Lavo la macchina means “I wash the car.” But mi lavo means “I wash myself.” That small word mi completely changes the relationship between the subject and the action: the person doing the action is also receiving it. Understanding this pattern is the foundation of Reflexive Verbs Italian Conjugation—and once you see how the pronouns work, the conjugation becomes much easier to control.
1. How to Conjugate Italian Reflexive Verbs
Italian reflexive verbs may look unusual at first because you have to handle two elements at the same time: the reflexive pronoun and the verb itself. The good news is that the system is regular. First, identify the subject. Then choose the matching reflexive pronoun and conjugate the verb as you normally would.
Each subject has its own reflexive pronoun. The pronoun comes before the conjugated verb in a standard affirmative sentence.
Subject
Reflexive pronoun
Example with lavarsi
English
io
mi
mi lavo
I wash myself
tu
ti
ti lavi
you wash yourself
lui / lei
si
si lava
he/she washes himself/herself
Lei (formal)
si
si lava
you wash yourself
noi
ci
ci laviamo
we wash ourselves
voi
vi
vi lavate
you wash yourselves
loro
si
si lavano
they wash themselves
Notice that si has more than one job. It is used with lui, lei, Lei formal, and loro. The verb ending tells you which subject is meant.
For example:
Lei si lava. → She washes herself.
Lei si lava, Signora Rossi? → Are you washing, Mrs. Rossi?
The spelling is identical, but the context tells you whether Lei means “she” or the formal “you.”
Find the Verb Base and Add the Correct Ending
To conjugate Italian reflexive verbs, start by recovering the regular infinitive. In a reflexive infinitive, the final -e of the verb is replaced by -si.
Take lavarsi:
lavarsi → lavare → lavo → mi lavo
Here is the process:
Start with the reflexive infinitive: lavarsi.
Replace -si with -e to recover lavare.
Conjugate lavare for the subject: io lavo.
Add the reflexive pronoun for io: mi.
The complete form is mi lavo — “I wash myself.”
The same method works with other reflexive verbs:
mettersi → mettere → metto → mi metto
divertirsi → divertire → diverto → mi diverto
The important point is that the reflexive pronoun changes with the subject, and the verb ending changes too. You cannot conjugate only one of them.
Present-Tense Chart: -arsi, -ersi, and -irsi
The three verbs below show how reflexive verbs based on -are, -ere, and -ire verbs work in the present tense.
Subject
lavarsi — to wash oneself
mettersi — to put on
divertirsi — to have fun
io
mi lavo
mi metto
mi diverto
tu
ti lavi
ti metti
ti diverti
lui / lei / Lei
si lava
si mette
si diverte
noi
ci laviamo
ci mettiamo
ci divertiamo
voi
vi lavate
vi mettete
vi divertite
loro
si lavano
si mettono
si divertono
These forms are in the present tense. To understand how Italian uses the present for current actions, habits, and planned events, read our complete guide to the Italian present tense
One point is especially important for English speakers: do not translate every Italian reflexive verb literally with “myself,” “yourself,” or “themselves.”
For example:
Mi lavo. → I wash myself.
But:
Mi diverto. → I have fun.
Not: “I enjoy myself” in every context, and certainly not a mechanical translation such as “I fun myself.”
Italian uses reflexive structures in situations where English often uses an ordinary verb or a completely different expression. For that reason, learn both how the verb is conjugated and how Italians actually use it.
2. Reflexive Verb Conjugation: Italian Past Tense
Talking about what you did this morning, yesterday, or last weekend requires a different structure. In the passato prossimo, Italian reflexive verbs always use essere as the auxiliary verb. This is one of the main differences from many non-reflexive verbs, which may use avere instead.
Build the Passato Prossimo with Essere
The basic structure is:
reflexive pronoun + present tense of essere + past participle
Take alzarsi — “to get up.”
The past participle of alzare is alzato, so:
mi + sono + alzato → mi sono alzato
“I got up.”
Here is the complete conjugation:
Subject
Passato prossimo of alzarsi
English
io
mi sono alzato/a
I got up
tu
ti sei alzato/a
you got up
lui / lei / Lei
si è alzato/a
he/she/you formal got up
noi
ci siamo alzati/e
we got up
voi
vi siete alzati/e
you all got up
loro
si sono alzati/e
they got up
Notice the order. The reflexive pronoun comes before the auxiliary:
Mi sono alzato alle sette. I got up at seven.
Ci siamo alzati presto. We got up early.
A common mistake is to treat a reflexive verb like a regular verb that takes avere.
❌ Mi ho alzato alle sette. ✅ Mi sono alzato alle sette.
Why? Because reflexive verbs form the passato prossimo with essere, not avere.
Choose the Right Ending: -o, -a, -i, -e
Using essere has another important consequence: the past participle agrees with the subject in gender and number.
Compare these four forms:
Marco si è alzato presto. → Marco got up early.
Anna si è alzata presto. → Anna got up early.
Marco e Luca si sono alzati presto. → Marco and Luca got up early.
Anna e Giulia si sono alzate presto. → Anna and Giulia got up early.
The endings follow a clear pattern:
Ending
Used for
Example
-o
masculine singular
Luca si è alzato
-a
feminine singular
Sara si è alzata
-i
masculine or mixed plural
Luca e Sara si sono alzati
-e
feminine plural
Sara e Anna si sono alzate
This agreement is essential in reflexive verb conjugation Italian learners encounter in the past tense: choosing the correct auxiliary is only half the job. You also need to match the past participle to the subject.
For example:
❌ Maria si è alzato presto. ✅ Maria si è alzata presto.
The auxiliary è is correct in both sentences, but alzato must become alzata because Maria is feminine singular.
Not every past participle is formed regularly. Consider mettersi — “to put on” or “to put oneself.”
The base verb is mettere, whose past participle is irregular:
mettersi → mettere → messo
So:
Mi sono messo il cappotto. I put on my coat. — masculine speaker
Mi sono messa il cappotto. I put on my coat. — feminine speaker
The reflexive structure does not change, even when the past participle is irregular:
reflexive pronoun + essere + past participle
What changes is the participle itself—and, as always with reflexive verbs in the passato prossimo, its ending must agree with the subject.
3. Where Does the Reflexive Pronoun Go?
Knowing the correct reflexive pronoun is only part of the job. You also need to know where to put it in the sentence. In most everyday constructions, the rule is predictable: the pronoun either goes before a conjugated verb or attaches to the end of an infinitive.
Situation
Structure
Italian example
English
Affirmative sentence
reflexive pronoun + conjugated verb
Mi alzo presto.
I get up early.
Negative sentence
non + reflexive pronoun + conjugated verb
Non mi alzo presto.
I don’t get up early.
Modal verb + infinitive
conjugated modal + reflexive infinitive
Devo alzarmi presto.
I have to get up early.
Two-verb construction
conjugated verb + reflexive infinitive
Preferisco vestirmi prima di colazione.
I prefer to get dressed before breakfast.
The difference becomes clearer when you compare these two sentences:
Mi alzo presto. I get up early.
Non mi alzo presto. I don’t get up early.
Adding non does not change the position of the reflexive pronoun relative to the conjugated verb. Mi still comes directly before alzo:
non + mi + alzo
With an infinitive, however, the pronoun is commonly attached to the end of the verb:
alzarsi → alzarmi
So:
Devo alzarmi presto. I have to get up early.
Here, devo is the conjugated verb, while alzarmi remains in the infinitive. The original -si changes to the reflexive pronoun required by the subject:
Devi alzarti alle sette. You have to get up at seven.
Dobbiamo alzarci presto. We have to get up early.
This is a useful pattern to recognize: when the reflexive verb remains an infinitive, the pronoun often becomes part of the infinitive itself.
Giving Instructions: Informal and Formal Commands
Reflexive pronouns also change position when you give someone a direct instruction. A useful example is sedersi, “to sit down.”
To a friend, family member, child, or someone you address informally as tu:
Siediti! Sit down!
Here, ti is attached to the end of the affirmative command siedi:
siedi + ti → siediti
When speaking politely to someone you address as formal Lei, the structure changes:
Si sieda! Please sit down!
The reflexive pronoun si comes before the formal command.
Person addressed
Italian
English
Pronoun position
tu — informal
Siediti!
Sit down!
attached to the verb
Lei — formal
Si sieda!
Please sit down.
before the verb
This distinction matters in real conversation. Siediti! is appropriate with someone you address as tu, while Si sieda! is the polite form you might use with a customer, an older person, or someone you do not know well.
4. Imperfect and Future: “I Used to…” and “I Will…”
Reflexive verbs are not limited to the present and the passato prossimo. The same reflexive pronouns also appear with other tenses. Two especially useful ones are the imperfect, for repeated or habitual actions in the past, and the future simple, for actions that will happen later.
Using alzarsi — “to get up” — makes the contrast easy to see.
Subject
Imperfect
English
Future simple
English
io
mi alzavo
I used to get up / I was getting up
mi alzerò
I will get up
tu
ti alzavi
you used to get up
ti alzerai
you will get up
lui / lei / Lei
si alzava
he/she/you used to get up
si alzerà
he/she/you will get up
noi
ci alzavamo
we used to get up
ci alzeremo
we will get up
voi
vi alzavate
you used to get up
vi alzerete
you will get up
loro
si alzavano
they used to get up
si alzeranno
they will get up
Talking About Past Habits
Use the imperfect when the action was habitual, repeated, ongoing, or part of a past routine.
For example:
Quando vivevo a Roma, mi alzavo alle sei ogni mattina. When I lived in Rome, I used to get up at six every morning.
The phrase ogni mattina makes the repeated nature of the action clear. You are not describing one specific morning. You are describing a routine.
The structure remains familiar:
reflexive pronoun + imperfect form of the verb
So:
mi + alzavo → mi alzavo
Compare it with the passato prossimo:
Mi alzavo alle sei ogni mattina. I used to get up at six every morning.
Mi sono alzato alle sei stamattina. I got up at six this morning.
The first sentence describes a habit in the past. The second refers to one completed event.
This distinction is more useful than simply memorizing two different verb forms: the tense you choose changes how the listener understands the action.
Talking About Future Actions
Use the future simple to talk about what will happen later.
Domani mi alzerò alle sette. Tomorrow I will get up at seven.
Once again, the reflexive pronoun comes before the conjugated verb:
mi + alzerò → mi alzerò
With regular -are verbs such as alzare, the future stem changes from -ar- to -er-:
alzare → alzer-
Then add the future endings:
Subject
Future ending
Form of alzarsi
io
-ò
mi alzerò
tu
-ai
ti alzerai
lui / lei / Lei
-à
si alzerà
noi
-emo
ci alzeremo
voi
-ete
vi alzerete
loro
-anno
si alzeranno
The reflexive part does not create a new future-tense system. You still conjugate the verb according to the normal future rules and simply match the correct reflexive pronoun to the subject.
For example:
Ci alzeremo presto domani. We will get up early tomorrow.
Si alzeranno dopo le otto. They will get up after eight.
Once the pronoun pattern is familiar, moving a reflexive verb from one tense to another becomes much more manageable: the pronoun continues to identify the subject, while the verb ending carries the tense.
Ready to Put Reflexive Verbs Into Real Conversations?
Understanding reflexive verbs is one step. Using them naturally in conversation takes practice.
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