🔄 Reflexive Verbs - Verbos reflexivos
Beginner Spanish · Reflexive verbs
Reflexive Verbs in Spanish
Reflexive verbs often describe actions connected back to the person doing them. You will see them frequently with routines, personal care, feelings, and changes in state.
Your next small win: recognize reflexive infinitives, choose the right reflexive pronoun, place that pronoun correctly, and use common phrases such as me despierto, te vistes, and nos sentimos.
Recognize the pattern
What Is a Reflexive Verb?
A reflexive infinitive ends in -se. When you use the verb in a sentence, that -se changes to a reflexive pronoun that matches the person doing the action.
To wake up
To get up
To shower
To get dressed
To go to bed
To feel
I wake up early.
She showers in the morning.
We feel happy.
Important: the -se ending tells you that the infinitive is reflexive. It does not stay as se for every subject.
Spot the reflexive verbs
Say “to wake up, to get dressed, and to feel” in Spanish.
Despertarse, vestirse y sentirse.
Match the pronoun to the person
Reflexive Pronouns
The reflexive pronoun changes according to who is doing the action.
With yo
With tú
With él, ella, usted
With nosotros or nosotras
With ellos, ellas, ustedes
I get up early.
What time do you get up?
My brother gets dressed quickly.
We go to bed late.
Reflexive pronoun used in Spain
Used with vosotros or vosotras in Spain
For beginner communication across many Spanish-speaking regions, me, te, se, and nos are the most useful forms to master first.
Match four people
Say the reflexive pronouns used with yo, tú, ella, and nosotros.
yo → me
tú → te
ella → se
nosotros → nos
Put the pronoun in the right place
Reflexive Pronoun Placement
With a conjugated verb, the reflexive pronoun normally comes before the verb.
I get up early.
You wake up early.
She showers.
We feel happy.
With an infinitive
When a reflexive infinitive follows another verb, the pronoun can attach to the end of the infinitive.
I am going to get up early.
She wants to relax.
I need to get dressed.
Compare: Me levanto temprano uses a conjugated reflexive verb. Voy a levantarme temprano attaches the pronoun to the infinitive.
Change the placement
Say “I get up early,” then “I am going to get up early.”
Me levanto temprano.
Voy a levantarme temprano.
Use reflexive verbs in real situations
Everyday Reflexive Verbs
To brush your teeth
To wash oneself
To get or cut your hair
To get angry
To worry
To relax
I brush my teeth every morning.
Today I feel very well.
He gets angry easily.
She wants to relax after work.
A morning routine
What time do you get up?
I get up at seven.
What do you do afterward?
I shower and get dressed for work.
More useful reflexive questions
What time do you wake up?
How do you dress for work?
How do you feel today?
How do you relax after work?
Describe three reflexive actions
Say that you get up at seven, shower, and get dressed for work.
Me levanto a las siete.
Me ducho.
Me visto para el trabajo.
Your turn · 8 quick questions
Practice: Reflexive Verbs
Choose the answer that best fits each situation. Focus on reflexive pronouns, pronoun placement, routine verbs, and useful reflexive phrases.
Practice complete
You can use common reflexive verbs in Spanish.
A few reflexive patterns to revisit
One last step: build a four-line reflexive routine without choices.
Say when you get up, one personal-care action, how you feel today, and one thing you want to do after work.
Me levanto a las siete.
Me cepillo los dientes.
Hoy me siento muy bien.
Quiero relajarme después del trabajo.
You wake up early. Which sentence fits?
- Me despierto temprano.
- Te despiertas temprano.
- Se despierta temprano.
- Nos despertamos temprano.
With yo, despertarse uses the reflexive pronoun me: Me despierto temprano.
yo → me despierto
You are speaking directly to one friend. Which reflexive pronoun normally matches tú?
- te
- me
- se
- nos
The reflexive pronoun used with tú is te.
tú → te
You plan to get up early. Which sentence correctly attaches the reflexive pronoun to the infinitive?
- Voy a levantarme temprano.
- Voy a levantarte temprano.
- Voy a levantarse temprano.
- Voy a levantarnos temprano.
Because the subject is yo, the attached reflexive pronoun is me: levantarme.
Voy a levantarme temprano.
You brush your teeth every morning. Which sentence fits?
- Me cepillo los dientes todas las mañanas.
- Te cepillas los dientes todas las mañanas.
- Se cepilla los dientes todas las mañanas.
- Nos cepillamos los dientes todas las mañanas.
The speaker is talking about themself, so the sentence uses me cepillo.
Me cepillo los dientes todas las mañanas.
You and another person feel happy. Which sentence fits?
- Nos sentimos felices.
- Me siento feliz.
- Te sientes feliz.
- Se siente feliz.
With nosotros or nosotras, sentirse uses nos: Nos sentimos felices.
nosotros → nos sentimos
Your brother gets dressed quickly. Which sentence fits?
- Mi hermano se viste rápido.
- Mi hermano me visto rápido.
- Mi hermano te vistes rápido.
- Mi hermano nos vestimos rápido.
Mi hermano is a third-person singular subject, so the reflexive pronoun is se.
Mi hermano se viste rápido.
You shower and get dressed for work. Which sentence fits?
- Me ducho y me visto para el trabajo.
- Te duchas y te vistes para el trabajo.
- Se ducha y se viste para el trabajo.
- Nos duchamos y nos vestimos para el trabajo.
The speaker is describing their own routine, so both reflexive verbs use me.
Me ducho y me visto para el trabajo.
You want to ask one person how they feel today. What do you ask?
- ¿Cómo te sientes hoy?
- ¿Cómo me siento hoy?
- ¿Cómo se siente hoy?
- ¿Cómo nos sentimos hoy?
When speaking directly to one person with tú, sentirse uses te: ¿Cómo te sientes hoy?
¿Cómo te sientes hoy?