se

=

himself

pronoun

English to Spanish
Spanish to English

Learn more about this reflexive pronoun in the Answers section.

pronoun personal

1. (reflexivo) himself, (f) herself (de personas) (singular); themselves (plural); yourself (usted mismo); yourselves (ustedes mismos); itself (de cosas, animales) (singular); themselves (plural)

se está lavando, está lavándose -> she is washing (herself)
se lavó los dientes -> she cleaned her teeth
espero que se diviertan -> I hope you enjoy yourselves
el perro se lame -> the dog is licking itself
se lame la herida -> it's licking its wound
se levantaron y se fueron -> they got up and left

2. (reflexivo impersonal) oneself

hay que afeitarse todos los días -> one has to shave every day, you have to shave every day

3. (recíproco) each other, one another

se aman -> they love each other
se escriben cartas -> they write to each other

4. (impersonal)

en esta sociedad ya no se respeta a los ancianos -> in our society old people are no longer respected
se ha suspendido la reunión -> the meeting has been canceled
se dice que… -> it is said that…, people say that…
se prohíbe fumar -> no smoking (en cartel)
se habla español -> Spanish spoken (en cartel)

5. (como complemento indirecto) (to) him, (f) (to) her (de personas) (singular); (to) them (plural); (to) it (de cosas, animales) (singular); (to) them (plural); (to) you (usted, ustedes)

se lo dio -> he gave it to him/her/etc
se lo dije, pero no me hizo caso -> I told her, but she didn't listen
si usted quiere, yo se lo arreglo en un minuto -> if you like, I'll sort it out for you in a minute

se [say]

Él se lava -> he washes himself
Ella se peina -> she combs herself
Él se cortó -> he cut himself
Sí -> se la entregué, yes, I delivered it to him, or to her
Se cree -> it is thought
Se hace -> it is done
Se ayudan mutuamente -> they help each other
Los jugadores se pasan el balón -> the players pass the ball to one another

The reflexive pronoun, himself, herself, itself. Possessive to the person or thing that governs the verb used before the pronouns me, te, le, it reflects the action of the verb on the object which they represent.Se is used instead of the other cases of the pronouns of the third person, as ¿Le entregó Vd. la carta? did you deliver him or her the letter?Passive voice. Se represents frequently the passive form of a verb, as Se dice, it is said.Reciprocal. Each other, one another.