to come or go back to a previous place

Odysseus returned home/returned to his home after many years of travelling. 离家多年后奥德修斯返回了故土。

She left South Africa at the age of 15 and has never returned. 她15岁时离开了南非，再也没有回去过。

[ + to infinitive ] David returned (from work) to find his house had burned down. 戴维（下班）回到家后发现房子已被烧毁了。

If people or things return to a previous condition, they go back to that condition.

Within a week, the situation had returned to normal. 不到1个星期，局势就恢复正常了。

to give, do, or get something after something similar has been given or done to you

to return an invitation/greeting 回请／回应问候

I returned his stare. 我回瞪了他一眼。

I gave her a ride when her car broke down and now she is returning the favour (= doing something to help me in exchange). 那天她的车坏了，我顺便搭载了她一程，现在她在投桃报李。

The terrorists started shooting and the police returned fire (= started shooting back). 恐怖分子开了火，警方便开枪还击。

to give a particular amount of profit

My investments return a high rate of interest. 我的投资获得了很高的收益。

to send, take, give, put, etc. something back to where it came from

The new TV broke so they returned it to the shop. 新电视机坏了，所以他们把它退还给商店。

He returned two books he had borrowed from me in 2003. 他把2003年借我的两本书还给了我。

She carefully returned the book to its place on the shelf. 她小心翼翼地把书放回书架原本的位置上。

in sports such as tennis, to hit the ball back to your opponent

to happen again

You must go to the doctor if the pain returns. 如果疼痛再次发作，你必须去看医生。

to decide and say if you think someone is guilty or not guilty, or what punishment the person will be given in a court of law

The jury returned a verdict of not guilty. 陪审团作出了无罪判决。

to elect someone to be a member of parliament, or to another political job

It was expected that he would be returned as premier. 预计他会被重新选为总理。

an occasion when someone goes or comes back to a place where they were before

The whole town came out to celebrate his return (from the war). 整个镇上的人都涌上街头庆祝他（从战场上）归来。

On her return, she went straight to the office. 她一回来就直接去了办公室。

an occasion when you start to do or have something again

Some environmentalists argue for a return to a pre-industrial society. 一些环保主义者主张回归工业化以前的社会。

Most people have welcomed her return to power/office. 大多数人欢迎她重新掌权／复职。

a ticket for travel to a place and back again

A return to Birmingham, please. 请给我一张去伯明翰的往返票好吗？

in exchange

Some tenants get rent reductions in return for help managing the building. 有些租客通过协助大楼管理来获得租金减免。

I'll come with you, but you have to do something for me in return. 我会和你一起去，但你得为我做点什么作为回报。

the act of giving, doing, or receiving something in exchange for something

Several soldiers were wounded in the return of fire. 反击中，数名士兵受伤。

the profit that you get from an investment

The return on the money we invested was very low. 我们投资获得的收益很低。

an occasion when something starts to happen or be used again

Will we ever see the return of/a return to comfortable fashion clothes? 我们还会看到穿着舒适的时装再次流行吗？

the key on a computer keyboard that you press in order to say that the words or numbers on the screen are correct, or that an instruction should be performed, or in order to move down a line on the screen

Press return/the return key twice to leave a blank line. 按两次回车键留出一行空行。

the act of giving, putting, or sending something back

the return of the stolen goods 归还被盗货物

Synonyms: restitution restoration

the act of hitting the ball back to your opponent in sports such as tennis

Chang's return of serve was powerful. 张的回发球非常有力。

goods that have been taken back to the shop where they were bought by customers because they are damaged or unsuitable

in the first post collection that leaves after you receive a letter

She answered my letter by return. 她收到我的信后立即回了信。

The return part of a journey is the part in which you go back to the place where you started.

The return journey took longer because the train was rerouted. 回程花的时间长一些，因为火车改线了。