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Reflexive Verbs: Comprehensive Guide

Master reflexives—true reflexive actions, pronominal verbs, reciprocal verbs, and reflexive pronouns in Spanish

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Reflexive Verbs: Comprehensive Guide

Complete guide to understanding and using reflexive verbs in Spanish.

What Are Reflexive Verbs?

Verbs where the subject performs an action on itself.

Me lavo. (I wash myself.) Te miras. (You look at yourself.) Se viste. (He/She dresses himself/herself.)

Reflexive pronouns:

  • me (myself)
  • te (yourself)
  • se (himself/herself/yourself formal/themselves)
  • nos (ourselves)
  • os (yourselves - Spain)
  • se (yourselves/themselves)

True Reflexive Actions

Subject = object: Me lavo. (I wash myself.) vs. Lavo el coche. (I wash the car.)

Me afeito. (I shave myself.) Te peinas. (You comb your hair.) Se mira en el espejo. (He looks at himself in the mirror.)

Common Reflexive Verbs

Daily routine: levantarse (to get up) despertarse (to wake up) ducharse/bañarse (to shower/bathe) vestirse (to get dressed) peinarse (to comb one's hair) afeitarse (to shave) maquillarse (to put on makeup) acostarse (to go to bed) dormirse (to fall asleep)

Me levanto a las 7. (I get up at 7.) Nos acostamos tarde. (We go to bed late.)

Pronominal Verbs

Always used with reflexive pronouns: These aren't truly reflexive (action on oneself) but require the pronoun.

quejarse (to complain) arrepentirse (to regret) atreverse (to dare) acordarse (to remember) olvidarse (to forget) enterarse (to find out)

Me quejo mucho. (I complain a lot.) Se arrepiente de su decisión. (He regrets his decision.) ¿Te atreves? (Do you dare?)

Change in Meaning

Some verbs change meaning with "se":

ir (to go) → irse (to leave) dormir (to sleep) → dormirse (to fall asleep) poner (to put) → ponerse (to put on/become) llamar (to call) → llamarse (to be called/named) parecer (to seem) → parecerse (to look like)

Voy al cine. (I go to the movies.) Me voy. (I'm leaving.)

Duermo bien. (I sleep well.) Me duermo rápido. (I fall asleep quickly.)

Reciprocal Actions

"Each other" with plural subjects: Nos amamos. (We love each other.) Se escriben cartas. (They write letters to each other.) Os veis mañana. (You'll see each other tomorrow.)

Nos conocimos en 2020. (We met each other in 2020.) Se ayudan mucho. (They help each other a lot.)

Position of Reflexive Pronouns

Before conjugated verbs: Me lavo las manos. (I wash my hands.) Te levantas temprano. (You get up early.)

Attached to infinitives: Voy a ducharme. (I'm going to shower.) Necesito acostarme. (I need to go to bed.)

Attached to gerunds: Está duchándose. (He's showering.) Estamos preparándonos. (We're getting ready.)

Attached to affirmative commands: ¡Levántate! (Get up!) ¡Siéntense! (Sit down! - formal plural)

Before negative commands: ¡No te levantes! (Don't get up!) ¡No se preocupe! (Don't worry! - formal)

Reflexive with Body Parts

Use definite article, not possessive: Me lavo las manos. (I wash my hands.) [Not: mis manos]

Te cepillas los dientes. (You brush your teeth.) Se corta el pelo. (He cuts his hair.)

Reflexive with Emotions

ponerse (to become/get - emotions) Me pongo nervioso. (I get nervous.) Se pone triste. (She gets sad.) Nos ponemos felices. (We get happy.)

sentirse (to feel) Me siento bien. (I feel good.) ¿Cómo te sientes? (How do you feel?)

Passive Reflexive (Se)

Things that happen "to themselves": Se abrió la puerta. (The door opened.) Se rompió el vaso. (The glass broke.) Se acabó la comida. (The food ran out.)

Common Pronominal Expressions

darse cuenta (to realize) Me di cuenta del error. (I realized the error.)

hacerse (to become) Se hizo médico. (He became a doctor.)

portarse (to behave) Se porta bien. (He behaves well.)

quedarse (to stay) Me quedo en casa. (I'm staying home.)

Reflexive with Clothing

ponerse (to put on) Me pongo la chaqueta. (I put on the jacket.)

quitarse (to take off) Me quito los zapatos. (I take off my shoes.)

probarse (to try on) Me pruebo el vestido. (I try on the dress.)

Emphasis on Action

Non-reflexive vs reflexive: Comí la pizza. (I ate the pizza.) Me comí toda la pizza. (I ate up the whole pizza.) [Emphasizes completing the action]

Bebió el café. (He drank the coffee.) Se bebió todo el café. (He drank up all the coffee.)

Present Tense Conjugation Example

Lavarse (to wash oneself):

  • me lavo (I wash myself)
  • te lavas (you wash yourself)
  • se lava (he/she washes himself/herself)
  • nos lavamos (we wash ourselves)
  • os laváis (you all wash yourselves - Spain)
  • se lavan (they wash themselves)

Preterite Example

Levantarse (to get up):

  • me levanté
  • te levantaste
  • se levantó
  • nos levantamos
  • os levantasteis
  • se levantaron

Me levanté a las 6. (I got up at 6.)

Common Errors

❌ Me lavo mis manos ✓ Me lavo las manos (Use article with body parts)

❌ Yo me llamo es Juan ✓ Me llamo Juan (Don't use "es" with llamarse)

❌ Levántame temprano ✓ Levántame temprano (wake me up) ✓ Levántate temprano (you get up early)

Reflexive vs Non-Reflexive

Despierto a mi hijo. (I wake up my son.) Me despierto a las 7. (I wake up at 7.)

Acuesto a los niños. (I put the kids to bed.) Me acuesto tarde. (I go to bed late.)

Practice

'I get up at 7' →