How many times did Noah send out the dove in Genesis chapter 8?

Noah sent out the dove three times in Genesis chapter 8.

The first release came after Noah sent a raven. The dove found no place to rest and returned to him in the Ark. Noah sent it again seven days later, and it returned with a freshly plucked olive leaf. After another seven days, Noah sent the dove a third time, and it did not return.

The sequence is often shortened in retellings to the image of a dove carrying an olive leaf. That famous image represents only the second of the three dove missions. The raven and the dove are separate parts of the episode.

The dove’s final failure to return signals that the land had become suitable for habitation, although Genesis continues with further waiting and instructions before Noah leaves the Ark. The story therefore uses the bird’s behavior as a practical sign within the narrative, not merely as a decorative symbol.