Ils se lavent les cheveux dans la salle de bain.

Questions & Answers about Ils se lavent les cheveux dans la salle de bain.

Why is there a se before lavent?
The word se is a reflexive pronoun meaning "themselves". In French, actions you do to your own body, like washing or waking up, use reflexive verbs. So Ils se lavent literally means "They wash themselves."
Why does the sentence use les cheveux (the hair) instead of leurs cheveux (their hair)?
Because the reflexive pronoun se already tells us whose hair is being washed! In French, when you use a reflexive verb with a body part, you drop the possessive word (like "their" or "my") and just use the definite article (le, la, or les).
Why is cheveux plural here when we say "hair" in the singular in English?
In English, "hair" usually acts as one big group (a singular uncountable noun). But in French, un cheveu is a single strand of hair. To talk about a full head of hair, French always uses the plural form les cheveux.
How do I pronounce the "-ent" at the end of lavent?
You don't! The "-ent" ending on verbs for ils and elles is completely silent. You pronounce lavent exactly the same way you pronounce the singular form lave.

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