Reflexive verbs are used with me, te, se, nous and vous. These pronouns represent the person who performs the action or who receives it. They are placed before the conjugated verb, as in je me lave, tu te réveilles, nous nous habillons, vous vous reposez. With the infinitive, they remain attached to the verb in the form se, as in se lever or se souvenir. The pronoun changes according to the subject, but the verb keeps the same stem as in a normal verb, as in Verbes réguliers, Verbes irréguliers et Infinitif verbal.

In the reflexive sense, the subject performs the action on itself. The structure is subject + pronoun + verb. We say je me regarde dans le miroir, elle se maquille, nous nous lavons les mains. The action comes from the subject and returns to it. The pronoun then corresponds to the person affected by the action. With certain verbs, this meaning is natural in daily life, for example se brosser les dents, se raser, s’habiller. This type of usage also appears with the Pronoms réfléchis when the subject and the object are the same person.

Reciprocal meaning appears when several people perform the action on each other. The subject is plural and the pronoun refers to each member of the group. We say nous nous parlons, ils se voient souvent, elles s’écrivent tous les jours. In se regarder, se serrer la main, se téléphoner, each person acts toward another person in the group. The verb remains pronominal, but the idea is no longer directed at oneself: it circulates among several subjects. This sense is very common with verbs of relation, contact and communication.

Reciprocal Usage of Pronominal Verbs

Usage	Explanation
Mutual Action	We use it when each person acts on the other in a shared action.

Some verbs are used almost always with a pronoun. We say s’évanouir, se souvenir, se méfier, s’absenter, s’efforcer, se moquer. The pronoun does not replace a regular complement: it is part of the verb. We do not simply say évanouir to talk about the verb of everyday life, nor souvenir in the sense of se souvenir. These verbs keep their pronominal form in most contexts. They often take a precise and stable meaning, tied to common usage. In a sentence like je me souviens de cette rue, the group me souviens functions as a single verbal unit.

s’apercevoirse repentirs’évanouirs’absenterse moquers’émerveillers’enfuirse méfierse souvenirs’attarder

---

Verbe qui veut dire rire de quelqu’un ou de quelque choseVerbe qui veut dire rester plus longtemps que prévuVerbe qui veut dire regretter fortement une actionVerbe qui veut dire être frappé d’admirationVerbe qui veut dire ne pas faire confiance facilementVerbe qui veut dire partir très vite pour échapper à quelque choseVerbe qui veut dire remarquer soudainementVerbe qui veut dire ne pas être présent pendant un momentVerbe qui veut dire perdre connaissance soudainementVerbe qui veut dire garder une trace dans sa mémoire

Pronominal Verbs Common and Tenacious

Word	Definition
s’évanouir	Verb meaning lose consciousness suddenly.
se souvenir	Verb meaning keep a trace in one’s memory.
se méfier	Verb meaning not to trust easily.
s’absenter	Verb meaning not being present for a moment.
s’enfuir	Verb meaning to leave very quickly to escape something.
se moquer	Verb meaning to laugh at someone or something.
s’attarder	Verb meaning to stay longer than planned.
s’apercevoir	Verb meaning to notice suddenly.
se repentir	Verb meaning to deeply regret an action.
s’émerveiller	Verb meaning to be struck with awe.

Scramble

In the present, the pronoun is placed in front of the conjugated verb. The endings follow those of the base verb, as for Verbes réguliers or Verbes irréguliers. We say je me lave, tu te lèves, il se couche, nous nous habillons, vous vous couchez, ils se réveillent. The pronoun changes with the person, then the verb is conjugated normally. With pronominal verbs, the subject and the pronoun advance together in the sentence, giving a very regular form in everyday French.

Subject	Infinitive	Conjugation
nous	se brosser
il	se brosser
ils	se brosser
vous	se brosser
tu	se brosser
je	se brosser

Present Tense of Regular Pronominal Verbs

Subject	Infinitive	Conjugation
je	se brosser	me brosse
tu	se brosser	te brosses
il	se brosser	se brosse
nous	se brosser	nous brossons
vous	se brosser	vous brossez
ils	se brosser	se brossent

Scramble

At the infinitive, the pronoun remains attached to the verb and keeps the form se. We write se lever, s’habiller, se plaindre, s’endormir. This form appears after another verb, after a preposition or in noun verb phrases. We say je vais me lever, il aime se promener, avant de se coucher. The pronominal infinitive serves to name the action without conjugating it, while keeping the idea that the verb is pronominal. It is common with verbal constructions and infinitive phrases.

Rules of the Pronominal Infinitive

Idea
The pronoun remains attached to the infinitive when the verb is not conjugated.
An apostrophe is kept before a vowel for se and me.
The pronominal infinitive may depend on another verb of taste, desire, or obligation.

In the passé composé, pronominal verbs are conjugated with être. The complete form is subject + pronoun + être + past participle. We say je me suis levé, elle s’est habillée, nous nous sommes rencontrés. The past participle may agree with the subject. The agreement occurs when the pronoun represents the person performing the action or when the sense requires it in the sentence. We then encounter forms like elle s’est lavée, ils se sont parlé. Pronominal verbs in the passé composé are essential for the Participe Passé and constructions with an auxiliary.

Subject	Infinitive	Conjugation
ils	se lever
il	se lever
je	se lever
nous	se lever
vous	se lever
tu	se lever

Past tense of pronominal verbs

Subject	Infinitive	Conjugation
je	se lever	me suis levé
tu	se lever	t es levé
il	se lever	s est levé
nous	se lever	nous sommes levés
vous	se lever	vous êtes levés
ils	se lever	se sont levés

Scramble

The present participle of pronominal verbs retains the pronoun in certain fixed constructions. In the gerund, we write en se levant, en s’habillant, en se dépêchant. The structure is en + pronoun + present participle. It expresses a simultaneous action or a manner of acting. It is used in sentences like en se levant tôt, il gagne du temps or elle écoute de la musique en s’habillant. In these forms, the pronominal verb remains linked to its pronoun, as in Gérondif.

Formation of the pronominal gerund

Idea
Form the gerund with also the present participle of the verb.
The pronominal pronoun remains before the present participle.
The pronominal gerund often expresses an action simultaneous.

Some pronominal verbs do not express either an action on oneself or a reciprocal action. They convey a general, passive, or impersonal idea. We say ça se dit, ça se fait, ça se vend bien, ça se comprend facilement. The sentence speaks of a habit, usage, or possibility, without clearly designating the author of the action. The pronoun does not refer to a specific person. This type of usage is often used for social rules, language usages, products, or general situations. In ici, ça ne se dit pas, the pronominal form presents a norm without naming the person who imposes it.