1.
A verb is reflexive when the subject (the person or
thing doing the action) and the object (the person or
thing receiving the action) are the same. In English,
we show this with words like myself, yourself, or
himself. In German, we use reflexive pronouns
(Reflexivpronomen).
2. English Example: I wash myself.
3. German Example: Ich wasche mich.
4. In German, reflexive verbs are much more common
than in English. Many daily routines, emotions, and
changes of state require a reflexive pronoun.
5. Page 2: Accusative Reflexive Pronouns
6. Most reflexive verbs in German take an Accusative
object. If the verb has no other direct object in the
sentence, use these pronouns:
7. Accusative Pronoun Chart
9. Reflexi
8. Subje ve 10. Examp
11. English
ct Pronou le
Translat
Pron n Sente
ion
oun (Accus nce
ative)
14. Ich 15. I am
12. ich (I) 13. mich freue glad /
mich. happy.
9. Reflexi
8. Subje ve 10. Examp
11. English
ct Pronou le
Translat
Pron n Sente
ion
oun (Accus nce
ative)
16. du
18. Du 19. You
(you,
17. dich wäsch wash
inform
st dich. yourself.
al)
20. er /
sie / 22. Er
23. He sits
es 21. sich setzt
down.
(he/sh sich.
e/it)
26. Wir
24. wir 27. We are
25. uns beeilen
(we) hurrying.
uns.
30. Ihr 31. You all
28. ihr
konzen are
(you 29. euch
triert concentr
all)
euch. ating.
32. sie / 33. sich 34. Sie 35. They are
9. Reflexi
8. Subje ve 10. Examp
11. English
ct Pronou le
Translat
Pron n Sente
ion
oun (Accus nce
ative)
Sie ausruh resting.
(they/ en
You, sich.
formal
)
36. Notice that sich is used for all third-person singular
and plural forms, as well as the formal "Sie".
37. Page 3: Dative Reflexive Pronouns
38. When a sentence already contains a direct
(accusative) object, the reflexive pronoun changes to
the Dative case.
39. Think of it this way: You are doing the action to or for
yourself.
40. Dative Pronoun Chart
42. Reflexi
41. Subje ve 43. Examp
44. English
ct Prono le
Translat
Prono un Senten
ion
un (Dative ce
)
47. Ich
putze 48. I brush
45. ich 46. mir
mir die my teeth.
Zähne.
51. Du
52. You
kämms
comb
49. du 50. dir t dir
your
die
hair.
Haare.
55. Er
53. er / kauft 56. He buys
sie / 54. sich sich himself a
es ein car.
Auto.
59. Wir 60. We
merken memoriz
57. wir 58. uns
uns e the
das word.
42. Reflexi
41. Subje ve 43. Examp
44. English
ct Prono le
Translat
Prono un Senten
ion
un (Dative ce
)
Wort.
63. Ihr
64. You
wascht
wash
61. ihr 62. euch euch
your
die
hands.
Hände.
67. Sie
leihen 68. They
65. sie /
66. sich sich borrow a
Sie
ein book.
Buch.
69. Key Rule: Look at the third-person forms (sich), wir
(uns), and ihr (euch). They stay exactly the same in
both Accusative and Dative! Only ich (mich/mir) and
du (dich/dir) change.
70. Page 4: Word Order (Syntax)
71. Where does the reflexive pronoun go? It depends on
the structure of your sentence.
72. 1. Standard Statements (Main Clauses)
73. The reflexive pronoun comes immediately after the
conjugated verb (Position 2).
74. Subject + Verb + Reflexive Pronoun + Rest of
sentence.
75. Example: Ich dusche mich jeden Morgen. (I shower
every morning.)
76. 2. Questions (Inverted Word Order)
77. If a pronoun is the subject, the reflexive pronoun
comes right after it.
78. Example: Rasiert er sich heute? (Is he shaving
today?)
79. 3. Dependent Clauses (Subordinate Clauses)
80. In clauses starting with conjunctions like weil, dass, or
wenn, the verb goes to the very end, and the reflexive
pronoun stays right next to the subject.
81. Example: Ich bleibe im Bett, weil ich mich nicht gut
fühle. (I'm staying in bed because I don't feel well.)
82. Page 5: True vs. Accidental Reflexive Verben
83. Some verbs are always reflexive, while others can be
reflexive or normal depending on the context.
84. 1. Genuine Reflexive Verbs (Echte reflexive
Verben)
85. These verbs make no sense without the reflexive
pronoun.
86. sich beeilen (to hurry): Ich beeile mich. (You cannot
"hurry" someone else).
87. sich freuen (to look forward to / be happy): Wir freuen
uns.
88. 2. Accidental Reflexive Verbs (Unechte reflexive
Verben)
89. These can take a reflexive pronoun if you do it to
yourself, or a regular object if you do it to someone
else.
90. Reflexive: Ich wasche mich. (I wash myself.)
91. Regular: Ich wasche das Auto. (I wash the car.)
92. Page 6: Top 15 Common Accusative Reflexive
Verbs
93. Memorize these verbs to build your daily conversation
skills:
94. sich ärgern (über + Akk.) – to get annoyed (about)
95. sich ausruhen – to rest / relax
96. sich beeilen – to hurry
97. sich beschweren (über + Akk.) – to complain (about)
98. sich bewegen – to move / exercise
99. sich duschen / waschen – to shower / wash oneself
[Link] erinnern (an + Akk.) – to remember
[Link] erkälten – to catch a cold
[Link] freuen (auf/über + Akk.) – to look forward to /
be happy about
[Link] fühlen – to feel
[Link] interessieren (für + Akk.) – to be interested (in)
[Link] kämmen – to comb one's hair
[Link] konzentrieren (auf + Akk.) – to concentrate
(on)
[Link] setzen – to sit down
[Link] verlieben (in + Akk.) – to fall in love (with)
[Link] 7: Top 10 Common Dative Reflexive Verbs
[Link] verbs are typically paired with a specific direct
object:
[Link] (Dat.) die Zähne putzen – to brush one's teeth
[Link] (Dat.) die Hände waschen – to wash one's
hands
[Link] (Dat.) die Haare bürsten – to brush one's hair
[Link] (Dat.) etwas anziehen – to put something on
(clothes)
[Link] (Dat.) etwas ausziehen – to take something off
(clothes)
[Link] (Dat.) Sorgen machen – to worry / make
oneself worries
[Link] (Dat.) etwas merken – to memorize / note
something
[Link] (Dat.) etwas vorstellen – to imagine something
(Note: sich im Akk. vorstellen means "to introduce
oneself")
[Link] (Dat.) Mühe geben – to make an effort
[Link] (Dat.) etwas wünschen – to wish for something
[Link] 8: Worksheets - Exercises (Level A1-B1)
[Link] a pen and try to fill in the correct reflexive
pronouns!
[Link] A: Choose mich, dich, uns, euch, or sich
(Accusative)
[Link] freue ________ auf den Urlaub.
[Link], beeilt ________! Wir müssen gehen.
[Link] fühlst du ________ heute?
[Link] Schmidt setzt ________ auf den Stuhl.
[Link] müssen ________ auf die Prüfung konzentrieren.
[Link] B: Choose mir, dir, or sich (Dative)
[Link] putze ________ dreimal am Tag die Zähne.
[Link] du ________ die Hände gewaschen?
[Link] zieht ________ eine warme Jacke an.
[Link] machen ________ große Sorgen um dich.
[Link] du ________ das vorstellen?
[Link] 9: Conversational Practice & Prompts
[Link] these prompts to practice speaking or writing
diary entries using reflexive verbs.
[Link] Routine Prompts (A1-A2)
[Link] ruhst du dich nach der Arbeit aus? (How do you
relax after work?)
139. Draft Answer: Ich ruhe mich auf dem Sofa aus.
[Link] ziehst du dir eine Jacke an? (When do you put
on a jacket?)
141. Draft Answer: Wenn es kalt ist, ziehe ich mir
eine Jacke an.
[Link] Thoughts & Feelings (B1)
[Link]über ärgerst du dich manchmal? (What do you
sometimes get annoyed about?)
[Link]ür interessierst du dich am meisten? (What are
you most interested in?)
[Link] 10: Answer Key & Self-Correction
[Link] your answers from Page 8 here:
[Link] A Answers
[Link] (Ich freue mich...)
[Link] (Kinder, beeilt euch! - informal plural)
[Link] (Wie fühlst du dich?)
[Link] (Herr Schmidt setzt sich...)
[Link] (Wir müssen uns...)
[Link] B Answers
[Link] (Accusative object "die Zähne" is present)
[Link] (Accusative object "die Hände" is present)
[Link] (Accusative object "eine warme Jacke" is
present)
[Link] (Accusative object "Sorgen" is present)
[Link] (Accusative object "das" is present)
159. Pro-Tip for saving as PDF:
[Link] the text above.
[Link] it into your preferred text processor (like Word
or Google Docs).
[Link] Heading 2 for the Page titles to cleanly separate
them.
[Link] to File > Download > PDF Document (.pdf).
164.