English uses eight reflexive pronouns: myself, yourself, himself, herself, itself, ourselves, yourselves, and themselves. These forms point back to the subject of the clause. They are different from ordinary object pronouns, so me, him, and them do not replace them. The full set appears in Reflexive Pronouns.

Reflexive pronoun forms in everyday English

Word	Definition	Example
myself	Use this to mean the same person as I.	I reminded myself to call my sister.
yourself	Use this to mean the same person as you.	You can help yourself to some tea.
himself	Use this to mean the same person as he.	He taught himself to bake bread.
herself	Use this to mean the same person as she.	She challenged herself with a harder puzzle.
itself	Use this to mean the same thing as it.	The machine switched itself off.
ourselves	Use this to mean the same people as we.	We made ourselves a big breakfast.
yourselves	Use this to mean the same people as you.	You should all congratulate yourselves.
themselves	Use this to mean the same people as they.	They introduced themselves at the meeting.

Scramble

A reflexive pronoun must match the subject in person and number. Use I with myself, you with yourself for one person, he with himself, she with herself, and it with itself. Use we with ourselves, you with yourselves for more than one person, and they with themselves. The pronoun always refers back to the same subject, never to a different person in the sentence.

How reflexive pronouns match the subject

Example	Pattern
I cut myself while cooking.	Use myself when the subject is I.
You should be proud of yourself.	Use yourself when the subject is you.
He blamed himself for the delay.	Use himself when the subject is he.
She reminded herself about the interview.	Use herself when the subject is she.
The door locked itself after we left.	Use itself when the subject is it.
We taught ourselves basic guitar chords.	Use ourselves when the subject is we.
You can all seat yourselves here.	Use yourselves when the subject is you plural.
They organized themselves before the trip.	Use themselves when the subject is they.

The usual pattern is subject + verb + reflexive pronoun. In everyday English, the verb comes first in the clause and the reflexive pronoun follows it: I wash myself, She dressed herself, They blamed themselves. The verb is the main action, and the reflexive pronoun shows that the subject receives that action too. English verbs work in many patterns like this, as explained in Verbs.

Basic reflexive sentence pattern with wash

Subject	Infinitive	Conjugation	Example
I	wash	wash myself	I wash myself before breakfast.
You	wash	wash yourself	You wash yourself after the hike.
He	wash	washes himself	He washes himself quickly on busy mornings.
She	wash	washes herself	She washes herself before school.
We	wash	wash ourselves	We wash ourselves before dinner.
They	wash	wash themselves	They wash themselves after the game.

Scramble

Some verbs often appear with reflexive pronouns because the subject acts on the same person or thing. Common examples are wash myself, cut yourself, hurt himself, introduce ourselves, prepare themselves, protect itself, and teach yourself. Other common everyday verbs are enjoy, concentrate, relax, and behave when they are used with a reflexive pronoun in some varieties of English, as in He should behave himself and Try to relax yourself in a direct instruction. The verb chooses the reflexive pattern when the meaning stays centered on the subject.

Common verbs often used reflexively

Word	Definition	Example
enjoy oneself	This means to have a good time in a relaxed way.	We always enjoy ourselves at the street fair.
behave oneself	This means to act in a proper way.	The children behaved themselves during the concert.
concentrate oneself	This means to focus all attention on one thing.	I need to concentrate myself on this report.
relax oneself	This means to become calm and less tense.	She tried to relax herself with a warm bath.
pride oneself	This means to feel proud because of a quality or skill.	He prides himself on writing clear emails.
prepare oneself	This means to get ready mentally or physically.	They prepared themselves for the long journey.
introduce oneself	This means to tell someone your name.	Please introduce yourself when you arrive.
hide oneself	This means to put yourself out of sight.	The cat hid itself under the sofa.
teach oneself	This means to learn without a teacher.	She taught herself Spanish from videos.
express oneself	This means to show your thoughts or feelings clearly.	He finds it easy to express himself in writing.

Scramble

A reflexive pronoun can show a true reflexive meaning or an emphatic meaning. In a true reflexive sentence, the subject does the action to the same person or thing: She looked at herself in the mirror. In an emphatic sentence, the reflexive pronoun adds force and means alone or without help: I did it myself, The manager himself answered the phone, We cooked the meal ourselves. In emphatic use, the sentence still works without the reflexive pronoun, but the pronoun gives extra focus to the subject.

Reflexive forms for action and emphasis

Example	Pattern
I hurt myself playing soccer.	Use a reflexive pronoun when the subject and the object are the same person.
She fixed the bike herself.	Use a reflexive pronoun to show that someone did something without help.
The director himself answered the phone.	Use a reflexive pronoun for strong emphasis on who did the action.
We cooked dinner ourselves.	Place the reflexive pronoun right after the verb or after the object it relates to.
He dressed the child and did not dress himself.	Do not use a reflexive pronoun when the action clearly affects another person or thing.

Some verbs commonly appear in fixed patterns with reflexive pronouns. Help yourself is a standard expression when offering food or permission. Teach yourself often means learning without a teacher, as in She taught herself Spanish. Some verbs take reflexive forms after prepositions in set patterns, such as by myself, for yourself, and to themselves. Reflexive pronouns also stay the same in -ing and past participle structures: washing herself, having taught himself, the children, feeling proud of themselves. The reflexive form does not change because the clause is in a different verb form; it still matches the subject.

Special reflexive patterns with verbs and forms

Usage	Explanation	Example
Help with object meaning	Use help yourself when you invite someone to take food, drink, or something available.	Please help yourself to another cookie.
Learn without a teacher	Use teach yourself when someone learns a skill alone.	I taught myself to use a sewing machine.
After certain prepositions	Use a reflexive pronoun after a preposition when English expects that fixed pattern.	He was talking to himself in the garden.
After verbs in ing forms	Use a reflexive pronoun after an ing form when the subject acts on the same person.	She enjoys getting herself ready early.
After past participle forms	Use a reflexive pronoun after a past participle when the sentence keeps the same person as both actor and receiver.	Having prepared himself, he walked into the room calmly.
Emphatic extra focus	Use a reflexive pronoun to add special focus to the person named by the subject.	The chef herself served the last plate.