Ella se lava la cara.

Se is a reflexive pronoun. It shows that the subject is doing the action to herself.

• lavar = to wash
• lavarse = to wash oneself

So in se lava, the se tells you that she is washing herself, not washing something or someone else in a more general sense.

With body parts and often clothing, Spanish usually uses the definite article (el, la, los, las) instead of a possessive like mi, tu, su, especially when it is already clear whose body part it is.

In this sentence, se already tells you the face belongs to her, so Spanish naturally says:

• se lava la cara

rather than:

• se lava su cara

Using su cara is not impossible, but it is less natural here and can sometimes sound unnecessary or ambiguous.

Lava is the third-person singular present indicative form of lavar.

That means it matches subjects like:

• ella
• él
• usted

So:

• yo lavo
• tú lavas
• ella lava

In this sentence, lava agrees with ella.

Usually, no. Spanish often leaves out subject pronouns because the verb ending already shows the person.

So these can both work:

• Ella se lava la cara.
• Se lava la cara.

You would include ella if you want to:

• add emphasis
• make a contrast
• avoid confusion about who you mean

For example, if you are comparing two people, ella may be useful.

In a dictionary, you may see both:

• lavar = to wash
• lavarse = to wash oneself

In this sentence, the idea is reflexive, so the useful dictionary form is lavarse.

A good way to think about it is:

• lavar is the basic verb
• se is added when the action comes back to the subject

So ella se lava is built from lavar, but the full meaning here is the reflexive one: lavarse.

You could, and people would probably understand you, but it is not the most natural choice in everyday Spanish.

The more idiomatic way is:

• Ella se lava la cara.

Why?

1. se clearly shows the action is reflexive.
2. la cara is the normal pattern with body parts.
3. su can be ambiguous, because su can mean his, her, your, their, etc.

So learners should generally prefer se lava la cara.

In Spanish, when a reflexive verb is conjugated, the reflexive pronoun usually goes before the verb.

So:

• se lava
• me lavo
• te lavas

This is the normal placement with a simple present-tense verb.

You may see reflexive pronouns attached to the end of a verb in other structures, such as:

• an infinitive
• a gerund
• an affirmative command

But in Ella se lava la cara, the pronoun goes before the conjugated verb.

The thing being washed is la cara, so it functions as the direct object.

In other words:

• ella = the subject
• se = reflexive pronoun, showing the action affects her
• lava = the verb
• la cara = what is being washed

Spanish often uses this pattern with body parts:

• Me lavo las manos.
• Se cepilla los dientes.
• Nos movemos la cabeza.

The reflexive pronoun shows whose body part it is, and the noun itself appears with the definite article.

Yes, sometimes. Spanish word order is more flexible than English.

The most neutral version is:

• Ella se lava la cara.

But you may also hear:

• Se lava la cara.

That is very common when the subject is already understood from context.

Still, for learners, the safest basic order is:

• subject + reflexive pronoun + verb + object

So this sentence is a very good model to follow.

This sentence is normal in both Latin American Spanish and Spain Spanish.

The structure:

• reflexive pronoun
• verb
• definite article with a body part

is standard across the Spanish-speaking world.

So Ella se lava la cara is a sentence you can use confidently in Latin America.