Game Idea? Write Sentences Contrasting Meanings between Non-Reflexive and Reflexive Verbs
Thanks everyone! And please don’t forget to vote—at least for the previous person who posted.
¡Hola a todos! Instead of looking at a list of meaning changes—(e.g., between irregular imperfect past tense verbs and preterite past tense verbs)—why don’t we see if we can come up with some of our own example sentences?
Some recent posts have referred to the fact that the meaning can change between a non-reflexive verb and its reflexive counterpart, such as:
Abrazar means to hug someone, or to support or embrace a cause;
but abrazarse means to hug each other.
So, I could form something like: Abrazó la causa ecológica. He embraced the ecological cause.
And differentiate it with: Echaron a llorar y se abrazaron. They burst into tears and hugged each other.
Stumbling onto this concept recently, I have looked around various sites for lists of examples and compiled a fairly thorough list. I am open to any corrections or additions! (A couple of these verbs—like abrazarse—are actually reciprocal, not reflexive. Rather than getting bogged down in grammatical terms though, let’s focus on coming up with our own sentences to reinforce learning.)
So, if you want to “play,” pick a verb and its counterpart from the list (preferably one not previously used) and write four sentences. One in Spanish (and its English translation) for a non-reflexive verb; and another in Spanish (and its English translation) for its counterpart reflexive verb.
I have stressed to my ESL students for years the importance of understanding how, with phrasal verbs (common only in Germanic languages), the particle (often a “direction” word) changes the meaning of the verb. (Consider how look up contrasts in meaning from look, for instance.) And while English has phrasal verbs, not reflexive verbs (O.K., maybe a few exceptions), and while Spanish has reflexive verbs, not phrasal verbs (O.K., maybe a few exceptions), I have come to realize that, structurally, even though we’re getting at differences in meaning, connotation, or nuance by different methods, the way that we get there pales in comparison to the importance of the fact that we need to start learning some of these changes in meaning! I have studied Spanish for years and was blown away by the number of examples that I found! I think that this topic is a crucial component on the road towards fluency.
| Non-Reflexive Verbs | Reflexive Verbs |
| abonar—to pay | abonarse—to subscribe |
| abrazar—to hug someone; to embrace a cause | abrazarse—to hug each other (Note: reciprocal, not reflexive.) |
| abrir—to open | abrirse—to open up; to confide in |
| acabar—to finish | acabarse—to run out of; to ruin one’s condition |
| acercar—to bring near | acercarse—to approach |
| acordar—to agree; to decide | acordarse—to remember |
| acostar—to put a child or a pet to bed | acostarse—to go to bed; to put oneself to bed |
| acostumbrar—to be in the habit of | acostumbrarse—to get used to |
| acusar—to accuse | acusarse—to confess; to admit |
| alegrar—to cheer up | alegrarse—to be happy |
| aparecer—to appear | aparecerse—to appear, often said of a supernatural event |
| arreglar—to repair; to fix | arreglarse—to get ready |
| burlar—to trick; to deceive; to thwart | burlarse—to make fun of; to ridicule |
| caer—to fall | caerse—to drop (Note: can also mean to like a person.) |
| cambiar—to change | cambiarse—to switch to a different item |
| colocar—to put; to place | colocarse—to stand or sit |
| comportar—to involve | comportarse—to behave |
| conducir—to drive | conducirse—to behave |
| dar—to give | darse a—to devote oneself to |
| darse con—to hit oneself with | |
| darse contra—to hit oneself against | |
| darse por—to consider oneself | |
| dormir—to sleep | dormirse—to fall asleep |
| enojar—to anger; to make angry | enojarse—to get angry; to become angry |
| fiar—to vouch for; to sell on credit | fiarse—to trust |
| fijar—to fix; to fasten | fijarse—to settle in; to notice; to put attention to |
| hacer—to do; to make | hacerse—to become |
| ir—to go; to go someplace | irse—to go away; to leave |
| lastimar—to hurt | lastimarse—to complain |
| lavar—to wash | lavarse—to wash one’s self |
| levantar—to lift; to raise | levantarse—to get up |
| liar—to tie up | liarse con alguien—to have an affair with someone |
| llamar—to call | llamarse—to be called; to be named |
| llevar—to carry | llevarse—to take; to take away; to get; to win |
| llevarse bien—to get along well | |
| llevarse mal—to get along poorly | |
| matar—to kill | matarse—to kill oneself; to commit suicide |
| mirar—to watch | mirarse—to look at each other (Note: reciprocal, not reflexive.) |
| negar—to deny | negarse—to refuse |
| ocurrir—to occur or happen | ocurrirse—to have a sudden idea |
| parecer—to seem; to look like | parecerse—to look like physically |
| peinar—to comb a child or a pet | peinarse—to comb oneself |
| pintar—to paint | pintarse—to put on makeup |
| poner—to put | ponerse—to put on, such as clothing |
| portar—to carry | portarse bien—to behave oneself |
| portarse mal—to be naughty | |
| probar—to prove; to test; to try; to taste | probarse—to try on |
| quedar—to remain; to stay; to fit; to be left over | quedarse con—to keep |
| quemar—to burn | quemarse—to burn oneself out |
| quitar—to take off; to take away; to remove | quitarse—to go away; to get rid of something |
| salir—to leave | salirse—to leave unexpectedly or quickly; to leak; to escape |
| saltar—to jump | saltarse—to jump over; to skip an event or avoid an obligation |
| sorprender—to surprise | sorprenderse—to be surprised |
| valer—to be worth | valerse—to resort to; to use |
| volver—to return | volverse—to turn around; to make an unexpected return; to become |
(As per the custom, fancy schmancy pictures are encouraged. None from me, though. This post is long enough.)
Thanks everyone! —Brian
16 Answers
Ir- to go
Necesito ir a la playa.
I need to go to the beach.
Irse- to leave
Necesito irme a la playa.
me necesito ir a la playa I need to leave the beach.
Regular: dar--to give
Es mejor dar que recibir.
It's better to give than to recieve.
Reflexive: darse por--to consider oneself
¡Me doy por vencida!
I give up!
ponerse—to put on, such as clothing
yo me pone zapatos cada dia.
I put on shoes everyday
poner- to put
yo pongo los zapatos en la mesa.
I put the shoes on the table
Lastimar = to hurt (someone else)
El hombre lastimó al niño.
The man hurt the child.
Lastimarse = to hurt oneself
¿Te lastimaste?
Did you hurt yourself?
Sí, me caí y me lastimé la rodilla.
Yes, I fell and hurt my knee.
Lastimarse de = to complain about something I haven't actually come across this use as I usually stick to quejarse but I'll give it a whirl, please feel free to correct me
El hombre se lastimó del dolor.
The man complained of the pain.
Una Pregunta
Does anyone know if quejarse and lastimarse are synonymous when it comes to complaining or if lastimarse is just for things that hurt or could make one feel pity? Eg could you lastimarse about the high cost of living?, not sure why but I have a feeling that that wouldn't work.
Acordar vs. Acordarse de (To agree vs. To remember)
Acordaron cerrar el trato el 15 de abril. They agreed to close the deal on April 15.
Se acordaron de que el 15 de abril es el último día para mandar la declaración de impuestos. They remembered that April 15th was the deadline to file their taxes.
caer—to fall
Cuando ella bajaba del autobús, cayó.
As she was getting off the bus, she fell.
caerse—to drop (Note: can also mean to like a person.)
Me caes muy bien.
I like you a lot.
Acercarse - to approach
¿Puedo acercarme al hombre enojado seguramente?
Can I approach the angry man safely?
El grupo acerca diferentes perspectivas de todo el mundo.
The group brings together different perspectives from around the world.
arreglar—to repair or to fix
El mecánico arregló la marcha del auto.
The mechanic fixed the engine of the car.
arreglarse—to get ready
Después de la ráfaga del viento, me arreglé el pelo.
Regular form: acabar = to finish, to end, to complete, to be over
El partido de rugby acabó en tragedia.
The rugby match ended in tragedy.
(with con = to destroy, ruin)
Las drogas acabaron con la estrella de cine. The drugs ruined the movie star.
(with por = to end up or something along the lines of 'finally')
Acabé por viajar por tren.
I ended up going on the train.
Acabé por decirle la verdad.
I finally told him the truth."
Pronominal form: acabarse = to run out
Se nos acabó el dinero.
We ran out of money.
NB: The pronominal form can also mean 'to end, be over etc:
Se acabó el partido.
The game ended.
Al acabarse el conflicto ....
When the conflict is over ....
acostumbrar -- to be in the habit of, to be used to
We were used to the sunny weather of the coast.
Estábamos acostumbrados al clima soleado de la costa.
acostumbrarse -- to get used to
People get used to new technologies.
La gente se acostumbra a las nuevas tecnologías.
Regular form: acostar = to put to bed, to place someone in a lying position
La niñera baña a los niños antes de acostarlos.
The nanny bathes the children before putting them to bed.
The nurse told me to lay him flat on the ground so he could check his pulse.
La enfermera me pidió que lo acostara para que le pudiera tomar el pulso.
Pronominal form: acostarse = to go to bed
Tómese dos pastillas antes de acostarse.
Take two pills before (going to) bed.
quemar—to burn
¡Ten cuidado! ¡No te quemes la mano!
Be careful! Don’t burn your hand!
quemarse—to burn oneself out
Había estado trabajando como contador durante demasiado tiempo. Se quemó. Por eso, decidió hacerse maestro.
He had been working as an accountant for too long. He burned out. That’s why he decided to become a teacher.
No estoy seguro, pero yo creo que esta oración es mejor con se agotó:
Había estado trabajando como contador durante demasiado tiempo. Se agotó. Por eso, decidió hacerse maestro.
abrazar
Abraza a su osita.
He hugged his teddy bear.
Nos abrazamos.
We hugged each other.
Regular Form: abonar = to pay
El grupo abonó al gobierno un porcentaje predeterminado.
The group paid a predetermined amount to the government.
Pronominal Form: abonarse = to subscribe
Para abonarse gratis a Spanish Dict, complete por favor el formulario.
To subscribe to Spanish Dict free of charge, please fill in the registration form.
NB: 'Se' will sometimes appear with the verb abonar simply as part of a passive construction but this 'se' should not be confused with the pronominal 'se' and the verb retains its regular meaning (to pay).
Se abona una cantidad fija.
A fixed amout is paid.
abrir—to open /abrirse—to open up; to confide in
Abrí la puerta.
I opened the door.
Juan se abrió a su madre sobre el problema a la escuela.
Juan confided in his mother about the problem at school.
