Portuguese conjugation explanation

Reflexive pronouns

<p>Reflexive pronouns are used when the action of the verb reflects back on the subject (the subject and object are the same). The reflexive pronoun must always <strong>agree</strong> with the grammatical person of the subject.</p>

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<div><strong>Person</strong></div>

<div><strong>Reflexive pronoun</strong></div>

<div>eu</div>

<div><strong>me</strong></div>

<div>tu</div>

<div><strong>te</strong></div>

<div>ele / ela / você</div>

<div><strong>se</strong></div>

<div>nós</div>

<div><strong>nos</strong></div>

<div>vós</div>

<div><strong>vos</strong></div>

<div>eles / elas / vocês</div>

<div><strong>se</strong></div>

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<div class="conjugation_explanation_title">Common Patterns</div>

<ul>

<li>

<div><strong>First Person (eu/nós):</strong></div>

<div class="conjugation_explanation_example_sentence">Eu <span class="green_emphasis">me</span> levanto cedo. (<span style="font-style: italic;">I get up early.</span>)</div>

<div class="conjugation_explanation_example_sentence">Nós <span class="green_emphasis">nos</span> divertimos muito. (<span style="font-style: italic;">We enjoyed ourselves a lot.</span>)</div>

</li>

<li>

<div><strong>Second Person (tu/você):</strong></div>

<div class="conjugation_explanation_example_sentence">Tu <span class="green_emphasis">te</span> vestes bem. (<span style="font-style: italic;">You dress well.</span>)</div>

<div class="conjugation_explanation_example_sentence">Como você <span class="green_emphasis">se</span> chama? (<span style="font-style: italic;">What is your name?</span>)</div>

<div class="conjugation_explanation_example_sentence_note">Note: <strong>Você</strong> uses the third person pronoun <strong>se</strong>.</div>

</li>

<li>

<div><strong>Third Person (ele/ela/eles/elas):</strong></div>

<div class="conjugation_explanation_example_sentence">Ela <span class="green_emphasis">se</span> senta na cadeira. (<span style="font-style: italic;">She sits in the chair.</span>)</div>

<div class="conjugation_explanation_example_sentence">Eles <span class="green_emphasis">se</span> conhecem. (<span style="font-style: italic;">They know each other.</span>)</div>

</li>

</ul>

<div class="conjugation_explanation_title">Key Points</div>

<p><strong>1. S/3 and P/3 use 'se':</strong> The third person singular (<span style="font-style: italic;">ele/ela/você</span>) and plural (<span style="font-style: italic;">eles/elas/vocês</span>) always use <strong>se</strong>. A common mistake is using <span style="font-style: italic;">te</span> when addressing someone as <span style="font-style: italic;">você</span>.</p>

<p><strong>2. Nós vs. nos:</strong> Be careful with accent marks. The subject pronoun is <strong>nós</strong> (with an acute accent), while the reflexive pronoun is <strong>nos</strong> (without an accent).</p>

<p>Some common reflexive verbs to practice include

<a class="conjugation_explanation_link_intext verb_link" href="/study/conjugations/por/chamar-se/" title="Click to see conjugations for chamar-se" target="_blank">chamar-se</a>

<a class="conjugation_explanation_link_intext verb_link" href="/study/conjugations/por/levantar-se/" title="Click to see conjugations for levantar-se" target="_blank">levantar-se</a>

<a class="conjugation_explanation_link_intext verb_link" href="/study/conjugations/por/vestir-se/" title="Click to see conjugations for vestir-se" target="_blank">vestir-se</a>

<a class="conjugation_explanation_link_intext verb_link" href="/study/conjugations/por/lembrar-se/" title="Click to see conjugations for lembrar-se" target="_blank">lembrar-se</a>

<p>For rules on whether to place the pronoun before or after the verb, see

<a class="conjugation_explanation_link_intext" href="/conjugationExplanation/portuguese_reflexive_pronoun_placement/" target="_blank">reflexive pronoun placement</a>