| 4.11 Reflexive pronouns |
Reflexive pronouns are pronouns that indicate that the subject relates the action described on him- (respectively) herself. In English the reflexive pronouns are:
myself, yourself, himself, herself, ourselves, yourselves, themselves.
In Spanish there are certain verbs that are reflexive, meaning that they always refer (back) to the subject. One of them is lavarse (to wash oneself). Reflexive verbs can be recognised by the suffix -se. This suffix se has nothing to do with the changed indirect pronoun - it just looks the same.
| a summary of the reflexives |
| reflexive pronoun | reflexive pronoun | ||
| I wash myself. | myself |
Yo me lavo |
me  |
| You wash yourself. | yourself | Tú te lavas | te |
| He washes himself. | himself | Él se lava | se |
| She washes herself. | herself | Ella se lava | se |
| We wash ourselves. | ourselves | Nosotros / Nosotras nos lavamos | nos |
| You wash yourselves | yourselves | Vosotros / Vosotras os laváis | os |
| They wash themselves. | themselves | Ellos / Ellas se lavan | se |
One thing that is quite useful to know is that the Spanish say: I call myself Smith (for My name is Smith).
| Me llamo señor Müller. |
| My name is Müller. | Yo me llamo
Müller. |
| Your name is Müller. | Tú te llamas Müller. |
| His / Her name is Müller. | Él / Ella se llama Müller. |
| Our name is Müller. | Nosotros nos llamamos
Müller. |
| Your name is Müller. | Vosotros os llamáis
Müller. |
| Their name is Müller. | Ellos se llaman Müller. |
Furthermore it is useful to know
that the reflexive pronoun is also used for forming
the passive voice.
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