What Are Reflexive Verbs in Italian?

When learning Italian, there are some things that will come easily as a native English speaker and others that require a bit more work. However, each piece of the puzzle will eventually fit together to help you enhance your communication skills and achieve fluency. One of the most important parts (and maybe one of the more complex) parts of learning Italian is understanding the many verbs, their conjugations, and associated pronouns. To help you master reflexive verbs in Italian, here's an easy guide and several examples.

What is a Reflexive Verb in Italian?

Reflexive verbs in Italian are used to describe an action that's being performed on oneself. One trick to help you identify them is whenever the subject and object in a sentence are the same or in situations where the object is indirectly connected to the subject. They don't have any direct object, as the direct object is themself.

Some verbs can be both reflexive and non-reflexive, others may only be reflexive, and others cannot be made reflexive. There are also a few reflexive verbs that mean "each other" or "one another" rather than "oneself." Some examples of these are things like:

• Amarsi — to love one another
• Aiutarsi — to help each other
• Vedersi — to see each other
• Piacersi — to like each other

There are also some tricky Italian reflexive verbs that don't technically follow the traditional definition but still use a reflexive pronoun. These are called riflessivi indiretti. Essentially, the reflexive pronoun indicates that the action is directed towards something related to the subject rather than the subject directly.

Rather than trying to fully understand this piece of Italian grammar, it's best to treat these as irregular verbs and memorize them. Some of the most common ones include:

• Lamentarsi — to complain
• Annoiarsi — to get bored
• Innamorarsi — to fall in love
• Ribellarsi — to rebel
• Arrabbiarsi — to get angry
• Divertirsi — to have fun
• Annoiarsi — to get bored

Reflexive Pronouns in Italian

Reflexive pronouns in Italian are the foundation of reflexive verbs, which are inserted between the subject pronoun and the verb in each sentence. You can find all of the reflexive pronouns and their subject pronoun accompaniment in the chart below:

So, for example, when you say, "I wash the dog," you'd say, "Lo lavo il cane." This uses a regular subject pronoun without any reflexive pronouns. But, when you want to say, "I wash myself," the verb becomes reflexive and is written as, "io mi lavo." You'll notice the differences in Italian pronouns, which can help you understand how to identify and conjugate Italian reflexive verbs. 

How to Conjugate Reflexive Verbs in Italian?

When using reflexive verbs in Italian, you must conjugate them based on who's speaking or to whom the verb applies. There are a few steps to do this, which start by identifying the infinitive form. Typical Italian verbs end in either -are, -ere, or -ire. Reflexive verbs will drop the -e and instead have a -si ending. So, the infinitive form of reflexive verbs will be things like lavarsi, alzarsi, and divertirsi. 

To conjugate them, you'll put them back into their "non-reflexive" form (drop the -si), depending on their ending. Then, follow normal Italian verb conjugation rules. Once the verb is conjugated, you add the reflexive pronoun before the verb and after the subject pronoun. So, really, the only difference in conjugation is adding the reflexive pronoun! To help you practice using reflexive Italian verbs in a sentence, download Tandem today!

Here's an example of conjugating the reflexive pronoun lavarsi (to wash oneself).

• Io mi lavo — I wash myself
• Tu ti lavi — You wash yourself
• Lui/Lei si lava — He/She washes himself/herself
• Noi ci laviamo — We wash ourselves
• Voi vi lavate — You (plural) wash yourselves
• Loro si lavano — They wash themselves

When conjugating Italian reflective verbs in the past tense, you'll need to use essere (to be) as the auxiliary verb. This means essere will be conjugated (based on gender/number), and the reflexive verb will remain in its infinitive. Examples using lavarsi are as follows:

• Io mi sono lavato/a — I washed myself
• Tu ti sei lavato/a — You washed yourself
• Lui/Lei si è lavato/a — He/She washed himself/herself
• Noi ci siamo lavati/e — We washed ourselves
• Voi vi siete lavati/e — You (plural) washed yourselves
• Loro si sono lavati/e — They washed themselves

Adding Reflexive Pronouns to the End of a Verb

Sometimes, reflexive pronouns are attached to the end of a verb instead of going between the subject and the verb. This is most often used when there's a modal verb present, like have, must, or want. It's also common when a verb is followed by a preposition. Some examples of these differences are as follows:

• Devo alzarmi presto — I have to get up early.
• Vuole lavarsi le mani — He/She wants to wash his/her hands.
• Possiamo divertirci alla festa — We can enjoy ourselves at the party.
• Voglio vestirmi bene — I want to dress well.
• Puoi pettinarti i capelli — You can comb your hair.
• Dobbiamo prepararci per l'esame — We have to prepare ourselves for the exam.
• Preferiscono riposarsi dopo pranzo — They prefer to rest after lunch.
• Devo truccarmi velocemente — I have to put on makeup quickly.
• Vuoi sederti qui? — Do you want to sit here?
• Voglio addormentarmi presto — I want to fall asleep early.

54 of the Most Common Reflexive Verbs Italian Native Speakers Use

To help you build your vocabulary and string togehter beautiful Italian words, here are some of the most common Italian reflexive verbs to get started with.

1. Lamentarsi — to complain
2. Annoiarsi — to get bored
3. Innamorarsi — to fall in love
4. Ribellarsi — to rebel
5. Arrabbiarsi — to get angry
6. Divertirsi — to have fun
7. Annoiarsi — to get bored
8. Amarsi — to love one another
9. Aiutarsi — to help each other
10. Vedersi — to see each other
11. Piacersi — to like each other
12. Conoscersi — to get to know each other
13. Salutarsi — to greet each other
14. Abbracciarsi — to hug each other
15. Baciarsi — to kiss each other
16. Scriversi — to write to each other
17. Telefonarsi — to phone each other
18. Frequentarsi — to hang out with each other
19. Separarsi — to separate (from each other)
20. Odiarsi — to hate each other
21. Amarsi — to love each other
22. Sorridersi — to smile at each other
23. Alzarsi — to get up
24. Addormentarsi — to fall asleep
25. Lavarsi — to wash oneself
26. Vestirsi — to get dressed
27. Spogliarsi — to get undressed
28. Svegliarsi — to wake up
29. Pettinarsi — to comb one's hair
30. Truccarsi — to put on makeup
31. Farsi la doccia — to take a shower
32. Riposarsi — to rest
33. Sedersi — to sit down
34. Mettersi — to put on (clothes)
35. Chiamarsi — to be called
36. Ricordarsi — to remember
37. Diplomarsi — to graduate (from school)
38. Laurearsi — to graduate (from university)
39. Sposarsi — to get married
40. Allenarsi — to train (oneself)/workout
41. Trovarsi — to be situated/located
42. Sentirsi — to feel (emotionally/physically)
43. Incontrarsi — to meet
44. Arrendersi — to surrender
45. Fermarsi — to stop oneself
46. Innervosirsi — to get nervous
47. Scusarsi — to apologize
48. Farsi male — to hurt oneself
49. Prepararsi — to prepare oneself
50. Rompersi — to break (a part of the body)
51. Spogliarsi — to undress oneself
52. Sbrigarsi — to hurry up
53. Guardarsi — to look at oneself
54. Perdersi — to get lost

Whether you want to practice Italian reflexive verbs, learn some Italian slang, or try your hand at Italian swear words, Tandem can help. Tandem is a personalized language learning experience that allows you to match with native Italian speakers and continue perfecting your use of basic Italian grammar in real-life situations, regardless of where you are.

Tandem works to help our members foster a deeper understanding of language while improving fluency and building long-lasting friendships. All you need to do is sign up, match with a native speaker of your target language, and start communicating. So, what are you waiting for? Sign up for Tandem today!