214 Italian Demystifi ed
For the most part, you can consider a refl exive verb to be a verb that requires
refl exive pronouns. More technically, it is a verb having an identical subject and
direct object, as in She dressed herself.
A refl exive verb infi nitive in Italian is identifi able by the ending -si (oneself) that
is attached to the infi nitive itself minus the fi nal -e. For example:
lavare si lavarsi to wash oneself
Below is a list of common refl exive verbs.
alzarsi to get up
chiamarsi to call oneself
divertirsi to enjoy oneself, have fun
lavarsi to wash oneself
mettersi to put on, wear
sentirsi to feel
svegliarsi to wake up
vestirsi to get dressed
Refl exive verbs are conjugated in exactly the same manner as nonrefl exive verbs
with, of course, the addition of the refl exive pronouns. These are: mi, ti, si, ci, vi, si.
To conjugate a refl exive verb, drop the endings -arsi, -ersi, and -irsi and add on the
usual verb endings according to the person (fi rst, second, third). The refl exive pro-
noun is placed before the refl exive verb.
The following examples show the full present indicative conjugations of a fi rst-
conjugation refl exive verb (alzarsi), a second-conjugation verb (mettersi), and a
third-conjugation verb (divertirsi).
alzarsi to get up
(io) mi alzo I get up, am getting up, do get up
(tu) ti alzi you (familiar) get up, are getting up, do get up
(Lei) si alza you (polite) get up, are getting up, do get up
(lui/lei) si alza he/she gets up, is getting up, does get up
(noi) ci alziamo we get up, are getting up, do get up
(voi) vi alzate you (familiar plural) get up, are getting up, do get up
(Loro) si alzano you (polite plural) get up, are getting up, do get up
(loro) si alzano they get up, are getting up, do get up
mettersi to put on
(io) mi metto I put on, am putting on, do put on
(tu) ti metti you (familiar)
put on, are putting on, do put on
(Lei) si mette you (polite) put on, are putting on, do put on