How to Pick the Right Reflexive Verb and Pronoun with Confidence

¡Hola amigos! If you're learning Spanish, you've probably come across reflexive verbs. They can be a bit tricky, but don't worry, we're here to help you understand them better!

So, what exactly are reflexive verbs?

Technically speaking, reflexive verbs are verbs where the subject is also the object of the action. In other words, the subject is doing something to themselves. For example:

Here's a list of some common Spanish reflexive verbs you might have seen:

How do you use reflexive verbs?

Now, let's talk about how to use reflexive verbs correctly. First, we'll need to pick something called a reflexive pronoun.

1. Pick your reflexive pronoun

When using a reflexive verb, a matching reflexive pronoun has to tag along. Here's a handy reference of some reflexive pronouns in Spanish and when to use them:

The appropriate reflexive pronoun is placed before the verb. We'll see this up next...

2. Conjugate the verb

Next, conjugate the verb to match the subject. This will vary depending on the verb. For example, the verb vestirse (to get dressed) changes as below:

It's important to practice conjugating reflexive verbs to get comfortable with this aspect of Spanish grammar.

3. Putting the pieces together

Let's build a sentence with a reflexive verb. We can start with an English example:

As mentioned before, the verb vestirse becomes visto since we're using the first person pronoun, yo.

We also know that the reflexive pronoun me corresponds to yo. In this case, we can build our sentence:

The gotchas of reflexive verbs

Reflexive verbs are powerful, but they come with some of the nuances to consider. In Spanish, reflexive verbs are often used in situations where we wouldn't use them in English. For example, in English we might say "I brushed my teeth", but in Spanish it would be more common to use the reflexive form:

Additionally, reflexive verbs are often used in Spanish to indicate a change in state. For example, "poner" means "to put", but "ponerse" means "to become".

Lastly, it's important to note that reflexive verbs can have different meanings than their non-reflexive counterparts. This was illustrated above, but here's another example:

Reflexive verbs in English

To provide some additional context, let's look at reflexive verb usage in English. We do use reflexive verbs in English, but not as frequently as in Spanish. We might say "I showered myself", but more commonly we'd say "I showered".

We don't always add a reflexive pronoun before the verb in English. For example, we might say "She dressed quickly" instead of "She dressed herself quickly". These are seemingly small changes, but they can twist the meaning of what you want to say.

Final thoughts

Reflexive verbs are an important aspect of Spanish grammar that can take some time to master. Remember to use the correct reflexive pronoun based on the subject, put it before the verb, and be aware of the different meanings that reflexive verbs can have.

If you're still shaky about conjugating verbs, try it with English cognates to make it more straightforward:

How to Supercharge Your Spanish Vocabulary using Helpful Cognates

Cognates are words that share the same meaning across languages. They’re extremely helpful in learning a new language since they provide familiarity where a word would otherwise be foreign.

AddSpanishAddSpanish Team

With practice, you'll be using reflexive verbs like a native Spanish speaker in no time!