he/she used to return
  4. nosotros we used to return
  5. vosotros Spain you all used to return
  6. ustedes, ellos, ellas they used to return

Future

Futuro · plans and promises; in speech, “voy a hablar” is just as common

  1. yo I will return
  2. tú you will return
  3. usted, él, ella he/she will return
  4. nosotros we will return
  5. vosotros Spain you all will return
  6. ustedes, ellos, ellas they will return

Conditional

Condicional · “would”

  1. yo I would return
  2. tú you would return
  3. usted, él, ella he/she would return
  4. nosotros we would return
  5. vosotros Spain you all would return
  6. ustedes, ellos, ellas they would return

Present subjunctive

Presente de subjuntivo · wishes, doubts, “que …”

  1. yo (that) I return
  2. tú (that) you return
  3. usted, él, ella (that) he/she return
  4. nosotros (that) we return
  5. vosotros Spain (that) you all return
  6. ustedes, ellos, ellas (that) they return

Past subjunctive

Imperfecto de subjuntivo · “if I were”, “si …”

  1. yo (if) I returned
  2. tú (if) you returned
  3. usted, él, ella (if) he/she returned
  4. nosotros (if) we returned
  5. vosotros Spain (if) you all returned
  6. ustedes, ellos, ellas (if) they returned

Imperative

Imperativo · requests and orders; a negative one uses the subjunctive (no hables)

  1. tú return!
  2. usted return! (formal)
  3. nosotros return! (let’s)
  4. vosotros Spain return! (all of you)
  5. ustedes return! (all of you)

How to use devolver

One sentence for each tense, the way people say it.

  1. Present

    Hoy devuelvo los libros a la biblioteca.

    Today I'm returning the books to the library.

  2. Past

    ¿Le devolviste el dinero a tu hermana?

    Did you give the money back to your sister?

  3. Imperfect

    Él nunca devolvía lo que pedía prestado.

    He never returned what he borrowed.

  4. Future

    Te devolveré el libro el lunes sin falta.

    I'll give you the book back on Monday without fail.

  5. Conditional

    Yo devolvería esos zapatos, te quedan chicos.

    I'd return those shoes, they're too small for you.

  6. Present subjunctive

    Es justo que devuelvas lo que no es tuyo.

    It's only fair that you give back what isn't yours.

  7. Past subjunctive

    Si devolvieras la blusa hoy, te darían el reembolso.

    If you returned the blouse today, they'd give you a refund.

  8. Imperative

    ¡Devuélvele el balón al niño, por favor!

    Give the ball back to the boy, please!

Where you hear devolver

The lessons that teach a form of it, and how they say it.

Spanish · Beginner Level 3

  • Aquí devolvemos el depósito el mismo día. Here we return the deposit the same day.
  • Devolvimos el carro a tiempo. We returned the car on time.
  • Lo devolveremos el lunes. We'll return it on Monday.

Spanish · Advanced Level 1

  • Os devuelvo vuestro dinero. I'm giving you your money back.
  • Devolví el libro a Lucía. I gave the book back to Lucia.
  • Mañana te voy a devolver las llaves. Tomorrow I'm going to return your keys.

Verbs like this one

The same pattern, on other verbs: irregular -er verb.