Reflexive Pronouns in French

What are reflexive pronouns?

Pronouns are grammatical words that replace a noun or a noun phrase in a sentence. There are several types of pronouns. Here, we will focus on reflexive pronouns.

Reflexive pronouns (pronoms réfléchis) are the words me, te, se, nous and vous. They are used with pronominal verbs and always refer back to the subject. Reflexive pronouns also have stressed forms (moi, toi, soi, nous, vous, eux), although these are used less frequently.

Example:
Je me promène dans les bois.I’m walking in the woods.
Arrête-toi ici !Stop right there!

Master the use of reflexive pronouns with Lingolia’s quick and easy examples, then put your knowledge to the test in the free exercises.

Contents

Je me regarde dans le miroir.

Je me demande si ces boucles d’oreille me vont bien.

La vendeuse s’empresse de m’aider.

The reflexive pronouns in French

The table below presents an overview of the reflexive pronouns in French.

je tu il/elle/on nous vous ils/elles
Reflexive pronouns me/m’ te/t’ se/s’ nous vous se/s’
Stressed reflexive pronouns moi toi soi/lui/elle nous vous eux/elles/soi

How to use reflexive pronouns in French

We use reflexive pronouns with reflexive verbs in the sense of oneself. They come after the subject pronoun and before the verb, and they always agree with the subject they refer to in number and gender.

Examples:
Je me regarde dans le miroir.I look at myself in the mirror.
Je me demande si je suis bien habillé.I ask myself if I’m well dressed.

What is a stressed reflexive pronoun?

There are two types of reflexive pronouns in French: normal reflexive pronouns and stressed or strong reflexive pronouns. Normal reflexive pronouns always appear together with a verb; they cannot stand alone.

Examples:
Je me prépare.I prepare myself.
Je me suis préparé.I’ve prepared myself.
Ne te prépare pas.Don’t prepare yourself.

Stressed reflexive pronouns are used in the positive imperative of reflexive verbs. In this case, the reflexive pronouns moi, toi and lui come after the verb and are connected with a hyphen.

Example:
Prépare-toi.Prepare yourself!

Remember: when we use the negative imperative we place normal reflexive pronouns (me, te, se…) before the verb without a hyphen.

Example:
Ne te prépare pas.Don’t prepare yourself.

We use the stressed reflexive pronoun soi:

  • when the subject is undefined or neutral
    Example:
    Il est important de prendre du temps pour soi.It’s important to take some time for oneself.
  • with on, chacun, tout le monde, personne, celui qui
    Example:
    Chacun reste chez soi.Everyone stays at home.