French Grammar Explained /
Reflexive verbs
French has a really fun way of expressing that something is done to oneself (like se laver or s'acheter quelque chose). For example, it would be said like this in English:
I wash myself.
You buy yourself something nice.
And you will see that this type of construction (reflexive verbs) is much more common in French than it is in English. In fact, you've already seen a reflexive verb rather early on: Je m'appelle (s'appeler) meaning "my name is" (literally I call myself).
Je me couche très tard.
I go to bed very late.
(lit. I bring myself to bed very late.)
Les enfants se brossent les dents.
The children brush their teeth.
(lit. The children brush themselves their teeth.)
Elle s’habille professionnellement.
She dresses professionally.
(lit. She dresses herself professionally.)
Nous nous levons de bonne heure.
We get up early.
(lit. We get ourselves up early.)
- Se laver :
| reflexive pronoun | laver (regular -er) |
je | me, m' | lave |
tu | te, t' | laves |
il, elle, on | se, s' | lave |
nous | nous | lavons |
vous | vous | lavez |
ils/elles | se, s' | lavent |
The majority of these verbs have to do with one’s body, clothing, or relationships.
For grammar lovers:
The technical term for this kind of construction is reflexive, because it reflects back on the subject, i.e in the first example I wash myself the reflexive pronoun myself reflects the subject I.