Los verbos reflexivos

Reflexive verbs In this presentation, we are going to look at a special group of verbs called reflexives Let’s start out by thinking of the English verb ‘to wash.’ List several things that you can wash.

Some examples I wash my clothes I wash the dishes I wash the car I wash the windows I wash my hands I wash my hair

What’s the difference? I wash the car. I can wash things that are not part of me, that is, they are not part of my body. In Spanish, we say: Yo lavo el carro.

…and… I also wash things on my body: hands, face, hair… I wash my hands. in Spanish we say: Me lavo las manos.

Huh? There are two ways to talk about washing in Spanish. First, to wash something else. Second, to wash part of one’s body.

And your point is…? If you are washing something that is attached to your body, you need to add the word me Me lavo las manos

You need these pronouns me nos te os se

Me lavo nos lavamos Te lavas os laváis Se lava se lavan Lavarse conjugated: Me lavo nos lavamos Te lavas os laváis Se lava se lavan The endings are still the same. In this case, these are endings for regular “ar” verbs in the present tense.

Notice the placement of the reflexive pronouns in Spanish: Sue bathes herself. subject reflexive pronoun Sue Sue se baña. reflexive pronoun subject

How do you get those forms? The infinitive has se attached to it to show that the subject is doing something to him/herself in order to get ready. Drop the ‘se’ Change the verb ending Put the appropriate -ar, -er, or –ir conjugation of the verb. Add the appropriate reflexive pronoun in front of the conjugated verb.

Let’s try one Llamarse: to call oneself Yo me llamo Tú te llamas Él se llama Nosotros nos llamamos Vosotros os llamáis Ellos se llaman The verb endings are the usual ones!!

Some more reflexive verbs… Levantarse: to get up/to stand up. Sentarse (ie): to sit down Ponerse (-go verb): to put on an article of clothing Dormirse (ue): to fall asleep

Levantarse Yo me levanto Tú te levantas Él se levanta Nosotros nos levantamos Vosotros os levantáis Ellos se levantan

Sentarse (ie) Yo me siento Tú te sientas Él se sienta Nosotros nos sentamos Vosotros os sentáis Ellos se sientan

Ponerse (-go verb) Yo me pongo Tú te pones Él se pone Nosotros nos ponemos Vosotros os ponéis Ellos se ponen

Dormirse (ue) Yo me duermo Tú te duermes Él se duerme Nosotros nos dormimos Vosotros os dormís Ellos se duermen

Dormir vs. Dormirse The verb forms are the same: duermo, duermes, duerme, dormimos, dormís, duermen The difference in form is the addition of the reflexive pronouns: me, te, se, nos, os, se The difference in meaning is: Dormir is to sleep Dormirse is to fall asleep

A verb followed by a reflexive verb: Remember that in a sentence when there are 2 verbs next to each other, you conjugate the first verb and leave the second verb in its regular form. (Ex. Yo necesito trabajar.) The rule is a little different when a verb is followed by a reflexive verb. *Instead of placing the reflexive pronoun in front of the verb, you will leave it attached to the infinitive and change it so that it agrees with the subject. Some examples: Tú necesitas levantarte. / Yo necesito maquillarme. / Ana necesita levantarse.

A morning routine Todos los días, yo ______________(levantarse) a las 7:00. __________ (ir) al baño, ____________(lavarse) la cara, y __________ (afeitarse). Luego ___________ (vestirse (i)) y __________(comer) un poco de desayuno. Por fin, ____________(cepillarse) los dientes. me levanto Voy me lavo me afeito me visto como me cepillo

Let’s do another Juana ____________(despertarse (ie) a las 6:30 y __________(levantarse). ________ (ir) al baño, y __________(ducharse). Ella ____________(secarse), _______(peinarse) y ________________(maquillarse). se despierta se levanta Va se ducha se seca se peina se maquilla

Whew! That’s a lot to remember True! But keep in mind that the verb changes as it always does. You just have to remember to use the reflexive pronouns (me, te, se, nos, os, se) if you see an infinitive that ends in ‘se’