Spanish reflexive verbs are verbs where the subject performs an action on itself, marked by a reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nos, os, se) that matches the subject. The infinitive form of a reflexive verb ends in -se: lavarse (to wash oneself), levantarse (to get up), vestirse (to get dressed). Reflexive constructions appear in Spanish far more often than in English, covering daily routines, emotions, physical actions, and reciprocal actions between people.
This article explains how reflexive verbs work in Spanish, lists the reflexive pronouns, covers the most common reflexive verbs grouped by category, and walks through conjugation with examples across the present, preterite, and subjunctive tenses.
How Reflexive Verbs Work in Spanish
A reflexive verb indicates that the subject and the object of the sentence are the same person. The English sentence “I wash myself” uses the reflexive pronoun “myself” to show that the person doing the washing and the person being washed are the same. Spanish uses the same logic but applies it more broadly.
The key difference from English: Spanish uses reflexive verbs for actions that English handles without a pronoun. “I get up” in English is “Me levanto” in Spanish, with the reflexive pronoun me attached because the subject is raising itself. “She sits down” becomes “Ella se sienta.” The reflexive pronoun goes directly before the conjugated verb, or attaches to the end of an infinitive, a gerund, or an affirmative command.
The Reflexive Pronouns
Spanish has six reflexive pronouns that match the subject pronouns:
- me – yo (I): Yo me lavo – I wash myself
- te – tu (you, informal): Tu te levantas – You get up
- se – el/ella/usted (he/she/you formal): El se afeita – He shaves
- nos – nosotros (we): Nosotros nos vestimos – We get dressed
- os – vosotros (you all, Spain): Vosotros os sentais – You all sit down
- se – ellos/ellas/ustedes (they/you all formal): Ellas se peinan – They comb their hair
The pronoun se serves both the third person singular and plural, and the formal usted/ustedes forms. Context and the conjugated verb form make the meaning clear.
Common Spanish Reflexive Verbs by Category
Reflexive verbs in Spanish fall into several natural groupings based on the type of action they describe.
Daily routine verbs:
- levantarse – to get up
- acostarse – to go to bed
- despertarse – to wake up
- ducharse – to shower
- banarse – to bathe
- lavarse – to wash oneself
- cepillarse – to brush (teeth, hair)
- peinarse – to comb one’s hair
- vestirse – to get dressed
- quitarse – to take off (clothing)
- ponerse – to put on (clothing)
- maquillarse – to put on makeup
- afeitarse – to shave
Emotion and state-of-mind verbs:
- alegrarse – to become happy
- enojarse – to get angry
- preocuparse – to worry
- sentirse – to feel
- aburrirse – to get bored
- asustarse – to get scared
- enamorarse – to fall in love
- quejarse – to complain
Movement and position verbs:
- sentarse – to sit down
- irse – to leave, to go away
- mudarse – to move (house)
- quedarse – to stay
- caerse – to fall down
Conjugation in the Present Tense
Conjugating a reflexive verb works the same as conjugating a non-reflexive verb, with the addition of the matching reflexive pronoun before the verb. Taking lavarse as an example in the present indicative:
- Yo me lavo – I wash myself
- Tu te lavas – You wash yourself
- El/ella se lava – He/she washes
- Nosotros nos lavamos – We wash ourselves
- Vosotros os lavais – You all wash yourselves
- Ellos/ellas se lavan – They wash themselves
Stem-changing reflexive verbs follow their normal stem changes. Despertarse changes e to ie in the present: me despierto, te despiertas, se despierta, nos despertamos, os despertais, se despiertan. Vestirse changes e to i: me visto, te vistes, se viste, nos vestimos, os vestis, se visten.
Reflexive Verbs in Other Tenses
The reflexive pronoun stays in front of the conjugated verb in the preterite, imperfect, future, conditional, and subjunctive tenses. The pronoun position does not change, only the verb conjugation does.
Preterite: Me levante a las siete – I got up at seven.
Imperfect: De nino, me acostaba temprano – As a child, I used to go to bed early.
Future: Manana me duchare antes de salir – Tomorrow I will shower before leaving.
Subjunctive: Espero que te sientas mejor – I hope you feel better.
With infinitives and gerunds the pronoun can either go before the conjugated helper verb or attach to the end of the infinitive/gerund. Both forms are correct: “Me voy a levantar” and “Voy a levantarme” mean the same thing. With affirmative commands the pronoun always attaches to the end: “Levantate” (Get up), “Sientese” (Sit down, formal).
Reflexive Versus Non-Reflexive Meaning
Many Spanish verbs change meaning depending on whether they are used reflexively or not:
- ir (to go) vs irse (to leave, to go away)
- dormir (to sleep) vs dormirse (to fall asleep)
- poner (to put) vs ponerse (to put on clothing, or to become)
- llamar (to call) vs llamarse (to be called, to be named)
- parecer (to seem) vs parecerse (to resemble)
The reflexive form often carries a sense of the action happening to or within the subject rather than being directed outward. “Dormir” means to sleep as a general activity, while “dormirse” means to fall asleep, the transition from waking to sleeping that happens to the person.
Reciprocal Reflexive Verbs
Reflexive pronouns also express reciprocal actions, where two or more people do something to each other. English uses “each other” or “one another” for this, while Spanish uses the same reflexive pronouns (nos, os, se) with a plural subject.
- abrazarse – to hug each other: Ellos se abrazaron – They hugged each other
- besarse – to kiss each other: Los novios se besaron – The couple kissed each other
- mirarse – to look at each other: Nos miramos en silencio – We looked at each other in silence
- escribirse – to write to each other: Se escriben cartas – They write letters to each other
- ayudarse – to help each other: Nos ayudamos siempre – We always help each other
Context determines whether a reflexive verb in the plural is reflexive (each person does the action to themselves) or reciprocal (they do it to each other). “Ellas se lavan” could mean “They wash themselves” or “They wash each other” depending on context. Adding “el uno al otro” or “mutuamente” removes the ambiguity when needed.
Sample Sentences for Practice
Reading reflexive verbs in full sentences builds familiarity faster than studying lists alone. The following examples cover different tenses and contexts:
- Me despierto a las seis todos los dias – I wake up at six every day (present, routine)
- Se acosto muy tarde anoche – He went to bed very late last night (preterite)
- Nos estamos preparando para la fiesta – We are getting ready for the party (present progressive)
- Te vas a divertir mucho – You are going to have a lot of fun (near future with ir + infinitive)
- Ella se puso el abrigo porque hacia frio – She put on her coat because it was cold (preterite + imperfect)
- Nos conocimos en la universidad – We met (each other) at university (reciprocal, preterite)
- No te preocupes – Do not worry (negative informal command)
- Sientense, por favor – Please sit down (formal plural command)
Frequently Asked Questions
What are Spanish reflexive verbs?
Spanish reflexive verbs are verbs where the subject performs an action on itself, marked by a reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nos, os, se) placed before the conjugated verb. The infinitive form ends in -se: lavarse, levantarse, vestirse. They cover daily routines, emotions, physical movements, and reciprocal actions.
How do you identify a reflexive verb in Spanish?
A reflexive verb in its infinitive form ends in -se: ducharse, acostarse, sentirse. In a conjugated sentence the reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nos, os, se) appears before the verb: “Me despierto a las seis” (I wake up at six). If the -se ending is absent from the infinitive and no reflexive pronoun appears, the verb is not reflexive in that usage.
Where does the reflexive pronoun go?
The reflexive pronoun goes directly before the conjugated verb: “Ella se peina.” With infinitives and gerunds, the pronoun can go before the helper verb or attach to the end of the infinitive/gerund: “Voy a lavarme” or “Me voy a lavar.” With affirmative commands, the pronoun attaches to the end: “Sientate” (Sit down).
What are the most common Spanish reflexive verbs?
The most common Spanish reflexive verbs describe daily routines: levantarse (get up), acostarse (go to bed), ducharse (shower), vestirse (get dressed), lavarse (wash), cepillarse (brush), peinarse (comb hair). Emotion verbs like sentirse (feel), alegrarse (become happy), and enojarse (get angry) are also very common.
Do reflexive verbs change meaning from their non-reflexive forms?
Many Spanish verbs shift meaning when used reflexively. Ir means to go, but irse means to leave or go away. Dormir means to sleep, but dormirse means to fall asleep. Llamar means to call someone, but llamarse means to be called or named. The reflexive form adds a sense of the action happening to or within the subject.
Sources and Further Reading
- Real Academia Espanola, Diccionario de la lengua espanola and Nueva gramatica de la lengua espanola, rae.es
- Instituto Cervantes, official Spanish language teaching resources and A1-C2 grammar references, cervantes.es
- Butt, John and Benjamin, Carmen, A New Reference Grammar of Modern Spanish, Routledge, 6th edition
