The preterite of volar is used to express when something or someone flew at a specific time in the past. For example, when you want to say “The bird flew away this morning” – “El pájaro voló esta mañana.”
This is a regular -ar verb in the preterite tense. It follows the standard -ar conjugation pattern without any stem changes or spelling adjustments.
Conjugations
Conjugations of Volar (to fly) in the Preterite (Past) Tense tense (Castilian Spanish):
| Pronoun | Conjugation |
|---|---|
| Yo | volé |
| Tú | volaste |
| Él / Ella / Usted | voló |
| Nosotros / Nosotras | volamos |
| Vosotros / Vosotras | volasteis |
| Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes | volaron |
Boost Your Memorization with Audio!
We’ve included audio recordings of the the conjugations of Volar (to fly) in the Preterite (Past) Tense to help you learn faster.
Pro Tip: Play the audio on a loop as you study the chart. This repetition will solidify the correct conjugations in your memory.
Usage of Volar in the Preterite (Past) Tense
The Preterite of volar describes completed instances of flying.
To fly: Refers to completed flights or aviation, for example Volé a Miami (I flew to Miami), or Las aves volaron hacia el sur (The birds flew south).
To blow up/explode: In colloquial usage, can mean to explode or be destroyed, for example El edificio voló en pedazos (The building blew up into pieces).
Examples
Examples of Volar in the Preterite (Past) Tense
El pájaro voló hacia el sur. (The bird flew south.)
Volé a París la semana pasada. (I flew to Paris last week.)
¿Cuándo volaste por última vez? (When did you last fly?)
Volamos durante la noche. (We flew during the night.)
Las palomas volaron del parque. (The pigeons flew from the park.)
El avión voló sobre las montañas. (The plane flew over the mountains.)
Volaste muy temprano esta mañana. (You flew very early this morning.)
Mi cometa voló muy alto. (My kite flew very high.)
Volamos directamente sin escalas. (We flew directly without stops.)
Las hojas secas volaron con el viento. (The dry leaves flew with the wind.)
Volé desde Miami hasta Buenos Aires. (I flew from Miami to Buenos Aires.)
¿Por qué no volaste con nosotros? (Why didn’t you fly with us?)
El helicóptero voló bajo sobre la ciudad. (The helicopter flew low over the city.)
Volamos en primera clase. (We flew in first class.)
Los globos volaron por el cielo. (The balloons flew through the sky.)
Conjugations with English Translations
Conjugations of Volar (to fly) in the Preterite (Past) Tense tense (Castilian Spanish) with English Translations:
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| Yo volé | I flew |
| Tú volaste | You flew |
| Él / Ella / Usted voló | He / She / You (formal) flew |
| Nosotros / Nosotras volamos | We flew |
| Vosotros / Vosotras volasteis | You all flew |
| Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes volaron | They / You all (formal) flew |
This post covers Castilian Spanish. For Latin American Spanish, click here
Synonyms
The Preterite tense is also known as the Simple Past, Past Simple, Definite Past, Absolute Past, or Past Tense Indicative in English, and as Pretérito Perfecto Simple, Pretérito Indefinido, Pretérito Simple, Pasado Simple, or Pretérito de Indicativo in Spanish.