Pronouns · Uses · Accidental Construction · Quizzes
The core idea in plain English
A reflexive verb is one where the subject does the action to themselves. In English we sometimes say "I hurt myself" or "she introduced herself" — that's the reflexive idea. Spanish does this constantly, and with a small pronoun instead of a separate word.
Compare these two sentences:
That little me changes everything. It says: the action comes back to the person doing it.
Spanish uses reflexive verbs in situations where English doesn't — especially for daily routine, emotions, and changes of state. Things like getting dressed, feeling bored, falling asleep, or getting angry are all reflexive in Spanish.
1. Actions you do to yourself — bañarse (to bathe), vestirse (to get dressed), peinarse (to comb your hair)
2. Emotional and mental changes — enojarse (to get angry), aburrirse (to get bored), enamorarse (to fall in love)
3. Reciprocal actions (two people doing something to each other) — conocerse (to meet each other), hablarse (to talk to each other), verse (to see each other)
The reflexive pronoun goes directly before the conjugated verb.
With infinitives, it can attach to the end: quiero bañarme or go before: me quiero bañar — both are correct.
Me, te, se, nos — what each one means and when to use it
| Pronoun | Subject | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| me | yo (I) | myself |
Me llamo Linda.
My name is Linda. (I call myself Linda)
|
| te | tú (you) | yourself |
¿A qué hora te despiertas?
What time do you wake up?
|
| se | él/ella/usted | himself / herself / yourself |
Ella se viste rápido.
She gets dressed quickly.
|
| nos | nosotros (we) | ourselves / each other |
Nos conocemos desde niños.
We've known each other since we were kids.
|
| se | ellos/ellas/ustedes | themselves / each other / yourselves |
Se abrazan cuando se ven.
They hug each other when they see each other.
|
Notice that se is used for él/ella, usted, ellos/ellas, AND ustedes. Context tells you which one. This is one of the most important things to internalize.
Here's how a reflexive verb looks fully conjugated. Let's use levantarse (to get up):
When a reflexive verb follows another verb, the pronoun can go in two places — both are correct:
In Mexican Spanish, attaching it to the infinitive (bañarme) sounds slightly more natural and is very common in speech.
In positive commands, the pronoun attaches to the end of the verb:
In negative commands, the pronoun goes before:
The most essential reflexive verbs — you'll use these every day
How you feel, how you change — all reflexive in Spanish
These use nos or se to mean "each other."
Se me cayó, se te olvidó — this trips everyone up but it's pure Mexican Spanish
This is one of the most important and most misunderstood structures in Spanish. When something happens accidentally or unintentionally, Spanish puts the blame on the situation, not the person. You don't say "I forgot" — you say "it forgot itself from me."
se — signals that this is unintentional / accidental
me/te/le/nos/les — says who was affected (the "victim")
verb — agrees with the THING, not the person
I forgot my keys.
I forgot my appointments.
Se me olvidaron las llaves.
Se me olvidaron las citas.
Notice: olvidaron (plural) because las llaves is plural. The verb agrees with the thing forgotten, not the person.
I dropped my phone.
I dropped my keys.
Se me cayó el celular.
Se me cayeron las llaves.
I broke my glasses.
I lost my wallet.
Se me rompieron los lentes.
Se me perdió la cartera.
I ran out of money.
I missed the bus.
Se me acabó el dinero.
Se me fue el camión.
Change the middle pronoun to change who the "victim" is:
| Pronoun | Who it happened to | Example |
|---|---|---|
| se me | to me | Se me olvidó. — I forgot. |
| se te | to you | Se te cayó. — You dropped it. |
| se le | to him/her/you(formal) | Se le perdió. — He/she lost it. |
| se nos | to us | Se nos acabó. — We ran out. |
| se les | to them/you all | Se les fue. — They missed it. |
The errors English speakers make most often — and how to fix them
Ella levanta a las siete.
Ella se levanta a las siete.
Without se, this means "she lifts something" — not "she gets up."
Yo levanto me temprano.
Yo me levanto temprano.
The pronoun always goes before the conjugated verb, not after.
Ella me llama María.
Ella se llama María.
me = I call myself. se = she calls herself. Always match the pronoun to the subject.
Yo olvidé mis llaves.
Se me olvidaron las llaves.
While yo olvidé technically exists, it sounds unnatural. The accidental construction is what native speakers use.
Se me olvidó las llaves.
Se me olvidaron las llaves.
Llaves is plural, so the verb must be plural too: olvidaron, not olvidó.
Pick the right reflexive pronoun or form
Translate the English sentence into Spanish