Reflexive Verbs — Irregular

In this lesson, we’ll take a look at irregular reflexive verbs. These are 9 irregular reflexive verbs and they follow the same patterns as the irregular verbs learned in the present tense. The first two change their stems from “e” to “i”. Take a look as we go over them:

( all forms: Yo, Ud. etc...)         (Nosotros –  regular)
The verb “vestirse”     becomes:          me visto, se viste, etc.             The nosotros form, that likes to stay regular, is: Nos vestimos
The verb “despedirse”     becomes:     me despido, se despide, etc.   The nosotros form is: nos despedimos

Now just a quick note about “despedirse”. If you add on a person after this verb, you have add the word “de”. For example, to say, “He says goodbye to her” in Spanish would be “Se despide de ella”.

The next few, the stems change from “e” to “ie”. Let’s take a look.

( all forms: Yo, Ud. etc...)          (Nosotros –  regular)

The verb “sentirse” becomes:              me siento, se siente, etc.         The nosotros form, that likes to stay regular is: nos sentimos
The verb “divertirse” becomes:           me divierto, se divierte, etc.   The nosotros form is nos divertimos
The verb “sentarse” becomes:             me siento, se sienta, etc.         The nosotros form is nos sentamos
The verb “despertarse” becomes:        me despierto, se despierta      The nosotros form is  nos despertamos

 The next one changes from “o” to “ue”
( all forms: Yo, Ud. etc...)       (Nosotros –  regular)
It is the verb “acostarse”, which becomes:     me acuesto, se acuesta, etc.   And the nosotros form is nos acostamos

Now, our final group of irregular reflexive verbs change only in the “yo” form:
                      (Yo - irregular)                          (all other forms - regular)
The verb “darse cuenta” becomes:      me doy cuenta,                       the other “regular” forms are se da cuenta, nos damos cuenta, and so forth.

Now for a quick note about this verb. If you put something after this phrase, you have to add-on the word “de”. For example, to say, “She realizes that” in Spanish would be “Se da cuenta de eso”.

The next verb is “caerse” which, in the “yo” form becomes:              me caigo         again, the rest of the forms are regular: se cae, nos caemos, etc.

Try to remember these irregular verbs, and see if you can get them correct, as you continue on to the practice session.

Practice Session

Now that you have seen the irregular reflexive verbs, let’s try a verbal quiz. Read the phrase in English (or have someone read it to you), then say out loud what the phrase means in Spanish.