Kilo Lingo
Part of Chapter 7

CEFR A1-A2

3 min read

Test yourself (22 questions)

Spanish Reflexive Verbs

A reflexive verb is one whose action loops back to the subject. In English we'd say "I wash myself" with a separate reflexive pronoun. In Spanish, the pronoun is built into the verb and is mandatory whenever the verb is reflexive.

How they look

The reflexive infinitive ends in -: , llamarse, lavarse, , despertarse. When you conjugate, the - detaches and becomes a pronoun matching the subject, placed before the verb.

PersonPronounExample (levantarse)
yomeme
/ /
/ /

Foundation tier focuses on the singular forms (me, , ); the plural forms are flagged for Higher-tier and the intermediate Spanish grammar page.

The core daily-routine reflexives

These are the high-frequency reflexives in the top 500 lemmas. Worth knowing as a set.

ReflexiveEnglish
llamarseto be called
to get up
to go to bed
despertarseto wake up
to fall asleep
to sit down
lavarseto wash oneself
ducharseto shower
to get dressed
to put on (clothing)
to take off (clothing)
to leave, to go away
to stay

Many of these are stem-changing or irregular - acostarse (o → ue), despertarse (e → ie), vestirse (e → i), ponerse (irregular). Conjugate the verb stem normally and bolt the reflexive pronoun in front.

Pronoun position

The same rules as for object pronouns:

  • Before the conjugated verb: me levanto, te llamas, se viste.
  • Attached to an infinitive: quiero levantarme (I want to get up). Also valid: me quiero levantar.
  • Attached to a gerund: estoy duchándome (I'm showering). Also valid: me estoy duchando.
  • Attached to an affirmative command: ¡siéntate! (sit down!), ¡levántate! (get up!).

Note the written accent on duchándome and - attaching the pronoun shifts the stress pattern, so a written accent goes on the original stressed syllable.

Reflexive vs non-reflexive: the meaning shift

Most reflexive verbs have a non-reflexive twin that means something subtly different. The reflexive form usually means the subject is doing the action to themselves; the non-reflexive form means doing it to someone or something else.

Non-reflexiveReflexive
(wash the car)lavarse (wash oneself)
(lift the table) (get oneself up)
a (wake the kids up)despertarse (wake oneself up)
(put the book down) (put on, become)
(feel the cold) (feel - as a state)

The split is consistent: subject-affects-self uses the reflexive; subject-affects-something-else uses the non-reflexive.

Worked examples

  • Me Michael. (My name is Michael.)
  • ¿A ? (What time do you get up?)
  • acuesta . (He goes to bed late every day.)
  • ducharme . (I want to shower before going out.)
  • , favor. (Sit down, please.)
  • No me . (I don't feel well.)

Common mistakes English speakers make

The biggest one is dropping the reflexive pronoun because English doesn't use it: a instead of me a . The reflexive pronoun is mandatory - the verb is incomplete without it. The second is forgetting that body parts and clothing use the definite article, not the possessive: me (I wash my hands), not "me lavo mis manos". The reflexive pronoun already marks the possession.

See also

Practise: test yourself

Fill in the blank

0/8

Fill the gap with the reflexive pronoun (me, te or se) plus the correctly conjugated verb, using the infinitive in the hint.

  1. Yo muy pronto todos los días. (levantarse)

  2. ¿Cómo ? - Me llamo Ana. (llamarse)

  3. Él tarde porque trabaja de noche. (acostarse)

  4. Quiero antes de salir. (ducharse, attached to the infinitive)

  5. No bien hoy. (sentirse)

  6. Yo las manos antes de comer. (lavarse)

  7. ¿A qué hora tú por la noche? (acostarse)

  8. Ella Ana. (llamarse)

Translation drill

0/7

Translate into Spanish, keeping the reflexive pronoun the verb needs.

  1. My name is Michael.

  2. What time do you get up?

  3. I wash my hands.

  4. Sit down, please.

  5. He goes to bed late.

  6. I want to shower before going out.

  7. I don't feel well today.

Pick the right one

0/7

Pick the reflexive or non-reflexive form that fits the meaning.

  1. Mi madre las manos antes de comer.

  2. Mi padre el coche por la mañana.

  3. El niño la cara solo.

  4. Mi hermano el coche por la mañana.

  5. El niño las manos antes de comer.

  6. Mi madre el coche cada día.

  7. Mi hija la cara por la noche.

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Frequently asked questions

What does the -se on the end of a Spanish verb mean?
The -se on infinitives like levantarse, llamarse, lavarse marks the verb as reflexive - the action loops back to the subject. When you conjugate it, the -se separates from the infinitive and becomes one of six pronouns (me, te, se, nos, os, se) matching the subject. So levantarse becomes me levanto (I get up), te levantas (you get up), se levanta (he/she/you-formal gets up). The pronoun moves to before the verb when it's conjugated.
Why is llamarse used to say 'my name is'?
Spanish doesn't have a direct equivalent of 'my name is' - instead it uses llamarse, literally 'to call oneself'. Me llamo Michael means 'I call myself Michael', and that's the standard way to introduce yourself. ¿Cómo te llamas? is literally 'how do you call yourself?' Spanish reaches for reflexives in lots of places English doesn't - especially for daily routine and changes of state - and llamarse is the highest-frequency one you'll meet.