Spanish reflexive pronouns
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Reflexive pronouns (pronombres reflexivos) indicate that someone or something is performing an action on or for itself.
Examples:
- Cada mañana me ducho antes de irme a la oficina. (Every morning I shower [myself] before going to the office.)
- Clara se enfadó porque no la invitaron a su boda. (Clara got angry because they did not invite her to their wedding.)
Lesson outline
Hide- 1.Reflexive pronoun forms
- 2.Structure
- 3.Uses
- 4.Placement
- 4.1.Placement in commands
- 4.2.Placement with infinitive forms
- 4.3.Placement with gerund forms
- 5.How to describe your daily routine with reflexive verbs
- 6.Exercises
- 6.1.Spanish reflexive pronoun practice quiz
- 6.2.Spanish reflexive pronouns - Fill in the blanks
Reflexive pronoun forms
| Subject pronouns | Reflexive pronoun | English translation |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | me | myself |
| Tú | te | yourself |
Él Ella Usted | se | himself herself formal yourself |
| Nosotros / Nosotras | nos | ourselves |
| Vosotros / Vosotras | os | yourselves |
Ellos / Ellas Ustedes | se | themselves formal yourselves |
Examples:
- Me corté las uñas. (I cut my nails.)
- ¿Te has arreglado ya? (Have you already got ready?)
- Se lavan las manos. (They are washing their hands.)
- Nos despertamos muy tarde. (We woke up very late.)
- ¿Os habéis aburrido esta tarde? (Have you got bored this afternoon?)
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Structure
Reflexive pronouns are part of reflexive verbs (verbos reflexivos) and they are generally placed before them.
The reflexive pronoun matches the subject of the verb in both number (singular or plural) and person (first, second, or third).
The subject and object of the verb generally refer to the same entity.
Example:
- Yo me baño. (I bathe myself.)
- Él se arrepintió de lo que hizo. (He regretted what he did.)
Sometimes the object which receives the action may be different but it refers to something which belongs to the subject (e.g. part of the body).
Example:
Lucía se cortó un dedo con el cuchillo. (Lucía cut her finger with a knife.)
Uses
| Uses | Example |
|---|---|
| actions related to personal care or daily routines | Cada mañana me peino. (Every morning I brush myself/my hair.) |
| indicating an emotional response to something (get angry, sad, etc.) | María se enfadó con su novio. (María got angry with her boyfriend.) |
| adding emphasis to a regular situation | Me comería una tarta entera. (I would eat an entire cake.) |
Placement
Reflexive pronouns generally precede verbs (both simple and compound ones).
Examples:
Mi novio se ha afeitado y ahora parece un niño. (My boyfriend shaved himself and now he looks like a child.)
Anyway, direct object pronoun placement depends on the conjugated form of the verb.
Pay attention to the following cases:
- negative and affirmative commands
- infinitive
- gerund
1. Placement in commands
With negative commands, the pronoun precedes the verb which refers to the command.
Example:
¡No te preocupes! (Don't worry!)
With affirmative commands, attach the pronoun to the verb which indicates the command.
Example:
¡Lávate* las manos! (Wash your hands!)
_____________________________________________________________________________________
* If the stressed syllable of the verb is the next-to-last one (not counting the pronoun), add the accent mark.
2. Placement with infinitive forms
When used with infinitive forms, the pronoun may occur after the verb and it is attached to it.
Example:
Acabo de ducharme. (I have just showered myself.)
It occurs before the conjugated form of a verb which precedes the infinitive as well.
Example:
Me acabo de levantar. (I have just got up.)
3. Placement with gerund forms
When used with gerund forms, the pronoun may occur after the verb and it is attached to it.
Example:
Estoy maquillandome. (I am putting on makeup.)
It occurs before the conjugated form of a verb which precedes the gerund as well.
Example:
Mi padre se está afeitando. (My father is shaving himself.)
How to describe your daily routine with reflexive verbs
| Reflexive verb | English translation | Example |
|---|---|---|
| acostar(se) | to go to bed | Mi abuela suele acostarse muy temprano. (My grandmother is used to going to bed early.) |
| afeitar(se) | to shave (oneself) | Mi padre se afeita cada mañana. (My father shaves [himself] every morning.) |
| bañar(se) | to have a bath | Los niños necesitan bañarse. (The children need to have a bath.) |
| despertar(se) | to wake up | ¿A qué hora te despiertas? (What time do you usually wake up?) |
| desvestir(se) | to get undressed | Rafael se desvistió y entró en la ducha. (Rafael got undressed and got in the shower.) |
| duchar(se) | to shower (oneself) | Acabo de volver del gimnasio. Necesito ducharme. (I have just got back from the gym. I need to shower [myself].) |
| lavar(se) | to wash (oneself) | ¡Lávate la cara! (Wash your face!) |
| levantar(se) | to get up | Esta mañana me he levantado a las nueve. (This morning I got up at nine.) |
| maquillar(se) | to put makeup on | Después de desayunar, me maquillo y salgo de casa. (After breakfast, I usually put my makeup on and leave home.) |
| peinar(se) | to brush (one's hair) | Lávate los dientes y peinate antes de salir. (Brush your teeth and brush your hair before going out.) |
| poner(se) | to put on, to wear | Creo que me pondré este vestido para salir con Juan. (I think I will wear this dress to go out with Juan.) |
| secar(se) | to dry off | Coge la toalla y sécate antes de vestirte. (Take the towel and dry [yourself] before getting dressed.) |
Exercises
Spanish reflexive pronoun practice quiz
Solution
For each sentence, pay attention to the correspondant personal pronoun.
Please memorise the following reflexive pronouns:
SINGULAR: PLURAL:
- Yo ME= myself - Nosotros/Nosotras NOS= ourselves
- Tú TE= yourself - Vosotros/Vosotras OS= yourselves
- Él/Ella/Usted SE= himself/herself/formal yourself - Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes SE= themselves
We are sitting in the dining room.
Nosotros nos sentamos en el comedor.
You bathe yourself.
Tú te bañas.
He shaves himself.
Él se afeita.
You look yourself in the mirror.
Vosotros os miráis en el espejo.
They get dressed.
Ellas se visten.
Have you forgotten him?
¿Tú te has olvidado de él?
She washes her hair.
Ella se lava el pelo.
We always remember what you told us.
Nosotros siempre nos acordamos de lo que dijiste.
I put on makeup.
Yo me maquillo.
You take off the gloves.
Vosotros os sacáis los guantes.
Spanish reflexive pronouns - Fill in the blanks
To make the right choice, pay attention to the subject of the sentence.
1- Cada mañana afeito antes de irme a la oficina. (Every morning I shave myself before going to the office.)
2- ¿ ha arreglado ya? (Has she already got ready?)
3- ¿A qué hora despertaste? (What time did you get up?)
4- lavamos la cara en el río. (We washed our face in the river.)
5- ¿ ducháis juntos? (Do you shower yourselves together?)
6- No arrepienten de nada. (They do not regret anything.)
7- enfadé con mis padres. (I got angry with my parents.)
8- ¡No preocupéis! (Don't worry!)
9- Anoche acostamos muy tarde. (Yesterday night we went to bed at midnight.)
10- Ana maquilla muy bien. (Ana makes herself up very well.)
Exercises
Spanish reflexive pronoun practice quiz
Solution
For each sentence, pay attention to the correspondant personal pronoun.
Please memorise the following reflexive pronouns:
SINGULAR: PLURAL:
- Yo ME= myself - Nosotros/Nosotras NOS= ourselves
- Tú TE= yourself - Vosotros/Vosotras OS= yourselves
- Él/Ella/Usted SE= himself/herself/formal yourself - Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes SE= themselves
We are sitting in the dining room.
Nosotros nos sentamos en el comedor.
You bathe yourself.
Tú te bañas.
He shaves himself.
Él se afeita.
You look yourself in the mirror.
Vosotros os miráis en el espejo.
They get dressed.
Ellas se visten.
Have you forgotten him?
¿Tú te has olvidado de él?
She washes her hair.
Ella se lava el pelo.
We always remember what you told us.
Nosotros siempre nos acordamos de lo que dijiste.
I put on makeup.
Yo me maquillo.
You take off the gloves.
Vosotros os sacáis los guantes.
Spanish reflexive pronouns - Fill in the blanks
To make the right choice, pay attention to the subject of the sentence.
1- Cada mañana afeito antes de irme a la oficina. (Every morning I shave myself before going to the office.)
2- ¿ ha arreglado ya? (Has she already got ready?)
3- ¿A qué hora despertaste? (What time did you get up?)
4- lavamos la cara en el río. (We washed our face in the river.)
5- ¿ ducháis juntos? (Do you shower yourselves together?)
6- No arrepienten de nada. (They do not regret anything.)
7- enfadé con mis padres. (I got angry with my parents.)
8- ¡No preocupéis! (Don't worry!)
9- Anoche acostamos muy tarde. (Yesterday night we went to bed at midnight.)
10- Ana maquilla muy bien. (Ana makes herself up very well.)
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I found CoLanguage accidentally when I was searching for online private lessons to improve my spanish skills which had diminished a bit since my stay abroad two years ago (B2+ level). After the free trial with Noelia (where we talked about my objectives and her learning methods and got to know each other) I was already so blessed and motivated! Her lessons are well-structured, she is really flexible, patient, reacts to sentences spoken and directly helps to rephrase mistakes/sentences. I am able to repeat and learn grammar/vocabularies and at the same time we have good conversations which makes my speaking more fluent again. She visualizes everything while speaking which makes it easy to follow. I am really looking forward to continue learning Spanish with her!
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Thank you very much Wiebke !!! :)
Hello! I'm Ana, from Cordoba (Spain).
- Try one of my lessons for free.
- Classes adapted to the level and age of the student.
- I have a master's degree in secondary education and language teaching, and lots of resources to make the classes fun.
- Join my classes if you are looking for a good time or to practise for an official Spanish exam.
C. B.
Ana is a smiling and nice Spanish teacher ! She adaptes her lessons to students demands and level. Students can learn Spanish by speaking, grammar and vocabulary exercises or videos ! She is passioned by teaching to foreign people and she is involved on students progress. I recommend her !
This review was written by a coLanguage team member during a manual screening of this teacher profile.
Thank you very much for your kind words :)
Hello everyone, my name is Verónica Palacios, I am a Spanish teacher with a master's degree in modern languages and speech studies; I have worked as a language teacher in face-to-face and online classes for 13 years. Teaching languages is an activity that I love, I enjoy teaching my mother tongue, I help my students with questions in grammar, reading, writing, speaking, listening to Spanish, in my tutorials I put a lot of emphasis on culture and different learning contexts . Spanish is a very important language at present; If you have knowledge in Spanish, you will have the opportunity to do business, study or visit abroad, in addition to knowing the culture of Spanish-speaking countries. I would like to be your Spanish tutor and work together as a team. I hope you have a beautiful day. See you.
C. S.
Veronica is an excellent teacher and I love our classes together. She brings instructive and entertaining topics for every class. She is punctual, easy to communicate with and very flexible in terms of schedule. I enjoy our weekly lessons and strongly recommend her if you are thinking about learning Spanish, regardless of your level.
Verónica P.