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### Introduction to reflexive verbs

In Italian, you use **reflexive verbs** when the subject is also the receiver of the action. These are extremely common when talking about daily routines.

In their infinitive (dictionary) form, reflexive verbs drop their final **e** and add **-si** to the end.

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### Reflexive pronouns

To conjugate a reflexive verb, place the matching **reflexive pronoun** immediately *before* the conjugated verb. 

Here are the reflexive pronouns, using **lavarsi** (to wash oneself) as an example:

| Subject | Reflexive Pronoun | Lavarsi |
| --- | --- | --- |
| io | mi | mi lavo |
| tu | ti | ti lavi |
| lui / lei | si | si lava |
| noi | ci | ci laviamo |
| voi | vi | vi lavate |
| loro | si | si lavano |

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### Body parts and routines

When washing or grooming parts of your body, Italian handles possession differently than English. Instead of using possessive adjectives (like *my* or *your*), use the reflexive pronoun to show *who* the action is happening to, along with a **definite article** (il, la, i, le) before the body part. 

For example, instead of saying "I wash my face", you literally say "I wash to myself the face" (*mi lavo il viso*).

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### Getting ready for the day

Many other morning routine actions use reflexive verbs, such as **vestirsi** (to get dressed), **prepararsi** (to get ready), and **pettinarsi** (to comb one's hair). Always include the matching reflexive pronoun before the verb.

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Reflexive verbs (mi lavo, ti lavi)

adjective

adjective/adverb

adverb

conjunction

determiner

interjection

noun

numeral

preposition

pronoun

proper noun

sentence

verb

Subject pronouns and the verb to be (io sono)

Singular definite articles (il, la)

Singular demonstratives (questo, questa)

Basic verbal negation (non)

Yes/No questions

Coordinating conjunctions (e, ma, o)

Regular plurals and definite articles (-i, -e, i, le)

Plural verb to be (noi siamo, voi siete)

Plural demonstratives (questi, queste)

Nouns ending in -e

Special singular articles (lo, l')

The plural article (gli)

Special indefinite articles (uno, un')

Demonstrative adjectives (quello, quella)

Adjective endings (-o, -a, -i, -e)

Expressing quantity (molto, poco, tanto)

The verb to have (ho, hai, ha...)

There is / there are (c'è, ci sono)

The preposition of (di)

Singular possessives (il mio, la mia)

Numbers 1 to 10 (uno, due, tre...)

Numbers 11 to 20 (undici, dodici...)

Numbers 21 to 100 (trenta, quaranta...)

Idiomatic avere (avere fame, avere anni)

Plural possessive adjectives (i miei, le mie)

Possessives with family members (mio padre)

Formal address (dare del Lei)

Present tense of -are verbs (-o, -i, -a)

Question words (chi, cosa, dove)

Present tense of -ere verbs (-o, -i, -e)

Question words (quando, come, perché)

Question word agreement (quanto, quanta, quanti, quante)

Regular -ire verbs

Verbs with -isc- (capisco, capisci, capisce)

Pronouns after prepositions (me, te, lui)

The verb fare (faccio, fai, fa)

The verb andare (vado, vai, va)

The verb stare (sto, stai, sta)

The verb venire (vengo, vieni, viene)

The verb uscire (esco, esci, esce)

Location and destination (a, in)

Origin and movement (da)

Articulated prepositions with a (al, alla)

Articulated prepositions with in (nel, nella)

Articulated prepositions with di and da (del, dal)

Simple prepositions (con, per, su, tra)

Articulated prepositions with su (sul, sulla)

Months of the year

Telling time (sono le...)

Dates (il + number)

Ordinal numbers 1st to 10th (primo, secondo, terzo...)

The verb to want (volere)

The verb can (potere)

The verb must (dovere)

The verb to know (sapere)

Indirect object pronouns (gli, le, ci...)

Expressing preferences (mi piace)

Plural preferences (mi piacciono)

Comparatives (più... di, meno... di)

The passato prossimo with avere (ho parlato)

Irregular past participles (fatto, letto, preso)

The passato prossimo with essere (sono andato)

Reflexive verbs in the past (mi sono svegliato)

Time adverbs with the past tense (già, mai, ancora)

Third-person direct object pronouns (lo, la, li, le)

First and second-person direct object pronouns (mi, ti, ci, vi)

The four seasons

Prepositions of place (vicino a, davanti a)

Conversational words (beh, allora, davvero)

Indefinite adjectives for some (qualche, alcuni)

Indefinite adjectives for every and all (ogni, tutti)

Indefinite pronouns (qualcosa, qualcuno)

Noun suffixes (-ino, -one)

Adverbs of manner (-mente)

Comparisons of equality (così... come)

The relative superlative (il più)

The absolute superlative (-issimo)

Irregular comparatives (migliore, peggiore)

Present progressive (stare + -ando, -endo)

Imminent actions (stare per)

The locative pronoun (ci)

The partitive pronoun (ne)

Pronoun placement with modal verbs

Impersonal subjects (si)

Prepositions of time (da, per, tra, fra)

Past participle agreement with pronouns

Past tense of modal verbs

Question	Answer
to wake up	svegliarsi
to get up	alzarsi
I wake up early and get up immediately.	Mi sveglio presto e mi alzo subito.
to fall asleep	addormentarsi
himself, herself, themselves (reflexive)	si
He wakes up late because he falls asleep late.	Si sveglia tardi perché si addormenta tardi.
to wash oneself	lavarsi
the face	il viso
the soap	il sapone
She washes her face with soap in the bathroom.	Lei si lava il viso con il sapone nel bagno.
the tooth	il dente
the toothpaste	il dentifricio
We brush our teeth with toothpaste.	Ci laviamo i denti con il dentifricio.
the towel	l'asciugamano
You wash your face and use the towel.	Ti lavi il viso e usi l'asciugamano.
to get dressed	vestirsi
to get ready	prepararsi
I get dressed and get ready for work.	Mi vesto e mi preparo per il lavoro.
to comb one's hair	pettinarsi
The girls comb their hair in the bathroom.	Le ragazze si pettinano nel bagno.
You all get ready, get dressed, and go out.	Vi preparate, vi vestite e uscite.
We fall asleep immediately, but we get up tired.	Ci addormentiamo subito, ma ci alziamo stanchi.
Why do you comb your hair without the mirror?	Perché ti pettini senza lo specchio?
They use toothpaste when they brush their teeth.	Usano il dentifricio quando si lavano i denti.
They always wake up early in the morning.	Si svegliano sempre presto la mattina.
We buy a new soap and a clean towel.	Compriamo un sapone nuovo e un asciugamano pulito.
He washes himself with the soap.	Lui si lava con il sapone.
She wakes up now.	Lei si sveglia ora.
The boy dresses well.	Il ragazzo si veste bene.
the head	la testa
I wash my head in the morning.	Mi lavo la testa la mattina.
The cat's head is small.	La testa del gatto è piccola.
the neck	il collo
I wash my neck and my face.	Mi lavo il collo e il viso.
My neck is cold.	Ho freddo al collo.
the eye	l'occhio
I wake up and open my eyes.	Mi sveglio e apro gli occhi.
My eyes are tired.	I miei occhi sono stanchi.
the face (everyday word for il viso)	la faccia
I wash my face with the soap.	Mi lavo la faccia con il sapone.
Today I have a tired face.	Oggi ho una faccia stanca.
to get undressed	spogliarsi
The child gets undressed and washes himself.	Il bambino si spoglia e si lava.
In the evening I get undressed and go to bed.	La sera mi spoglio e vado a letto.

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