retourner
French
Etymology
From Old French retorner, from re- + torner; morphologically, from re- + tourner.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ʁə.tuʁ.ne/
audio (file)
Verb
retourner
- (transitive) to turn over, turn upside-down; (in cooking) to turn
- (transitive) to toss (salad), turn over (earth, soil)
- (transitive) to return, send back (an object)
- (intransitive) to return, go back (to/from a place)
- (intransitive) to return, revert (à to) (a state etc)
- (takes a reflexive pronoun) to turn over; to overturn, capsize
- (takes a reflexive pronoun) to turn round (turn one's head)
- (takes a reflexive pronoun) to be reversed, be turned round (of a situation etc.)
- (takes a reflexive pronoun) to get organised
Usage notes
- This verb uses the auxiliary verb avoir when used transitively (or with a transitive sense, even when the complement is omitted); otherwise (when it is intransitive), it uses être.
- elle est retournée chez elle ― she went back to her house
- elle a retourné sa chaise ― she turned her chair over
Conjugation
Conjugation of retourner (see also Appendix:French verbs)
| infinitive | simple | retourner | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| compound | avoir or être + past participle | ||||||
| present participle or gerund1 | simple | retournant /ʁə.tuʁ.nɑ̃/ | |||||
| compound | ayant or étant + past participle | ||||||
| past participle | retourné /ʁə.tuʁ.ne/ | ||||||
| singular | plural | ||||||
| first | second | third | first | second | third | ||
| indicative | je (j’) | tu | il, elle, on | nous | vous | ils, elles | |
| (simple tenses) | present | retourne /ʁə.tuʁn/ | retournes /ʁə.tuʁn/ | retourne /ʁə.tuʁn/ | retournons /ʁə.tuʁ.nɔ̃/ | retournez /ʁə.tuʁ.ne/ | retournent /ʁə.tuʁn/ |
| imperfect | retournais /ʁə.tuʁ.nɛ/ | retournais /ʁə.tuʁ.nɛ/ | retournait /ʁə.tuʁ.nɛ/ | retournions /ʁə.tuʁ.njɔ̃/ | retourniez /ʁə.tuʁ.nje/ | retournaient /ʁə.tuʁ.nɛ/ | |
| past historic2 | retournai /ʁə.tuʁ.ne/ | retournas /ʁə.tuʁ.na/ | retourna /ʁə.tuʁ.na/ | retournâmes /ʁə.tuʁ.nam/ | retournâtes /ʁə.tuʁ.nat/ | retournèrent /ʁə.tuʁ.nɛʁ/ | |
| future | retournerai /ʁə.tuʁ.nə.ʁe/ | retourneras /ʁə.tuʁ.nə.ʁa/ | retournera /ʁə.tuʁ.nə.ʁa/ | retournerons /ʁə.tuʁ.nə.ʁɔ̃/ | retournerez /ʁə.tuʁ.nə.ʁe/ | retourneront /ʁə.tuʁ.nə.ʁɔ̃/ | |
| conditional | retournerais /ʁə.tuʁ.nə.ʁɛ/ | retournerais /ʁə.tuʁ.nə.ʁɛ/ | retournerait /ʁə.tuʁ.nə.ʁɛ/ | retournerions /ʁə.tuʁ.nə.ʁjɔ̃/ | retourneriez /ʁə.tuʁ.nə.ʁje/ | retourneraient /ʁə.tuʁ.nə.ʁɛ/ | |
| (compound tenses) | present perfect | present indicative of avoir or être + past participle | |||||
| pluperfect | imperfect indicative of avoir or être + past participle | ||||||
| past anterior2 | past historic of avoir or être + past participle | ||||||
| future perfect | future of avoir or être + past participle | ||||||
| conditional perfect | conditional of avoir or être + past participle | ||||||
| subjunctive | que je (j’) | que tu | qu’il, qu’elle | que nous | que vous | qu’ils, qu’elles | |
| (simple tenses) | present | retourne /ʁə.tuʁn/ | retournes /ʁə.tuʁn/ | retourne /ʁə.tuʁn/ | retournions /ʁə.tuʁ.njɔ̃/ | retourniez /ʁə.tuʁ.nje/ | retournent /ʁə.tuʁn/ |
| imperfect2 | retournasse /ʁə.tuʁ.nas/ | retournasses /ʁə.tuʁ.nas/ | retournât /ʁə.tuʁ.na/ | retournassions /ʁə.tuʁ.na.sjɔ̃/ | retournassiez /ʁə.tuʁ.na.sje/ | retournassent /ʁə.tuʁ.nas/ | |
| (compound tenses) | past | present subjunctive of avoir or être + past participle | |||||
| pluperfect2 | imperfect subjunctive of avoir or être + past participle | ||||||
| imperative | – | – | – | ||||
| simple | — | retourne /ʁə.tuʁn/ | — | retournons /ʁə.tuʁ.nɔ̃/ | retournez /ʁə.tuʁ.ne/ | — | |
| compound | — | simple imperative of avoir or être + past participle | — | simple imperative of avoir or être + past participle | simple imperative of avoir or être + past participle | — | |
| 1 The French gerund is usable only with the preposition en. | |||||||
2 In less formal writing or speech, these tenses may be found to have been replaced in the following way:
(Christopher Kendris [1995], Master the Basics: French, pp. 77, 78, 79, 81). | |||||||
Derived terms
- retourner sa veste
- retourner sa chemise
- se retourner dans sa tombe
Further reading
- “retourner”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.
Middle French
Verb
retourner
- to return; to come back
Conjugation
- Middle French conjugation varies from one text to another. Hence, the following conjugation should be considered as typical, not as exhaustive.
Conjugation of retourner
| infinitive | simple | retourner | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| compound | estre + past participle | ||||||
| present participle1 or gerund2 | simple | retournant | |||||
| compound | present participle or gerund of estre + past participle | ||||||
| past participle | retourné | ||||||
| singular | plural | ||||||
| first | second | third | first | second | third | ||
| indicative | ie (i’) | tu | il, elle | nous | vous | ilz, elles | |
| (simple tenses) | present | retourne | retournes | retourne | retournons | retournez | retournent |
| imperfect | retournois, retournoys | retournois, retournoys | retournoit, retournoyt | retournions, retournyons | retourniez, retournyez | retournoient, retournoyent | |
| past historic | retourna | retournas | retourna | retournasmes | retournastes | retournerent | |
| future | retournerai, retourneray | retourneras | retournera | retournerons | retournerez | retourneront | |
| conditional | retournerois, retourneroys | retournerois, retourneroys | retourneroit, retourneroyt | retournerions, retourneryons | retourneriez, retourneryez | retourneroient, retourneroyent | |
| (compound tenses) | present perfect | present indicative of estre + past participle | |||||
| pluperfect | imperfect indicative of estre + past participle | ||||||
| past anterior | past historic of estre + past participle | ||||||
| future perfect | future of estre + past participle | ||||||
| conditional perfect | conditional of estre + past participle | ||||||
| subjunctive | que ie (i’) | que tu | qu’il, qu’elle | que nous | que vous | qu’ilz, qu’elles | |
| (simple tenses) | present | retourne | retournes | retourne | retournons | retournez | retournent |
| imperfect | retournasse | retournasses | retournast | retournassions | retournassiez | retournassent | |
| (compound tenses) | past | present subjunctive of estre + past participle | |||||
| pluperfect | imperfect subjunctive of estre + past participle | ||||||
| imperative | – | – | – | ||||
| simple | — | retourne | — | retournons | retournez | — | |
| compound | — | simple imperative of estre + past participle | — | simple imperative of estre + past participle | simple imperative of estre + past participle | — | |
| 1 The present participle was variable in gender and number until the 17th century (Anne Sancier-Château [1995], Une esthétique nouvelle: Honoré d'Urfé, correcteur de l'Astrée, p. 179). The French Academy would eventually declare it not to be declined in 1679. | |||||||
| 2 The gerund was held to be invariable by grammarians of the early 17th century, and was usable with preposition en, as in Modern French, although the preposition was not mandatory (Anne Sancier-Château [1995], op. cit., p. 180). | |||||||
Old French
Verb
retourner
- Alternative form of retorner
Conjugation
This verb conjugates as a first-group verb ending in -er. The forms that would normally end in *-rns, *-rnt are modified to rz, rt. Old French conjugation varies significantly by date and by region. The following conjugation should be treated as a guide.
Conjugation of retourner (see also Appendix:Old French verbs)
| simple | compound | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| infinitive | retourner | avoir retourné | |||||
| gerund | en retournant | Use the gerund of avoir followed by the past participle | |||||
| present participle | retournant | ||||||
| past participle | retourné | ||||||
| person | singular | plural | |||||
| first | second | third | first | second | third | ||
| indicative | jo | tu | il | nos | vos | il | |
| simple tenses | present | retourn | retournes | retourne | retournons | retournez | retournent |
| imperfect | retournoie, retourneie, retournoe, retourneve | retournoies, retourneies, retournoes, retourneves | retournoit, retourneit, retournot, retourneve | retourniiens, retourniens | retourniiez, retourniez | retournoient, retourneient, retournoent, retournevent | |
| preterite | retournai | retournas | retourna | retournames | retournastes | retournerent | |
| future | retournerai | retourneras | retournera | retournerons | retourneroiz, retournereiz, retournerez | retourneront | |
| conditional | retourneroie, retournereie | retourneroies, retournereies | retourneroit, retournereit | retourneriiens, retourneriens | retourneriiez, retourneriez | retourneroient, retournereient | |
| compound tenses | present perfect | Use the present tense of avoir followed by the past participle | |||||
| pluperfect | Use the imperfect tense of avoir followed by the past participle | ||||||
| past anterior | Use the preterite tense of avoir followed by the past participle | ||||||
| future perfect | Use the future tense of avoir followed by the past participle | ||||||
| conditional perfect | Use the conditional tense of avoir followed by the past participle | ||||||
| subjunctive | que jo | que tu | qu’il | que nos | que vos | qu’il | |
| simple tenses | present | retourn | retourz | retourt | retournons | retournez | retournent |
| imperfect | retournasse | retournasses | retournast | retournissons, retournissiens | retournissoiz, retournissez, retournissiez | retournassent | |
| compound tenses | past | Use the present subjunctive of avoir followed by the past participle | |||||
| pluperfect | Use the imperfect subjunctive of avoir followed by the past participle | ||||||
| imperative | – | tu | – | nos | vos | – | |
| — | retourne | — | retournons | retournez | — | ||