How they are constructed
Have you noticed some verbs have se at the infinitive?
- Se laver (to wash), se coiffer (to brush your hair), se brosser les dents (to brush your teeth), se changer (to change), s’habiller (to get dressed)….
This means these verbs will have a pronoun in front of them when they are conjugated.
example with « se laver » (to wash oneself)
- Je me lave, tu te laves, il/elle/on se lave, nous nous lavons, vous vous lavez, ils/elles se lavent.
Here’s a recap graph:
| Subject | pronoun |
| Je | me/m’ |
| Tu | te/t’ |
| Il/Elle/On | se/s’ |
| Nous | nous |
| Vous | vous |
| Ils/Elles | se/s’ |
If the verb starts with a vowel or silent h, me becomes m’, te becomes t’ and se becomes s’
Example with « s’habiller » (to get dressed)
- Je m’habille, tu t’habilles, il/elle/on s’habille, nous nous habillons, vous vous habillez, ils/elles s’habillent.
How they are used
A pronominal verb is used to express that something is being done to oneself (myself, yourself, himself, herself, itself, ourselves, themselves)
For example, « se laver » means to wash oneself, whereas laver (without se) means to wash something else.
| Oneself | Something Else |
| « Se laver » | « Laver » |
| Je me lave (I wash myself) | Je lave la voiture (I wash my car) |
| Tu te laves (You wash yourself) | Tu laves la piscine (you wash the swimming pool) |
| Il se lave (himself) | Il lave la maison (the house) |
| Nous nous lavons (ourselves) | Nous lavons les vitres (the windows) |
| Vous vous lavez (yourself) | Vous lavez le sol (the floor) |
| Elles se lavent (themselves) | Elles lavent la cuisine (the kitchen) |
Lets see a few more examples. Try understanding without the translation, then check if you are correct.
| Infinitive | Example | Translation |
| S’appeler | Je m’appelle Ben | I’m called Ben |
| Appeler | J’appelle ma mère | I call my mother |
| Se changer | Tu te changes pour la soirée | You change for the evening |
| Changer | Tu changes de travail | You change job |
| Se brosser | Elle se brosse les dents | She brushes her teeth |
| Brosser | Elle brosse le chien | She brushes the dog |
| S’habiller | Nous nous habillons | We get dressed |
| Habiller | Nous habillons les enfants | We dress the children |
| Se réveiller | Vous vous réveillez tard! | You wake up late |
| Réveiller | Vous réveillez le bébé! | You wake up the baby |
| Se coucher | Ils se couchent tôt | They go to bed early |
| Coucher | Ils couchent les enfants | They put the children to bed |
Here are a few exercises to get used to pronominal verbs.