From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.44 [gcide]:
Return \Re*turn"\, verb (used without an object) [imp. & p. p. {Returned}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Returning}.] [OE. returnen, retournen, F. retourner; pref. re- re- + tourner to turn. See {Turn}.]
1. To turn back; to go or come again to the same place or condition. ''Return to your father's house.'' --Chaucer.
On their embattled ranks the waves return. --Milton.
If they returned out of bondage, it must be into a state of freedom. --Locke.
Dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return. --Gen. iii. 19.
2. To come back, or begin again, after an interval, regular or irregular; to appear again.
With the year Seasons return; but not me returns Day or the sweet approach of even or morn. --Milton.
3. To speak in answer; to reply; to respond.
He said, and thus the queen of heaven returned. --Pope.
4. To revert; to pass back into possession.
And Jeroboam said in his heart, Now shall the kingdom return to the house of David. --1Kings xii. 26.
5. To go back in thought, narration, or argument. ''But to return to my story.'' --Fielding.
From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:
adjective
1: tending to return to an earlier state [syn: {reverting}]
2: tending to be turned back [syn: {returning(a)}, {reversive}]
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