Reflexive verbs are verbs where the action bends back onto the subject — the person doing the action is also the person receiving it. I wash myself. She got dressed. They met each other. Portuguese marks this bend with a reflexive pronoun attached to the verb, and European Portuguese has a particular set of rules about where that pronoun goes. This page is the complete overview: what reflexive verbs are, what pronouns go with them, the five different things reflexive marking can actually do, and how European Portuguese differs from Brazilian Portuguese in the placement of the pronoun.
The reflexive pronouns
Every reflexive construction uses one of five pronouns, chosen to match the subject.
| Subject | Reflexive pronoun | Literal meaning |
|---|---|---|
| eu | me | myself |
| tu | te | yourself |
| ele / ela / você | se | himself / herself / yourself |
| nós | nos | ourselves |
| (vós) | (vos) | (yourselves — archaic) |
| eles / elas / vocês | se | themselves / yourselves |
The vós form vos is essentially extinct in modern European Portuguese, surviving only in a few rural dialects, religious texts, and fixed expressions. In practice, vocês (with se) has taken over the "you all" role. You still need to recognize vos in older literature and in liturgy, but you will almost never need to produce it.
Eu lavo-me todas as manhãs.
I wash myself every morning.
Ela chama-se Marta.
Her name is Marta. (literally: she calls herself Marta)
Nós sentamo-nos à mesa às oito.
We sit down at the table at eight.
Eles vestem-se rapidamente.
They get dressed quickly.
Where the pronoun goes: enclitic vs proclitic
European Portuguese has a strict set of rules about where the reflexive pronoun attaches to the verb — rules that Brazilian Portuguese has largely relaxed. Mastering these is half the battle of reflexive verbs.
The default position is enclitic — after the verb, attached with a hyphen. This is the most common placement in neutral affirmative declarative sentences.
Levanto-me às sete.
I get up at seven.
Ele deita-se cedo.
He goes to bed early.
Nós encontramo-nos no café.
We meet at the café.
The pronoun switches to proclitic position — before the verb, unattached — whenever a specific set of "triggers" appears in the sentence. The main triggers are:
1. Negation. Any negative word (não, nunca, nada, ninguém, nenhum, jamais) pulls the pronoun forward.
Não me lembro do nome dele.
I don't remember his name.
Nunca me sinto bem às segundas-feiras.
I never feel well on Mondays.
Ninguém se arrependeu da decisão.
Nobody regretted the decision.
2. Subordinating conjunctions — que, quando, se, porque, embora, and most others that introduce a subordinate clause.
Espero que te sintas melhor amanhã.
I hope you feel better tomorrow.
Quando me deito cedo, durmo melhor.
When I go to bed early, I sleep better.
Se te esqueceres das chaves, liga-me.
If you forget the keys, call me.
3. Certain adverbs — também, já, ainda, sempre, só, talvez.
Também me esqueci do livro.
I also forgot the book.
Já me levantei há uma hora.
I already got up an hour ago.
Talvez se arrependa mais tarde.
Maybe he'll regret it later.
4. Interrogative and relative pronouns — quem, quando, onde, como, que, qual.
Como te chamas?
What's your name?
Onde nos encontramos?
Where shall we meet?
For the detailed rules, see Reflexive Pronoun Placement. The key takeaway for beginners: default to enclitic ("-me", "-se") unless a trigger pulls it forward.
The nós form drops an -s
There is one spelling quirk worth singling out because it trips up everyone. In the present tense, when the reflexive pronoun nos attaches enclitically to a nós form ending in -mos, the verb drops the final -s:
- levantamos
- nos → levantamo-nos
- sentamos
- nos → sentamo-nos
- vestimos
- nos → vestimo-nos
Levantamo-nos cedo todos os dias.
We get up early every day.
Sentamo-nos sempre na mesma mesa.
We always sit at the same table.
Esquecemo-nos dos bilhetes.
We forgot the tickets.
The same happens when an object pronoun attaches to nós forms — it is a general phonological rule, not a reflexive-specific one. But reflexives are where learners meet it first. When the pronoun is proclitic (pulled forward by a trigger), the -s stays: não nos levantamos cedo.
The five uses of reflexive marking
Reflexive-looking constructions do not always mean "to oneself." In fact, Portuguese uses the reflexive pronoun for at least five distinct functions, and sorting them out is the key to understanding why Portuguese dictionaries list certain verbs as "pronominal" or "reflexive" that do not obviously involve someone acting on themselves.
1. True reflexive — the subject acts on itself
This is the literal reflexive: the subject does something to itself. The reflexive pronoun could, in principle, be replaced by a si próprio / a mim próprio ("to himself / to myself") without changing the meaning.
Ela olhou-se ao espelho.
She looked at herself in the mirror.
Magoei-me a cortar os legumes.
I hurt myself cutting the vegetables.
O rapaz lavou-se antes do jantar.
The boy washed himself before dinner.
These are the cleanest reflexives. Physical-care verbs (lavar-se, vestir-se, barbear-se, pentear-se, maquilhar-se) all belong here, as do verbs of self-harm or self-regard (magoar-se, olhar-se, ver-se, apresentar-se). See Common Reflexive Verbs for the full list.
2. Inherent reflexive — verbs that exist only in reflexive form
A small but important group of Portuguese verbs is always reflexive. There is no non-reflexive version. Queixar-se does not come from any verb queixar; the verb simply does not exist without its pronoun. These are called inherent or lexical reflexives.
Queixo-me do barulho constante dos vizinhos.
I complain about the constant noise from the neighbours.
Ele arrependeu-se do que disse naquela noite.
He regretted what he said that night.
Lembras-te da última vez que fomos ao mar?
Do you remember the last time we went to the sea?
Esqueci-me completamente do teu aniversário, desculpa.
I completely forgot your birthday, sorry.
Suicidou-se depois de anos de depressão.
He killed himself after years of depression.
Other common inherent reflexives: atrever-se ("to dare"), orgulhar-se ("to be proud"), apiedar-se ("to take pity"), abster-se ("to abstain"). Many take a preposition — queixar-se *de, lembrar-se de, esquecer-se de, arrepender-se de*. See Inherently Reflexive Verbs for the full treatment.
3. Reciprocal — "each other"
When the subject is plural, the reflexive pronoun can mean "each other" rather than "themselves." Context normally disambiguates; if clarification is needed, um ao outro ("one to the other") or mutuamente ("mutually") makes the reciprocal reading explicit.
Eles beijaram-se à porta do hotel.
They kissed each other at the hotel door.
Os dois irmãos adoram-se.
The two brothers adore each other.
Conhecemo-nos na universidade.
We met each other at university.
Odeiam-se desde a infância.
They have hated each other since childhood.
The verbs that most naturally carry a reciprocal reading are verbs of mutual interaction: beijar-se, abraçar-se, cumprimentar-se, ajudar-se, ver-se, conhecer-se, encontrar-se, amar-se, odiar-se.
4. Middle voice — the subject is affected, not agent
Some verbs use the reflexive pronoun to mark an event that happens to the subject without an external agent. English often handles this with an intransitive verb; Portuguese can use the reflexive to signal the same thing.
A porta abriu-se sozinha.
The door opened by itself.
O vidro partiu-se com a pressão.
The glass broke under the pressure.
A luz apagou-se de repente.
The light went off suddenly.
O cabelo dela enrolou-se com a humidade.
Her hair curled with the humidity.
In these, the subject is not really doing anything to itself — something happens to it, internally or spontaneously. The reflexive pronoun here marks what linguists call anticausative or middle-voice use. It is one of the reasons "reflexive" is a slightly misleading label.
5. Se-passive — impersonal "they / one / people"
Finally, Portuguese uses se with a third-person verb to express an impersonal or passive meaning — "one does X," "people do X," "X is done." This is common in notices, recipes, and general statements.
Vendem-se casas nesta zona.
Houses for sale in this area. (literally: houses sell themselves here)
Fala-se português em nove países.
Portuguese is spoken in nine countries.
Aqui come-se bem e paga-se pouco.
Here you eat well and pay little.
Procuram-se empregados.
Staff wanted.
Strictly speaking, this is not a reflexive — no subject is acting on itself. But it shares the se pronoun and many of the same placement rules. See Se-Passive and Impersonal Se for the distinction between these two impersonal uses.
PT-PT vs PT-BR: the placement difference
This is one of the most visible differences between European and Brazilian Portuguese. In general:
- European Portuguese strongly prefers enclitic placement in default contexts — after the verb, attached with a hyphen: chamo-me, levantas-te, senta-se.
- Brazilian Portuguese strongly prefers proclitic placement in default contexts — before the verb, no hyphen: me chamo, te levantas, se senta.
| European Portuguese | Brazilian Portuguese (colloquial) |
|---|---|
| Chamo-me João. | Me chamo João. |
| Senta-te aqui. | Se senta aqui. |
| Levantamo-nos cedo. | A gente se levanta cedo. |
| Ela chama-se Marta. | Ela se chama Marta. |
In Brazilian written Portuguese, especially formal writing, the European rules are often respected, but in speech and in most informal writing, the proclitic is dominant. There is also a difference in which reflexive pronouns are used at all: Brazilian Portuguese has largely dropped tu in favour of você (with se), which also simplifies the pronoun inventory.
For European Portuguese learners, the safe approach: master the enclitic default and the proclitic triggers (negation, subordination, certain adverbs). If you write me chamo João in European Portuguese, you will be immediately identified as using Brazilian norms — not a mistake, but a marked choice.
Reflexive vs non-reflexive: a verb can often be both
A great many Portuguese verbs have both a non-reflexive and a reflexive version, with different meanings. Sorting them out is a key part of building vocabulary.
| Non-reflexive | Meaning | Reflexive | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| lembrar | to remind | lembrar-se | to remember |
| esquecer | to forget (direct) | esquecer-se de | to forget (with preposition) |
| chamar | to call | chamar-se | to be called / named |
| sentar | to seat (someone) | sentar-se | to sit down |
| deitar | to lay down / throw | deitar-se | to go to bed / lie down |
| vestir | to dress (someone) | vestir-se | to get dressed |
| encontrar | to find | encontrar-se | to meet up / find oneself |
Lembro-me do dia em que nos conhecemos.
I remember the day we met.
Esta música lembra-me a minha infância.
This music reminds me of my childhood.
In the first, lembrar-se is reflexive and means "to remember." In the second, lembrar is transitive and means "to remind." Same verb root, two different uses.
Common Mistakes
❌ Nós levantamos-nos às sete.
Incorrect — when a nós verb form ending in -mos attaches an enclitic pronoun, the verb drops the final -s. The correct form is levantamo-nos.
✅ Nós levantamo-nos às sete.
We get up at seven.
❌ Eu me chamo Paula.
Brazilian usage — in European Portuguese, the default is enclitic: Chamo-me Paula. Proclitic 'me' at the start of a sentence sounds distinctly non-EP.
✅ Chamo-me Paula.
My name is Paula. (EP)
❌ Não lembro-me do nome dele.
Incorrect placement — negation (não) is a trigger for proclitic position. The pronoun must come before the verb.
✅ Não me lembro do nome dele.
I don't remember his name.
❌ Queixo do barulho.
Incorrect — queixar-se is inherently reflexive. You cannot drop the pronoun. The verb does not exist without it.
✅ Queixo-me do barulho.
I complain about the noise.
❌ Como chamas-te?
Incorrect placement — the interrogative como is a trigger for proclitic position.
✅ Como te chamas?
What's your name?
Key Takeaways
- Reflexive verbs take a pronoun (me, te, se, nos, vos, se) that matches the subject and marks that the subject is somehow involved in the outcome of the action.
- European Portuguese defaults to enclitic placement (chamo-me, levanta-se) and switches to proclitic when triggered by negation, subordination, certain adverbs, or interrogatives (não me levanto, quando me levanto).
- The nós form drops its final -s before the enclitic -nos: levantamo-nos, sentamo-nos.
- The reflexive pronoun marks at least five distinct functions: true reflexive (lavar-se), inherent reflexive (queixar-se), reciprocal (beijar-se), middle voice (abrir-se), and se-passive (vende-se).
- PT-BR prefers proclitic placement in speech; PT-PT prefers enclitic. Saying me chamo João in European Portuguese is identifiable as Brazilian usage.
- Many verbs exist in both reflexive and non-reflexive forms with different meanings (chamar "to call" vs chamar-se "to be named"; lembrar "to remind" vs lembrar-se "to remember").
Related Topics
- Common Reflexive VerbsA2 — The core set of reflexive verbs in European Portuguese — lavar-se, vestir-se, sentir-se, chamar-se, and the rest — with full paradigms, natural examples, and notes on prepositions and clitic placement.
- Reflexive Verbs for Daily RoutinesA2 — The vocabulary of a typical day in European Portuguese — morning, work, evening — with full paradigms for levantar-se and deitar-se, and the crucial note on which verbs are NOT reflexive in Portuguese.
- Reciprocal Verbs — Each OtherB1 — How European Portuguese uses the reflexive pronoun with plural subjects to mean 'each other' — the pattern, the ambiguity with true reflexives, and the disambiguators um ao outro and mutuamente.
- Inherently Reflexive VerbsB1 — The Portuguese verbs that exist only in reflexive form — arrepender-se, queixar-se, orgulhar-se, esforçar-se, aperceber-se, and their cousins — where the pronoun is not a modifier but part of the verb itself.
- Se-Passive (Passiva Pronominal)B1 — Vendem-se livros — the passive with clitic se, where the verb agrees with the logical patient. Covers the classic prescriptive rule, the colloquial tension (vende-se casas vs vendem-se casas), and why the agent cannot be expressed.
- Reflexive Pronouns (Me, Te, Se, Nos, Vos, Se)A2 — The full paradigm of Portuguese reflexive pronouns — what they mean, which verbs take them, and how they express reflexive, reciprocal, and idiomatic meanings.