Verbes pronominaux (Reflexive verbs)

They 'reflect' the action back onto the sibject. they are always accompained by a reflexive pronoun

I looked at myself in the mirror myself is a reflexive pronoun

-je lave la voiture(I am wasi=hing the car)         je me lave(I am washing myself)
-j'ai couché le bébé(I put the baby to bed)         je me suis couché(i went to bed/I put myself to bed)

Reflexive pronouns

Note

1. m', t' and s' are used instead of me, te and se in front of a vowel or a silent h

   -tu t'amuses?- non, je m'ennuie(are you you enjoying yourself? - no, I am bored)
   -il s'habille â la salle se bain(he gets dressed in the bathroom)
   

2. Reflexive pronouns are often not translated in English

   -je me demande si(I wonder if...)
   -ils se moquent de moi(they're making fun of me)
   

3. Plural reflexive pronouns can also be used to express reciprocal actions; in this case they are translated by 'each other' or 'one another'

   -nous nous détestons(we hate one another)
   -ils ne se parlent pas(they are not talking to each other)
   

4. se can mean 'ourselves' or 'each other' when it is used with the ppronoun on meaning 'we'

   -on s'est perdu(we got lost)
   -on se connaît(we know each other)
   

Position of reflexive pronouns

They are placed immediately before the verb, except in positive commands, where they follow the verb and are linked to it by a hyphen

-tu te dépêches?(will you hurry up?)
-dépêchons-nous!(let's hurry)
-ne t'inquiète pas(don not worry)
-ne vous fiez pas à lui(don't trust him)
-elle doit se reposer(she needsto rest)
-repose-toi(have a rest)

Conjuagation of reflexive verbs

• Simple tense These are formed in the same way as for the non-reflexive verbs, except that a reflexive pronoun is used
• Compound tense These are formed with auxiliary verb être followed by the past participle of the verb

Agreement of the pst participle

• In most cases, the reflexive pronoun is a direct object and the past participle of the verb agrees in number and in gender with the reflexive pronoun

  -il s'est trompé(he made a mistake)
  -elle s'est endormie(ahe fell asleep)
  -ils se sont excusés(they apologized)
  -elle se sont assises(they sat down)
  

• When the reflexive pronoun is used as an indirect object, the past participle does not change

  -nous nous sommes écrit(we wrote to each other)
  -elle se l'est acheté(she bought it for herself)
  

• When the reflexive verb has a direct object, the reflexive pronoun is the indirect object of the reflexive verb and the past participle does not agree with it

  -Caroline s'est tordu la cheville(Caroline sprained her ankle)
  -vous vous êtes lavè les mains, les filles?(did you washed your hands, girls?)
  

Common reflexive verbs