Reflexive Verbs
Reflexive Verbs
Spanish routinely marks 'doing something to yourself' with a dedicated pronoun built into the verb. English usually just leaves that idea implied.
Grammar Comparison
Grammar Comparison
A reflexive pronoun that changes with the subject
me levanto, te levantas, se levanta — literally 'I get myself up', 'you get yourself up'
I get up, you get up — no separate 'myself'/'yourself' needed
Verbs like levantarse (to get up), lavarse (to wash oneself), and llamarse (to be called) carry a reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nos, se) that shifts with the subject and sits right before the conjugated verb — the same position you've now seen object pronouns take twice already. English implies the same self-directed action without needing any extra word at all: 'I get up' already means you're doing it to yourself.
Some verbs change meaning with and without 'se'
dormir (to sleep) vs. dormirse (to fall asleep); ir (to go) vs. irse (to leave/go away)
to sleep vs. to fall asleep; to go vs. to leave — English needs a different verb entirely to capture the shift
Adding se to certain Spanish verbs doesn't just mark reflexivity — it changes the verb's meaning outright. Dormir is ongoing sleep; dormirse is the specific moment of drifting off. English marks this same distinction with two unrelated-looking verb phrases, so pay attention to which version of these common verbs a sentence is actually using.
Vocabulary
Vocabulary
- English
- I get up
- English
- you wash (yourself)
- English
- his/her name is
- English
- we get dressed
- English
- they sit down
- English
- I fall asleep
- English
- I'm leaving
- English
- he/she showers
- English
- I go to bed
- English
- they get married