French Reflexive Verbs [With Conjugations, Vocab Lists, & Audio]
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French reflexive verbs are part of a broader group called verbes pronominaux, or pronominal verbs. They appear with a reflexive pronoun that matches the subject, as in getting dressed, brushing your hair or introducing yourself. Some describe an action done to yourself, while others are reciprocal, passive or idiomatic.
For example, je me brosse les cheveux means “I brush my hair.” The pronominal verb is se brosser, conjugated for je. Without me, je brosse les cheveux simply means “I brush the hair”, with no indication that it is my own.
Pronominal verbs are very common in French, so you will meet them in everyday speech and writing.
Even saying your name uses one of these verbs. Je m’appelle Yaren is how I would say “my name is Yaren”, while the literal translation is “I call myself Yaren”.
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French Reflexive Verbs: Vocabulary List
Let’s start with common French pronominal verbs that will come up later in the article:
| English | French | Audio |
|---|---|---|
| “to get up” | se lever | |
| “to brush” | se brosser | |
| “to get dressed” | s’habiller | |
| “to wash oneself” | se laver | |
| “to take a shower” | se doucher | |
| “to wake up” | se réveiller | |
| “to put on makeup” | se maquiller | |
| “to go to bed” | se coucher | |
| “to shave” | se raser | |
| “to get ready” | se préparer | |
| “to relax” | se détendre | |
| “to hurry” | se dépêcher |
What are Reflexive Verbs and How Do You Use Them?
In the strict sense, a reflexive verb describes the subject acting on itself, as in je me lave (“I wash myself”). French grammar uses the term verbes pronominaux for this broader group. It also includes reciprocal uses such as ils se regardent (“they look at each other”), passive uses such as ce livre se vend bien (“this book sells well”) and idiomatic verbs such as se souvenir (“to remember”).
For example, lever means “to lift”, while se lever means “to get up”. Similarly, laver means “to wash something”, while se laver means “to wash oneself”.
A pronominal verb has two parts: the verb itself and a reflexive pronoun, one of the types of French pronouns. The subject determines which pronoun to use. If I am getting up, I say je me lève. If I am talking about someone else, I say il se lève or elle se lève.
The infinitive form of “to get up” is se lever. To conjugate it, match the reflexive pronoun to the subject:
- me/m’ with je
- te/t’ with tu
- se/s’ with il, elle or on
- nous with nous
- vous with vous
- se/s’ with ils or elles
Before a vowel or mute h, me, te and se become m’, t’ and s’. Think of je m’appelle, tu t’appelles and elle s’appelle. Many verbs have both pronominal and non-pronominal forms, such as lever (“to lift”) and se lever (“to get up”). Some verbs, such as se souvenir (“to remember”), are essentially pronominal. You will also meet common fixed constructions such as se moquer de (“to make fun of”).
Example Sentences with Everyday Reflexive Verbs
We have already covered se lever (“to get up”), s’appeler (“to be called”) and se laver (“to wash oneself”), all part of daily French vocabulary. Here are more examples with common pronominal verbs:
| Verb | English Sentence | French Sentence | Audio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Se lever (“to get up”) | “I get up early to go to work.” | Je me lève tôt pour aller au travail. | |
| Se brosser les dents (“to brush your teeth”) | “He brushes his teeth twice a day.” | Il se brosse les dents deux fois par jour. | |
| S’habiller (“to get dressed”) | “You always dress well.” | Tu t’habilles toujours bien. | |
| Se laver les mains (“to wash one’s hands”) | “I wash my hands before eating.” | Je me lave les mains avant de manger. | |
| Se coucher (“to go to bed”) | “We usually go to bed around 10 pm.” In conversation, on commonly replaces nous. | Nous nous couchons généralement vers 22 heures / On se couche généralement vers 22 heures. | |
| Se réveiller (“to wake up”) | “She often wakes up during the night.” | Elle se réveille souvent pendant la nuit. | |
| Se maquiller (“to put on makeup”) | “They always put on makeup before going out.” | Elles se maquillent toujours avant de sortir. | |
| Se doucher (“to take a shower”) | “You shower after your workout.” | Tu te douches après la gym. | |
| Se préparer (“to get ready”) | “They get ready an hour in advance.” | Ils se préparent une heure à l’avance. | |
| Se détendre (“to relax”) | “I relax by reading a good book.” | Je me détends en lisant un bon livre. | |
| Se dépêcher (“to hurry”) | “Will you hurry, please?” | Tu te dépêches, s’il te plaît ? |
These examples show how often pronominal verbs appear in everyday French, from personal care and routines to habits and preferences.
Reflexive Verbs in Different Tenses
As you work on French word order, pay attention to where the reflexive pronoun goes. Here is how pronominal verbs work in several common tenses. If the later tenses are new to you, practise the present tense first and return to this section when you are ready.
Present tense: Choose the correct reflexive pronoun and conjugate the verb normally.
- Tu te lèves. “You get up.”
- Il se brosse les dents. “He brushes his teeth.”
Past tense, passé composé: All pronominal verbs use être in compound tenses, even when the non-pronominal verb uses avoir. Put the reflexive pronoun before the conjugated form of être, followed by the past participle. The auxiliary is consistent, but past-participle agreement depends on the verb’s construction. Compare elle s’est levée, elle s’est lavé les mains and the fixed invariable form elle s’est rendu compte.
- Je me suis levée tôt. “I got up early.” The final -e marks a female speaker.
- On s’est habillés rapidement. “We got dressed quickly.” Here, on refers to a male or mixed group; an all-female group would write habillées.
- Vous vous êtes maquillées pour la soirée. “You put on makeup for the evening.” This spelling addresses a female group.
Imperfect tense: Conjugate the verb in the imparfait. The reflexive pronoun still agrees with the subject.
- Tu te couchais tard. “You used to go to bed late.”
- Ils s’habillaient bien. “They used to dress well.”
Future tense: Conjugate the verb in the futur simple. The reflexive pronoun still agrees with the subject.
- Je me réveillerai à 7 heures demain. “I will wake up at 7 o’clock tomorrow.”
- Elle se maquillera avant la cérémonie. “She will put on makeup before the ceremony.”
Conditional tense: Conjugate the verb in the conditionnel présent. The reflexive pronoun still agrees with the subject.
- Je me lèverais plus tôt si j’avais des cours. “I would get up earlier if I had lessons.”
- Je m’habillerais différemment si je savais qu’on allait faire du sport. “I would dress differently if I knew we were going to exercise.”
Useful Expressions with Reflexive Verbs
French has many expressions and idioms built around pronominal verbs. Beyond familiar examples such as je me lève and je m’habille, these expressions will make your everyday French more precise.
| French Verb | Example Sentence (English) | Example Sentence (French) | Audio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Se moquer de (to make fun of) | “They make fun of me because I'm short.” | Ils se moquent de moi parce que je suis petit. | |
| S'en aller (to leave, to go away) | “I’m leaving, I have an appointment.” | Je m'en vais, j'ai un rendez-vous. | |
| Se taire (to be quiet) | “I’ll be quiet, we’re in the library.” | Je vais me taire, on est dans la bibliothèque. | |
| Se rendre compte que (to realise) | “She realised that she had forgotten her keys.” | Elle s’est rendu compte qu’elle avait oublié ses clés. | |
| Se souvenir de (to remember) | “We remember our first trip to Paris.” | On se souvient de notre premier voyage à Paris. | |
| Se passer de (to do without, to manage without) | “I can do without dessert tonight.” | Je peux me passer de dessert ce soir. | |
| S'y connaître (to be knowledgeable about, to be an expert in) | “You know your French wines.” | Vous vous y connaissez en vins français. | |
| Se tromper (to make a mistake) | “Sorry, I made a mistake.” | Désolé, je me suis trompé. | |
| S'occuper de (to take care of) | “I take care of my mother.” | Je m'occupe de ma mère. | |
| S'habituer à (to get used to) | “She got used to her new life.” | Elle s'est habituée à sa nouvelle vie. |
Negative Reflexive Verbs
In standard written French, a negative sentence usually uses ne and pas, as in je ne marche pas (“I don’t walk”). With pronominal verbs, the pattern is ne + reflexive pronoun + verb + pas. In everyday speech, ne often disappears, but it remains part of standard written French.
Here are some examples:
- Je ne me souviens pas de notre voyage à Paris. “I don’t remember our Paris trip.”
- Il ne se lève pas tôt. “He doesn’t get up early.”
In the passé composé, put ne before the reflexive pronoun and pas after the conjugated form of être. The past participle comes after pas: ne + reflexive pronoun + être + pas + past participle.
- Je ne me suis pas réveillé tard. “I didn’t wake up late.”
- Tu ne t’es pas rasé ce matin. “You didn’t shave this morning.”
With Some Practice, You’ll Soon Master Reflexive Verbs
When studying pronominal verbs, look for familiar conjugation patterns. For example, se laver follows the same verb endings as laver, a first-group regular verb. The extra step is matching and placing the reflexive pronoun.
As you watch French movies and listen to French songs, notice which verbs appear with reflexive pronouns. Repeated exposure will help the patterns feel natural. For a broader confidence boost, the Why French Is Easy ebook tackles the idea that French has to be difficult.
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