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Spoken Description

Apprenez les pronoms réfléchis en français : conjugaison, placement, emplois, et pratique avec exemples. Guide clair pour parler de soi et des actions quotidiennes ou réciproques.

Learn reflexive pronouns in French: conjugation, placement, uses, and practice with examples. Clear guide to talk about oneself and everyday or reciprocal actions.

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Reflexive pronouns in French show that the subject does an action to themselves, and they also appear in reciprocal and idiomatic expressions. This guide covers the main reflexive pronouns and how they work in different tenses.

Introductory Vocabulary

The basic reflexive pronouns match each subject and go before the conjugated verb: me, te, se, nous, vous, se.

	French Word(s)	English Word(s)
	je	I
	tu	you (sing.)
	il/elle/on	he/she/one
	nous	we
	vous	you (pl./form.)
	ils/elles	they

	French Word(s)	English Word(s)
	me / m'	myself
	te / t'	yourself
	se / s'	himself / herself / itself / themselves
	nous	ourselves
	vous	yourselves
	se / s'	themselves

Fill in the Blank(myself) lave les mains chaque matin.

I wash my hands each morning.

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Usage

Reflexive pronouns appear in verbs that describe personal care, daily routines, feelings, and mutual actions. They signal that the action returns to the subject or is shared between subjects.

Which of these verb types commonly use reflexive pronouns? (Choose all that apply)

mutual actions between people (e.g., se parler)

weather expressions (e.g., il pleut)

actions done to others (e.g., appeler quelqu'un)

personal care routines (e.g., se laver)

feelings/emotional states (e.g., se fâcher)

Forming Reflexive Verbs

Reflexive verbs are marked in the dictionary by the particle se before the infinitive, and you replace se with the appropriate reflexive pronoun when you conjugate. The reflexive pronoun always stays immediately before the verb form.

Present Tense

In the present, place the reflexive pronoun before the conjugated verb. For negative sentences, put ne and pas around the pronoun and verb.

Fill in the BlankNous(se réveiller) tôt le dimanche.

We wake up early on Sunday.

Conjugate in present: (nous) __ (se réveiller) tôt le dimanche.

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Passé Composé

Au passé composé, utilisez être comme auxiliaire et placez le pronom réfléchi avant celui-ci. Le participe passé s’accorde généralement en genre et en nombre avec le sujet lorsque le pronom réfléchi fonctionne comme un complément d’objet direct.

In passé composé, use être as the auxiliary and put the reflexive pronoun before it. The past participle usually agrees in gender and number with the subject when the reflexive pronoun functions as a direct object.

	French Word(s)	English Word(s)
	je me suis lavé(e)	I washed myself
	tu t'es rasé(e)	you shaved yourself
	il/elle/on s'est coupé(e)	he/she/one cut himself/herself/oneself
	nous nous sommes dépêché(e)s	we hurried ourselves
	vous vous êtes réveillé(e)(s)	you woke yourselves
	ils/elles se sont blessé(e)s	they hurt themselves

Fill in the BlankElle(se laver) dans la salle de bains.

She washed herself in the bathroom.

Conjugate (elle) __ (se laver) dans la salle de bains.

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In the infinitive, how is a reflexive verb indicated?

by capitalizing the verb

by adding 're' at the end

by using 'être' before the verb

by the particle 'se' before the verb (e.g., se laver)

Agreement

The past participle agrees with the reflexive pronoun when it is a direct object; it does not agree when followed by an indirect object or when you add a noun after the verb. This rule affects whether you add -e and -s to the past participle.

Common Reflexive Verbs

Common reflexive verbs include daily routine actions like se lever, se laver, s'habiller, se coucher, and emotional or physical states like se sentir and se souvenir. Many are used naturally in the reflexive form.

	French Word(s)	English Word(s)
	se réveiller	to wake up
	se lever	to get up
	se laver	to wash oneself
	s'habiller	to dress oneself
	se coucher	to go to bed
	se reposer	to rest
	se doucher	to shower
	se brosser les dents	to brush one's teeth
	se maquiller	to put on makeup
	se raser	to shave
	s'amuser	to have fun
	se dépêcher	to hurry
	se fâcher	to get angry
	se souvenir (de)	to remember
	se sentir	to feel
	se promener	to take a walk
	se cacher	to hide
	se rencontrer	to meet (each other)
	se parler	to talk to each other

Fill in the BlankJe(se lever) à six heures.

I get up at six o'clock.

Complete the sentence: (je) __ (se lever) à six heures.

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Summary

Reflexive pronouns show that the action returns to the subject or is reciprocal; they must match the subject and stay in position before the verb. Use être for tense formation and watch agreement rules to choose whether the past participle takes endings.

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Reflexive Pronouns

Introductory Vocabulary

Usage

Forming Reflexive Verbs

Present Tense

Passé Composé

Agreement

Common Reflexive Verbs

Summary