Learn Italian: Ci laviamo i denti con il dentifricio. - We brush our teeth with toothpaste.

In Italian, daily routines involving your body (like washing, getting dressed, or brushing teeth) are often reflexive. Ci laviamo literally means "we wash ourselves". Because the verb is lavarsi, we need the reflexive pronoun ci to match the "we" form of the verb.

Wait, doesn't laviamo mean "we wash"? Why is it translated as "we brush"?

Exactly! Italians say lavarsi i denti (literally, "to wash one's teeth") rather than using a different verb for brushing. It is a set phrase you use for daily hygiene.

Why does the Italian sentence say i denti (the teeth) instead of i nostri denti (our teeth)?

When you use a reflexive verb for an action done to your own body parts, Italian uses the definite article (i in this case) instead of a possessive word like "our" or "my". Since ci laviamo already shows whose teeth are being washed, saying "our" again is not needed.

How do I say "I brush my teeth" based on this sentence?

You would change the reflexive pronoun to mi (myself) and the verb to the "I" form, lavo. So, "I brush my teeth" is mi lavo i denti.