📌 Are you learning French? Want to say things like “I got up” or “she got dressed” without getting lost?
Here’s a clear and simple explanation to help you understand how reflexive verbs work in the past tense
🔹 1. What is a reflexive verb?
A reflexive verb in French is a verb that starts with “se” in the infinitive:
- se lever (to get up), se coucher (to go to bed), s’habiller (to get dressed), se promener (to take a walk), se réveiller (to wake up)…
We use them to talk about actions you do to yourself.
🧠 Examples:
- Je me lève à 7h. → I get up at 7 a.m.
- Elle s’habille rapidement. → She gets dressed quickly.
- Nous nous promenons dans le parc. → We take a walk in the park.
🔹 2. Passé composé: the basic structure
When you use reflexive verbs in the past tense (passé composé), you always use the verb “être” as the auxiliary.
The sentence structure looks like this:
👉 Subject + reflexive pronoun + être + past participle
Example with se lever (to get up):
- Je me suis levé (masculine)
- Je me suis levée (feminine)
The past participle changes depending on the gender and number.
🔹 3. Full conjugation: se lever in the passé composé
Here’s the full table:
je me suis levé(e)
tu t’es levé(e)
il s’est levé
elle s’est levée
nous nous sommes levé(e)s
vous vous êtes levé(e)s
ils se sont levés
elles se sont levées
(e) = feminine singular / (es) = feminine plural
🔹 4. Other common examples
Here are 5 useful reflexive verbs in the first person (I), in both masculine and feminine forms:
| Verb | Masculine example | Feminine example |
|---|---|---|
| se réveiller | Je me suis réveillé | Je me suis réveillée (e) |
| s’habiller | Je me suis habillé | Je me suis habillée (e) |
| se coucher | Je me suis couché | Je me suis couchée (e) |
| se promener | Je me suis promené | Je me suis promenée (e) |
| se reposer | Je me suis reposé | Je me suis reposée (e) |
🔹 5. Tips to help you remember
✅ Just remember:
- Always use être (never avoir)
- Use the right reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nous, vous, se)
- Add (e) for a woman, (es) for feminine plural
💬 Say it out loud to practice:
➤ Je me suis levé – Tu t’es couché – Elle s’est réveillée
🔹 6. Try it! Quick exercise
📝 Fill in the blanks with the correct conjugation:
- (You, female) ____________ at 7:00. (se réveiller)
- (She) ____________ at 8:30. (se lever)
- (I, female) ____________ quickly. (s’habiller)
- (We, male) ____________ late. (se coucher)
- (They, male) ____________ in the park. (se promener)
🌟Quiz
Ready for the next step? Take this quiz to check your reflexive verbs in passé composé.
🟦 Conclusion
Reflexive verbs in the passé composé are not so scary once you know the structure.
With just a little practice, it becomes natural.
📣 Want to practice out loud and speak with confidence?
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