In this comparative grammar lesson of Romance languages, we study reflexive pronouns and verbs in Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, & French.
Table of Contents
- What is a Reflexive Verbs?
- How to Form a Reflexive Verb?
- Conjugation of Reflexive Verbs
- Examples of Reflexive Verbs in Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, & French
- Level IV – Intermediate
What is a Reflexive Verbs?
A verb is considered reflexive if the subject and the object of the verb are the same. This means that the subject is doing the action to itself, not to something or someone else. For instance, “I wash myself” is reflexive, while “I wash my car” is not reflexive.
Some verbs in Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, and French are commonly used in the reflexive form. Let us take one example that we are familiar with, that is, the verb “to call.”
| SP | llamar | to call | Él llama a su amigo desde muy lejos. | He calls his friend from afar. |
| PT | chamar | Ele chama seu amigo de longe. | ||
| IT | chiamare | Lui chiama il suo amico da molto lontano. | ||
| FR | appeler | Il appelle son ami de loin. |
However, the reflexive form of the verb, which literally means “to call oneself,” is used to express one’s name. For example:
| SP | llamarse | to call oneself | Me llamo Marco. | My name is Marco. (I call myself Marco.) |
| PT | chamar-se | Eu me chamo Marco. | ||
| IT | chiamarsi | Mi chiamo Marco. | ||
| FR | s’appeler | Je m’appelle Marco. |
How to Form a Reflexive Verb?
A reflexive verb is formed as follows:
| SP | by attaching “-se” to the end of the infinitive, e.g., “llamar” becomes “llamarse” |
| PT | by attaching “-se” to the end of the infinitive separated from the verb by a hyphen, e.g., “chamar” becomes “chamar–se.” |
| IT | by replacing final “-e” in the infinitive with “-si,” e.g., “chiamar” becomes “chiamar–si” |
| FR | by preceding the infinitive with “se,” or “s’” before a vowel or mute “h,” e.g., “appeler” becomes “s’appeler.” |
Conjugation of Reflexive Verbs
There are many verbs in Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, and French that have reflexive forms. We will discuss some examples; however, let us first learn how to conjugate reflexive verbs.
– In Spanish:
| Object Personal Pron. | e.g., llamar | |
| yo | me | me llamo |
| tú | te | te llamas |
| él/ella/usted | se | se llama |
| nosotros/-as | nos | nos llamamos |
| vosotros/-as | os | os llamáis |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | se | se llaman |
– In Portuguese:
| Object Personal Pron. | e.g., chamar | |
| eu | me | me chamo |
| ele/ela/você | se | se chama |
| nós | nos | nos chamamos |
| eles/elas/vocês | se | se chamam |
– In Italian:
| Object Personal Pron. | e.g., chiamarsi | |
| io | mi | mi chiamo |
| tu | ti | ti chiami |
| lui/lei | si | si chiama |
| noi | ci | ci chiamiamo |
| voi | vi | vi chiamate |
| loro | si | si chiamano |
– In French:
| Object Personal Pron. | e.g., s’appeler | |
| je | me/m’ | m’appelle |
| tu | te/t’ | t’appelles |
| il/elle/on | se/s’ | s’appelle |
| nous | nous | nous appelons |
| vous | vous | vous appelez |
| ils/elles | se/s’ | s’appellent |
Note that the subject and object personal pronouns are of the same gender and number because the subject and the object are essentially the same.
Examples of Reflexive Verbs in Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, & French
Here are more examples of reflexive verbs:
| SP | afeitarse | to shave | aburrirse | to get bored |
| PT | barbear-se | aborrecer-se | ||
| IT | radersi | annoiarsi | ||
| FR | se raser | s’ennuyer | ||
| SP | bañarse | to take a bath | alegrarse | to rejoice or be glad |
| PT | banhar-se | alegrar-se | ||
| IT | farsi il bagno | rallegrarsi | ||
| FR | se beigner | se réjouir | ||
| SP | despertarse | to wake up | cansarse | to get tired |
| PT | – | cansar-se | ||
| IT | svegliarsi | stancarsi | ||
| FR | se réveiller | se fatiguer | ||
| SP | distraerse | to distract oneself | prepararse | to get ready |
| PT | distrair-se | preparar-se | ||
| IT | distrarsi | prepararsi | ||
| FR | se distraire | se préparer | ||
| SP | emborracharse | to get drunk | enamorarse | to fall in love |
| PT | embebedar-se | apaixonar-se | ||
| IT | ubriacarsi | innamorarsi | ||
| FR | se saouler | – | ||
| SP | maquillarse | to put on makeup | levantarse | to get up |
| PT | maquiar-se | levantar-se | ||
| IT | truccarsi | alzarsi | ||
| FR | se maquiller | se lever | ||
| SP | peinarse | to comb one’s hair | divertirse | to have fun |
| PT | pentear-se | divertir-se | ||
| IT | pettinarsi | divertirsi | ||
| FR | se peigner | s’amuser | ||
| SP | sentarse | to sit down | preocuparse | to worry |
| PT | sentar-se | preoccuparsi | ||
| IT | sedersi | preocupar-se | ||
| FR | s’asseoir | s’inquiéter | ||
| SP | vestirse | to get dressed | sentirse | to feel |
| PT | vestir-se | sentir-se | ||
| IT | vestirsi | sentirsi | ||
| FR | s’habiller | se sentir |
Let us look at some examples in context:
| SP | Me aburro rápido en casa. | I get bored fast at home. |
| PT | Eu me aborreço rapidamente em casa. | |
| IT | Mi annoio velocemente a casa. | |
| FR | Je m’ennuie vite à la maison. | |
| SP | Ella se preocupa mucho por su hijo. | She worries a lot about her son. |
| PT | Ela se preocupa muito com o filho. | |
| IT | Lei si preoccupa molto per suo figlio. | |
| FR | Elle s’inquiète beaucoup pour son fils. | |
| SP | Nosotros nos divertimos mucho juntos. | We have a lot of fun together. |
| PT | Nós nos divertimos muito juntos. | |
| IT | Ci divertiamo molto insieme. | |
| FR | Nous nous amusons beaucoup ensemble. |
One can add the reflexive pronoun to verbs that are not usually reflexive to make them reflexive, for example:
| SP | verse | to see each other |
| PT | ver–se | |
| IT | vedersi | |
| FR | se voir | |
| SP | escucharse | to listen to oneself |
| PT | ouvir–se | |
| IT | ascoltarsi | |
| FR | s’écouter |
Some verbs are used only in reflexive form, such as:
| SP | suicidarse | to commit suicide |
| PT | suicidar–se | |
| IT | suicidarsi | |
| FR | se suicider | |
| SP | quejarse | to complain |
| PT | queixar–se | |
| IT | lamentarsi [1] | |
| FR | se plaindre [1] |
Some verbs change their meaning when they are used in reflexive form, for example:
| SP | aburrir | to bore | aburrirse | to get bored |
| PT | aborrecer | aborrecer-se | ||
| IT | annoiare | annoiarsi | ||
| FR | ennuyer | s’ennuyer | ||
| SP | acostar | to lay down | acostarse | to lie down or go to bed |
| PT | deitar | deitar-se | ||
| IT | coricare | coricarsi | ||
| FR | coucher | se coucher | ||
| SP | casar | to join in marriage | casarse | to get married |
| PT | casar | casar-se | ||
| IT | sposare | sposarsi | ||
| FR | marier | se marier |
Finally, keep in mind that all reflexive verbs use the auxiliary verb “to be” in Italian and French when conjugated in compound tenses, such as the present perfect tense, regardless of the auxiliary used by the non-reflexive form of the verb. For example:
| SP | Me aburrí anoche. | I got bored last night. |
| PT | Eu me aborreci ontem à noite. | |
| IT | Ieri sera mi sono annoiato. | |
| FR | Je me suis ennuyé hier soir. | |
| SP | Ella se despertó temprano hoy. | She woke up early today. |
| PT | Ela acordou cedo hoje. | |
| IT | Lei si è svegliata presto oggi. | |
| FR | Elle s’est réveillée tôt aujourd’hui. | |
| SP | Nos divertimos mucho ayer. | We had a lot of fun yesterday. |
| PT | Nos divertimos muito ontem. | |
| IT | Ieri ci siamo divertiti molto. | |
| FR | Nous nous sommes beaucoup amusés hier. | |
| SP | Ellos se vieron por accidente. | They saw each other by accident. |
| PT | Eles se viram por acidente. | |
| IT | Si sono visti per caso. | |
| FR | Elles se sont vus par hasard. |
Remember that when the verb “to be” is used as an auxiliary, the past participle takes the treatment of an adjective and must agree in gender and number with the subject.
Next: Expressions Using “To Have” & “To Do”
Back to: Comparative Grammar Lessons
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