In reflective construction, the action done by the subject is reflected on the subject, that is, on the same person who carries it out, that is: subject and object coincide.
- Ti sei lavato? (tu hai lavato te stesso).
- Have you washed? (you washed yourself).
- Io mi giustifico.
- I justify myself.
- Lei si guarda allo specchio.
- She looks at herself in the mirror.
- I bambini si vestono in fretta.
- Children get dressed quickly.
The verb is always accompanied by unstressed personal pronouns (or pronominal particles): mi, ti, ci, vi, si.
- io mi lavo (I wash myself)
- tu ti lavi (you wash yourself)
- lei/lui si lava (she/he washes himself/herself)
- noi ci laviamo (we wash ourselves)
- voi vi lavate (you wash yourselves)
- loro si lavano (they wash themselves)
In compound tenses the auxiliary is always Essere, for this reason the past participle always agrees with the subject in number and gender.
- io mi sono lavato/a (I washed myself)
- tu ti sei lavato/a (you washed yourself)
- lei/lui si è lavato/a (she/he has washed herself/himiself)
- noi ci siamo lavati/e (we washed ourselves)
- voi vi siete lavati/e (you have washed yourself)
- loro si sono lavati/e (they washed themselves)
Types of reflexive form
There are 5 different types of reflexive verbs.
1. The proper reflexive form.
In the proper reflexive form which is also called direct or true the action is reflected on the subject and in which we have:
A). a transitive verb.
B). mi, ti, si, ci, vi, si as a function of direct object.
- Tonino si è lavato (Tonino ha lavato se stesso).
- Tonino washed himself.
- Daniele si rade (Daniele rade se stesso).
- Daniele shaves himself.
2. The apparent reflexive form (or pronominal transitive)
The apparent reflexive form is also called improper or false, and in which we have:
A). a transitive verb.
B). mi, ti, si, ci, vi, si as a complement of term (a me, a te, a lui, etc.) transformable, if desired, into a possessive adjective (mio, tuo, suo…).
C) a direct object (different from the subject)
- Mi sono lavato le mani = io ho lavato le mie mani / le mani a me stesso.
- I washed my hands = I washed my hands / the hands of myself.
- Si è messo il cappotto = ha messo il suo cappotto / il cappottpo a se stesso.
- He put on his coat = he put on his coat / the coat on himself.
- Chiara si mette un vestito rosso = Chiara mette un vestito rosso a se stessa.
- Chiara puts on a red dress = Chiara puts a red dress on herself
- Laviamoci il viso! = Laviamo il viso a noi stessi!
- Let’s wash our faces! = Let’s wash our own faces!