Portuguese 4.4. Reflexive Pronouns & Verbs

A verb in Portuguese is reflexive if the subject and the object are the same. This means that the subject is doing the action to itself, not to something or someone else. For instance, “I wash myself” is reflexive, while “I wash my car” is not reflexive.

Some verbs in Portuguese are commonly used in the reflexive form. Let us take one example that we are familiar with. The verb “chamar” means “to call,” e.g., “Ele chama seu amigo de mentiroso” (He calls his friend a liar). However, the reflexive form of the verb “chamar-se,” which literally means “to call oneself,” is used to express one’s name. For instance, “Eu me chamo Carlos” means “My name is Carlos,” which is literally “I call myself Carlos.”

One should avoid starting a sentence with a reflexive pronoun in formal speech. However, this rule is seldom respected in spoken Brazilian Portuguese. Thus, “Me chamo Carlos” is often used.

Conjugation

There are many verbs in Portuguese that have reflexive forms. We will discuss some examples. However, let us first learn how to conjugate reflexive verbs.

	Object Personal Pronoun	e.g., chamar
eu	me	chamo
ele/ela/você	se	chama
nós	nos	chamamos
eles/elas/vocês	se	chamam

As shown in the table, we add the object personal pronoun before the verb. Note that the subject and object personal pronouns are of the same gender and number because the subject and the object are essentially the same.

When the verb is used in reflexive form, the infinitive ends in “se,” separated from the verb by a hyphen, e.g., “chamar-se.”

Examples of Reflexive Verbs in Portuguese

Here are more examples of reflexive verbs.

barbear-se	to shave	aborrecer-se	to get bored
banhar-se	to take a bath	alegrar-se	to be glad (about)
cuidar-se	to take care of oneself	cansar-se	to get tired
chatear-se	to get upset	arrumar-se	to get ready
distrair-se	to distract oneself	divertir-se	to have fun
embebedar-se	to get drunk	apaixonar-se	to fall in love
maquiar-se	to put on makeup	levantar-se	to get up
pentear-se	to comb one’s hair	esquecer-se	to forget
sentar-se	to sit down	enganar-se	to make a mistake
vestir-se	to get dressed	sentir-se	to feel

Let us look at some examples:

Banhar-se na banheira é relaxante.	Bathing in the tub is relaxing.
Eu me aborreço rapidamente em casa.	I get bored fast at home.
Ela sempre se levanta cedo.	She always gets up early.
Nos divertimos muito ontem.	We had a lot of fun yesterday.

One can add the reflexive pronoun to verbs that are not regularly reflexive to make them reflexive. For example:

ver-se	to see oneself	ouvir-se	to listen to oneself
lavar-se	to wash oneself	cortar-se	to cut oneself

Some verbs are used only in reflexive form. For example:

arrepender-se	to regret or repent	atrever-se	to dare
dar-se conta de	to realize	gabar-se	to boast
queixar-se	to complain	suicidar-se	to commit suicide

Change in Meaning

Some verbs change their meaning when they are used in reflexive form. For example:

aborrecer	to bore	aborrecer-se	to get bored
lembrar recordar	to remind	lembrar-se recordar-se	to remember
deitar	to put to bed	deitar-se	to lie down or go to bed
despedir	to fire or dismiss	despedir-se	to say goodbye
apresentar	to present	apresentar-se	to introduce oneself
ir	to go	ir-se	to leave or go away
tornar	to render or turn into	tornar-se	to become
negar	to deny	negar-se	to refuse
parecer	to seem	parecer-se	to resemble
mudar	to move (something)	mudar-se	to move (to relocate)
curar	to cure or heal	curar-se	to get cured or healed
perder	to lose	perder-se	to go astray or be lost

Next: Time Expressions: Ainda, Já, Acabar, and Desde

Back to: Portuguese Lessons

Other lessons in Level IV: