Spanish Reflexive Verbs

Q: What is a reflexive verb in Spanish?

A verb used with a reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nos, os) because the action comes back to the subject: Me lavo ("I wash myself"). In the dictionary, reflexive verbs end in -se: lavarse, levantarse, ducharse.

Q: Where do reflexive pronouns go?

Right before the conjugated verb: Me levanto. With an infinitive, an -ando form, or a positive command, they can go on the end: Voy a levantarme, Estoy levantándome, Levántate.

Q: What is the difference between ir and irse?

Ir means "to go" somewhere: Voy al parque. Irse means "to leave": Me voy ("I'm leaving"). Several verbs change meaning like this, such as dormir (to sleep) and dormirse (to fall asleep).

Q: How do you know if a verb is reflexive?

In the dictionary, look for -se on the end of the infinitive: levantarse. Many verbs can be used both ways: lavar el coche (to wash the car), lavarse (to wash yourself).

Adapted from The Animated Book of Spanish, an interactive Spanish grammar book.

A reflexive verb is one where the action comes back to whoever does it: Me lavo (I wash myself). In the dictionary, they end in -se: lavarse, levantarse. Each person has its own reflexive pronoun:

The Spanish reflexive pronouns, singular and plural
Person	Singular	Plural
1st person	me myself	nos ourselves
2nd personinformal	te yourself	os yourselves (Spain)
3rd personand usted, ustedes	se himself, herself, yourself	sethemselves, yourselves

On this page

What makes a verb reflexive

Many verbs can be used both ways. When you do the action to someone or something else, there's no reflexive pronoun. When you do it to yourself, there is.

To someone elseTo yourself
To someone else
Lavo el coche.
I wash the car.
To yourself
Me lavo.
I wash (myself).
To someone else
Despierto a mi hijo.
I wake up my son.
To yourself
Me despierto.
I wake up.
To someone else
Ella viste a los niños.
She dresses the kids.
To yourself
Ella se viste.
She gets dressed.

Conjugating reflexive verbs

Drop the -se, conjugate the verb as usual, and put the matching pronoun in front. The pronoun always matches the subject: yo → me, tú → te, and so on.

Present tense of lavarse (to wash (yourself))
yome lavo	nosotrosnos lavamos
túte lavas	vosotrosos laváis
él / ella / ustedse lava	ellos / ellas / ustedesse lavan

lavarse · to wash (yourself)

Me lavo las manos.
I wash my hands.
Mis hijos se lavan los dientes.
My kids brush their teeth.

Where the pronoun goes

Reflexive pronouns follow the same placement rules as object pronouns. They go before a conjugated verb, or on the end of an infinitive or an -ando form.

Before the verbAttached to the end
Before the verb
Me voy a duchar.
Attached to the end
Voy a ducharme.
I’m going to take a shower.
Before the verb
Te estás vistiendo.
Attached to the end
Estás vistiéndote.
You’re getting dressed.

Tengo que levantarme temprano.
I have to get up early.
¿Quieres sentarte?
Do you want to sit down?
Vamos a acostarnos tarde.
We’re going to bed late.

With a positive command, the pronoun goes on the end. With a negative one, it goes before the verb.

Positive commandNegative command
Positive command
Siéntate.
Sit down.
Negative command
No te sientes.
Don’t sit down.
Positive command
Levántate, ya es tarde.
Get up, it’s late.
Negative command
No te levantes todavía.
Don’t get up yet.

Verbs that change meaning

Some verbs mean something quite different when they're reflexive.

Without seWith se
ir → irse
Without se
Voy al parque.
I’m going to the park.
With se
Me voy.
I’m leaving.
dormir → dormirse
Without se
Duermo ocho horas.
I sleep eight hours.
With se
Me duermo en clase.
I fall asleep in class.
llamar → llamarse
Without se
Llamo a mi madre.
I call my mom.
With se
Me llamo Ana.
My name is Ana.
poner → ponerse
Without se
Pongo la mesa.
I set the table.
With se
Me pongo el abrigo.
I put on my coat.
quedar → quedarse
Without se
Quedamos a las ocho.
We’re meeting up at eight.
With se
Nos quedamos en casa.
We’re staying home.
parecer → parecerse
Without se
Parece cansado.
He seems tired.
With se
Se parece a su padre.
He looks like his dad.
llevar → llevarse
Without se
Llevo una maleta.
I’m carrying a suitcase.
With se
Me llevo bien con mi hermana.
I get along well with my sister.

Daily routine verbs

Most of the verbs for your daily routine are reflexive, since you do them to yourself:

despertarseto wake up
Me despierto a las siete.
I wake up at seven.
levantarseto get up
Mi hermano se levanta tarde.
My brother gets up late.
ducharseto shower
¿Te duchas por la mañana o por la noche?
Do you shower in the morning or at night?
lavarseto wash
Nos lavamos las manos antes de comer.
We wash our hands before eating.
cepillarse los dientesto brush your teeth
Los niños ya se cepillaron los dientes.
The kids already brushed their teeth.
vestirseto get dressed
Me visto en cinco minutos.
I get dressed in five minutes.
peinarseto do your hair
Mi hija se peina sola.
My daughter does her own hair.
afeitarseto shave
Mi padre se afeita todos los días.
My dad shaves every day.
acostarseto go to bed
¿A qué hora te acuestas?
What time do you go to bed?
dormirseto fall asleep
Siempre me duermo en el sofá.
I always fall asleep on the couch.

Las manos, not mis manos

With body parts and clothes, the reflexive pronoun already shows whose they are. So Spanish uses el, la, los, or las where English uses my or your.

Me lavo las manos.
I wash my hands.
Se puso el abrigo.
She put on her coat.
¿Te cortaste el pelo?
Did you get your hair cut?

Getting angry, bored, married…

Where English says get + a feeling or a change (get angry, get married), Spanish often uses a reflexive verb. (For other ways to say become, see how to say become.)

preocuparseto worry
No te preocupes.
Don’t worry.
enojarse, enfadarseto get angry
Mi jefe se enojó conmigo.
My boss got angry with me.
aburrirseto get bored
Me aburro en las reuniones.
I get bored in meetings.
cansarseto get tired
Nos cansamos muy rápido.
We get tired really fast.
casarseto get married
Mis padres se casaron en junio.
My parents got married in June.
enamorarseto fall in love
Me enamoré de Sevilla.
I fell in love with Seville.

Always reflexive

A few common verbs only exist in the reflexive form:

quejarseto complain
Siempre te quejas.
You’re always complaining.
darse cuentato realize
No me di cuenta.
I didn’t realize.
acordarseto remember
¿Te acuerdas de mí?
Do you remember me?
atreverseto dare
No me atrevo a decírselo.
I don’t dare tell him.

Each other

In the plural, nos and se can also mean each other.

Mi novio y yo nos queremos mucho.
My boyfriend and I love each other a lot.
Se conocieron en la universidad.
They met at college.
¿Nos vemos mañana?
See you tomorrow?

Common mistakes English speakers make

Leaving out the pronoun
Incorrect:Levanto a las siete.
Correct:Me levanto a las siete.
Without me, levanto means I lift or I raise something.
Using the wrong pronoun
Incorrect:Se llamo Juan.
Correct:Me llamo Juan.
The pronoun matches the subject: yo → me. Se is only for él, ella, usted, and their plurals.
Leaving -se on the infinitive
Incorrect:Tengo que levantarse temprano.
Correct:Tengo que levantarme temprano.
The pronoun on the infinitive matches the subject too: levantarme, levantarte, levantarnos.
Using mi with body parts
Incorrect:Me lavo mis manos.
Correct:Me lavo las manos.
The reflexive pronoun already shows whose hands they are.
Using dormirse for sleeping
Incorrect:Me duermo ocho horas.
Correct:Duermo ocho horas.
Dormirse means to fall asleep. For sleeping, use dormir.
Doubling the pronoun in commands
Incorrect:Te siéntate.
Correct:Siéntate.
In a positive command, the pronoun goes only on the end.

Questions about reflexive verbs

What is a reflexive verb in Spanish?

A verb used with a reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nos, os) because the action comes back to the subject: Me lavo ("I wash myself"). In the dictionary, reflexive verbs end in -se: lavarse, levantarse, ducharse.

What are the reflexive pronouns in Spanish?

Me (myself), te (yourself), se (himself, herself, yourself formal), nos (ourselves), os (yourselves, in Spain), and se (themselves, yourselves).

Where do reflexive pronouns go?

Right before the conjugated verb: Me levanto. With an infinitive, an -ando form, or a positive command, they can go on the end: Voy a levantarme, Estoy levantándome, Levántate.

Why do you say "me lavo las manos" and not "mis manos"?

The reflexive pronoun already shows whose hands they are, so Spanish uses el, la, los, or las with body parts and clothes: Me lavo las manos, Se puso el abrigo.

What is the difference between ir and irse?

Ir means "to go" somewhere: Voy al parque. Irse means "to leave": Me voy ("I'm leaving"). Several verbs change meaning like this, such as dormir (to sleep) and dormirse (to fall asleep).

How do you know if a verb is reflexive?

In the dictionary, look for -se on the end of the infinitive: levantarse. Many verbs can be used both ways: lavar el coche (to wash the car), lavarse (to wash yourself).

Next upUses of seSaying things without saying who: impersonal se, se venden casas, se me olvidó, and the passive.

What makes a verb reflexive

Conjugating reflexive verbs

Where the pronoun goes

Verbs that change meaning

Daily routine verbs

Las manos, not mis manos

Getting angry, bored, married…

Always reflexive

Each other

Common mistakes English speakers make

Leaving out the pronoun

Using the wrong pronoun

Leaving -se on the infinitive

Using mi with body parts

Using dormirse for sleeping

Doubling the pronoun in commands

Questions about reflexive verbs

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