Ever see Portuguese verbs ending in “-se” and wonder what’s going on? Good news: you can master reflexive verbs quickly, and they’ll make your daily routine sound natural in Portuguese. In this lesson, you’ll learn what reflexive verbs are, how to place pronouns in Brazil vs. Portugal, and the most common everyday reflexive verbs — with plenty of practice along the way.

What are reflexive verbs?

Reflexive verbs talk about actions you do to yourself: waking up, getting dressed, sitting down. In Portuguese, they often appear with a little pronoun (me, te, se, nos, se) or with “-se” attached to the verb in its dictionary form (infinitive).

So chamar-se literally means “to call oneself,” and it’s used to say your name.

• Eu me chamo Ana. (Brazil) / Eu chamo-me Ana. (Portugal) Translation: My name is Ana.

Other common reflexive verbs for daily routines:

• levantar-se (to get up)
• deitar-se (to go to bed)
• vestir-se (to get dressed)
• sentar-se (to sit down)
• lembrar-se de (to remember)
• esquecer-se de (to forget)

We’ll practice these in context soon.

Quick practice: pick the right pronoun

Complete with the correct reflexive pronoun. Use Brazilian word order (pronoun before the verb).

Eu chamo Marcos.

Como você sente hoje?

Nós levantamos cedo.

Eles deitam às onze.

Ela esquece de fechar a porta.

Word order: Brazil vs. Portugal

Both are correct, but the position of the pronoun often changes.

• Brazil (proclisis): pronoun before the verb

  • Eu me levanto cedo.
  • Eles se sentam aqui.

• Portugal (enclisis): pronoun after the verb with a hyphen

  • Eu levanto-me cedo.
  • Eles sentam-se aqui.

With infinitives and gerunds, the pronoun often attaches at the end:

• levantar-se, vestir-se, deitar-se
• levantando-se, vestindo-se

In Brazil, with a conjugated verb + infinitive, you’ll hear both:

• Eu quero me deitar mais cedo. / Eu quero deitar-me mais cedo.

In negative commands, the pronoun usually comes before the verb:

• Não se esqueça! (Don’t forget!)

Mini-quiz: placement and meaning

Choose the best answer.

Everyday reflexive verbs you’ll use a lot

Here are some high-frequency verbs with examples.

Note: In Brazil, “tomar banho” (to take a shower/bath) is more common than “banhar-se.” Also, “fazer a barba” (to shave) is common; “barbear-se” exists but is more formal or less frequent in everyday speech.

Eu me lembro o nome. → Eu me lembro do nome. Use lembrar-se de + algo. De often contracts: de + o = do; de + a = da; de + os = dos; de + as = das. Eu lavo minhas mãos. → Eu lavo as mãos. With body parts, Portuguese often uses the definite article (as mãos), especially with a reflexive context: Eu lavo as mãos depois de comer.

Build the sentence

Put the words in the correct order (Brazilian word order).

Little conversation: names and routines

Reorder the conversation lines.

More practice: choose the right form

Complete the sentences using the correct reflexive pronoun or structure. Use Brazilian word order unless noted.

(Portugal) Nós vestimo- rapidamente.

Você lembra da reunião?

Eu quero deitar mais cedo.

As crianças sentam aqui.

Cultural note: Brazil vs. Portugal in daily talk

• Brazil prefers the pronoun before the verb in most everyday speech: Eu me chamo…, Eles se deitam…
• Portugal commonly places the pronoun after the verb with a hyphen: Eu chamo-me…, Eles deitam-se…
• Bathing/showering: In Brazil, “tomar banho” is the go-to phrase, not reflexive. In Portugal, “tomar banho” is also common.
• Shaving: You’ll hear “fazer a barba” a lot in both varieties; “barbear-se” sounds more formal.

Whichever variety you’re learning, focus on consistency. If your teacher is Brazilian, practice with me, te, se, nos before the verb. If your teacher is European, practice with -me, -te, -se, -nos after the verb.

Quick review: key patterns

• Reflexive pronouns: me, te, se, nos, se
• Brazil: pronoun before verb (Eu me chamo). Portugal: pronoun after verb with hyphen (Eu chamo-me).
• Common verbs: chamar-se, levantar-se, deitar-se, vestir-se, sentar-se, lembrar-se de, esquecer-se de.
• Remember prepositions: lembrar-se de (Eu me lembro do nome). Often use the article with body parts: lavo as mãos.

Keep practicing with your daily routine: say out loud how you wake up, get dressed, and go to bed — in Portuguese. You’ve got this!