Reflexive Verbs - Verbos Reflexivos  



Gramática - Repaso
When the doer and the receiver of the action of the verb
is the same person, we use the reflexive form of the verb.
In English this is shown by the use of words such as
myself, yourself, himself, herself, etc.

I dress myself every morning at six o'clock. (Reflexive)
I dress my son every morning at six o'clock. (Non-reflexive)

He washes himself before eating. (Reflexive)
He washes the dog on Saturdays. (Non-Reflexive)

Let's conjugate the reflexive verb lavarse(to wash).

Preterit tense forms of lavarse (to wash oneself)

yo me lavé (I wash myself) nosotros nos lavamos (we wash ourselves)
tú te lavaste (you wash yourself) vosotros os lavasteis (you guys wash yourselves)
Ud./él/ella se lavó (he washes himself) Uds./ellos/ ellas se lavaron (they wash themselves)

Gramática
The reflexive verb lavarse consists of two parts:
the main verb lavar
the reflexive pronoun: se

Other reflexive verbs consist of the same two parts.

Examples:
despertarse- to wake (oneself) up
lavarse - to wash (oneself)
levantarse - to get (oneself) up
llamarse - to call (oneself)

The reflexive pronoun may be placed before the conjugated verb.

Yo me lavé. - I washed myself.
Ellos se lavaron cada noche. - They washed themselves every evening.

Like other pronouns the reflexive pronoun may also be attached to the infinitive.

Le gustó lavarse el pelo. - She liked to wash her hair.

Use a definite article when using a reflexive with a part of the body.

Ella se lavó el pelo. - She washed her hair.
Ellos se lavan las manos. - They washed their hands.

Vocabulario

afeitarse - to shave
alegrarse - to become happy
asustarse - to become frightened
atrasarse - to get behind or delayed
confundirse - to become confused
emocionarse - to become excited or emotional
enamorarse - to fall in love
irritarse - to become irritated
lavarse - to wash
levantarse - to get up
llamarse - to call
mejorarse - to improve
molestarse - to become upset
ofenderse - to become offended
perderse - to become lost
sorprenderse - to become surprised

Sentences with lavarse
Me lavé la cara. - I washed my face.
Yo me lavé la boca. - I rinsed my mouth.
Me lavé el pelo todos los dias. - I washed my hair every day.
Ellos se lavaron las manos. - They washed their hands.
Nancy se lavó el pelo. - Nancy washed her hair.
Los niños se lavaron. - The children washed themselves.
Él se lavó. - He washed himself.
Él se lavó la cara. - He washed his face.
Ayer nos lavamos los pies. - Yesterday we washed our feet.
Ella se lavó los brazos. - She washed her arms.

Sentences with levantarse

Me levanté a las cinco de la mañana. - I got up at 5 A.M..
¿A que hora te levantaste? - At what time did you get (yourself) up?
¿Te levantaste a las siete? - Did you get (yourself) up at seven o'clock?
Juan se levantó a las siete. - John got (himself) up at seven o'clock.
Las muchachas se levantaron temprano hoy día. - The girls got (themselves) up early today.
Isabel se levantó tarde. - Isabel got up late.
Ella se levantó a las seis de la mañana. - She got up at 6:00 A.M..
Ella se levantó de la silla. - She got up from the chair.
Ayer nos levantamos de la banca. - Yesterday we got up from the bench.
Me levanté de la mesa. - I got up from the table.

Sentences with alegrarse
Me alegré por ti. - I was happy for you.
Me alegré de volver. - I was happy to return.
Me alegré de estar contigo. - I was happy to be with you.
Me alegré mucho de tu éxito. - I was happy for your success.
Me alegré de verte. - I was happy to see you.
¿Te alegraste de verme? - Were you happy to see me?
¿No te alegraste por mí? - Were you not happy for me?
El rey se alegró del triunfo. - The king was happy about the victory.
Pedro se alegró de trabajar con Cristina. - Pedro was happy to work with Cristina.
Nos alegramos de ver a nuestros padres ayer. - We were happy to see our parents yesterday.

Notes for the Tutor

  • The student should repeat these simple sentences to practice vocabulary, the concept of reflexive verbs, and improve pronunciation.
  • The tutor should use the verbs presented here to ask the student questions.
  • Suggested Homework:The student should make 10 sentences using the reflexive verbs here in the preterite.

Use these free Spanish conjugation charts and guides.



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