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Eles magoaram-se muito na escola ontem.

Eles magoaram-se muito na escola ontem.
They hurt themselves a lot at school yesterday.
From Lesson 81:Past tense reflexive verbs (-se)·Portuguese (Portugal)

Questions & Answers about Eles magoaram-se muito na escola ontem.

How can I tell that magoaram is in the past tense?
For regular -ar verbs like magoar (to hurt), the past tense (Pretérito Perfeito Simples) for eles ends in -aram. If it were in the present tense, it would just end in -am, making it eles magoam.
Why is the reflexive pronoun -se attached to the end of the verb with a hyphen?
In European Portuguese, the default rule for affirmative sentences is to attach the pronoun to the end of the verb. Because this sentence doesn't have any "magnet" words (like não or certain question words) that pull the pronoun before the verb, -se stays attached to the end as magoaram-se.
Could magoaram-se also mean "they hurt each other"?
Yes! Plural reflexive pronouns like -se can mean "themselves" or "each other" (reciprocal). Without more context, this sentence could mean they both fell and hurt themselves, or they got into a physical fight and hurt each other.
Why do we use na escola instead of just em escola for "at school"?
In Portuguese, you usually combine the preposition em (in/at) with a definite article when talking about specific locations. Since escola is a feminine noun, em combines with a to form na.

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