Learn to correctly use Italian reflexive verbs

Reflexive verbs in Italian, called verbi riflessivi , are some of the most used in everyday life. As in Spanish, they indicate an action that the subject both performs and receives. Some comparable examples in Spanish are the verbs levantarse, lavarse, vestirse, and peinarse, among others.

The reflexive verbs

Most reflexive verbs are intransitive, that is, they do not need an object or direct object. This is because reflexive verbs are characterized by having the subject as an object. These verbs express an action that falls on the subject itself and do not need an additional complement. In general, reflexive verbs indicate actions that the subject does on itself. That is why they are widely used to indicate certain personal habits and some activities of daily life.

Reflexive verbs are infinitive verbs that are preceded by the reflexive pronoun – si , which is conjugated according to the subject in question. The conjugation of reflexive verbs in the Italian language is done in the same way as in Spanish, where reflexive verbs are also frequently used, which in our language end in – se .

Examples of reflexive verbs

Some of the most common Italian reflexive verbs are:

• Alzarsi / “Get up”
• Farsi la doccia / “to take a shower”
• Lavarsi / “To wash”
• Pettinarsi / “To comb one’s hair”
• Pulirsi / “To clean oneself”
• Sbarbarsi / “Shaving”
• Sedersi / “Sit”
• Svegliarsi / “Wake up”
• Vestirsi / «Dressing»
• Spogliarsi / “Undressing”
• Voltarsi / “Turn around”
• Chiamarsi / “Call yourself”
• Coricarsi / “To lie down”
• Muoversi / “ Move”
• Arrendersi / “Surrender”
• Dimenticarsi / “Forget”
• Ricordarsi / “Remember”
• Have fun / “have fun”
• Rallegrarsi / “Rejoice”
• Perdersi / “Get lost”

reciprocal reflexive verbs

Reciprocal reflexive verbs describe actions that two or more subjects perform with each other. These verbs are always conjugated in the plural and most are related to feelings and emotions. Some of the reciprocal reflexive verbs are:

• Abbracciarsi / “Hugging”
• Amarsi / “Love each other”
• Arrabbiarsi / “Getting angry”
• Aiutarsi / “Help yourself”
• Baciarsi / “Kissing”
• Conoscersi / «To know each other»
• Piacersi / “Like”
• Salutarsi / “Greet each other”
• Sposarsi / “Marry”

How are reflexive verbs used?

Reflexive verbs are used as follows:

Personal pronoun or noun + reflexive pronoun + reflexive verb + rest of the sentence

To conjugate reflexive verbs it is essential to know the reflexive pronouns, which are: mi / «me»; you / “you”; if / “if”; ci / “us”; I saw / “you” and if “I know”. With this in mind, the following steps should be taken:

• The pronoun si / “se”, which appears at the end of the reflexive verb in the infinitive, is changed according to the corresponding subject and is placed before the verb.
• Then the reflexive verb is normally conjugated according to the appropriate tense, gender and number.
• The rest of the sentence is added, if necessary.

For example:

If we have the reflexive verb in the infinitive: svegliarsi / “to wake up”, we remove the pronoun si , change it to the pronoun corresponding to the subject in question and place it before the verb: Io mi sveglio presto ogni giorno. / “I get up early every day.”

In this case, the reflexive pronoun of the verb svegliarsi: si / “se”, became mi / “me”, as corresponds to the personal pronoun io / “I”. Finally, the verb sveglio / “awake” is added , which is the conjugation in the present, according to the first person singular.

To better understand how reflexive verbs are conjugated, let’s look at the following examples.

• Tu ti svegli tardi. / “You get up late.”
• Lei si sveglia presto . / “She wakes up early”.
• Noi ci svegliamo alle 10 dal mattino. / «We get up at 10 in the morning».
• Voi vi svegliate ogni mattina alle 7. / «You get up every morning at 7.»
• Ma loro si svegliano più tardi. / “But they wake up later.”

Other reflexive verb conjugations

compound times

Generally, reflexive verbs are conjugated in the present simple. But they are also used in some compound tenses, such as the passato prossimo . In this past tense, the reflexive verb is conjugated in the same way, but the auxiliary verb essere / “to be”, “to be” is added after the reflexive pronoun. For example: Mi sono svegliato presto / «I got up early».

Transitive verbs

Some reflexive verbs can also be transitive. For example: chiamarsi / “to be called”. This verb can be used to say an action that falls on oneself, such as: Mi chiamo Valentina / “My name is Valentina”; or for actions that require a complement: Lui ha chiamato il numero di emergenza / “He called the emergency number”; Loro hanno pulito la stanza / «They have cleaned the room».

Infinitive, imperative and gerund

When you want to use the reflexive verbs in the infinitive or imperative for some personal pronouns, the reflexive pronouns are not placed before the verb but at the end. For example:

• Svegliati! / Wake up!
• Non ha voglia di alzarsi oggi. / “He doesn’t feel like getting up today.”

Other verbs

When reflexive verbs are accompanied by other verbs, such as the so-called verbi servili or modal verbs, which are dovere / “must”, potere / “can”, volere / “want”, these follow the following structure:

Personal pronoun or name + reflexive pronoun + auxiliary verb + modal verb + reflexive verb

They can be accompanied by the auxiliary verb essere / “to be”, “to be” or avere / “to have”, “to have”. For example: Si è voluto lavare / “He wanted to wash”; ha voluto lavarsi / «has wanted to wash».

Examples of sentences with reflexive verbs

Some examples of sentences with reflexive verbs are:

• Laura if you raise presto per fare colazione. / «Laura gets up early to have breakfast».
• If I am dressed in fretta for the event . / “They quickly dressed for the event.”
• Io mi pettino al mattino . / “I comb my hair in the morning.”
• Lui semper si alzi di buon umore. / “He always wakes up in a good mood.”
• Oggi my little dress from Armani. / “Today I dressed in Armani.”
• I am a personal tourist in Rome . / “Tourists have gotten lost in Rome.”
• Ieri Gianlucca if he is up late . / «Yesterday Gianlucca got up late».
• Gli amici si conosconoscono bene. / “Friends know each other well.”
• Ci siamo salutati per i nostri compleanni / «We have greeted each other on our birthdays».
• Carlo si fa una doccia ogni giorno. / “Carlo showers every day.”

Bibliography

• Da Milano, G. Grammar of Italian. (2012). Spain. De Vecchi Editions.
• Larousse. Italian grammar . (2013). Spain. Larousse.
• Italian-classes.com. (2020, August 26). Easily learn how to use reflexive verbs in Italian. grammar . Available at: https://clases-italiano.es/verbos-reflexivos-en-italiano/