French grammar · A1 · Lesson 17
Reflexive verbs: se lever, s’appeler
A reflexive verb (verbe pronominal) has a pronoun that points back to the subject: se lever, “to get up”, is literally “to raise oneself”. The pronoun matches the subject: je me lève, tu te lèves, il se lève, nous nous levons, vous vous levez, ils se lèvent. Je m’appelle, “my name is”, is literally “I call myself”.
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How does it work?
A reflexive verb is an ordinary verb with a pronoun stuck to its front: se. That pronoun says the action bounces back onto the subject. Lever is “to raise” something, a glass or a flag; se lever is “to raise oneself”, in other words to get up. Cacher is to hide something (a watch in some collars, say); se cacher is to hide yourself, which is what Lupin is doing on this ship.
The pronoun changes with the person, and it always matches the subject:
| se lever | s’appeler | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| je | me lève | m’appelle | I get up / my name is |
| tu | te lèves | t’appelles | you (a friend) |
| il / elle / on | se lève | s’appelle | he, she, one |
| nous | nous levons | nous appelons | we |
| vous | vous levez | vous appelez | you (polite or plural) |
| ils / elles | se lèvent | s’appellent | they |
Yes, nous nous and vous vous look like a stammer. They are correct: the first one is the subject, the second is the reflexive pronoun.
Before a vowel, me, te and se drop their e and become m’, t’, s’: that is the answer to the question above. Two spelling quirks while you are here: se lever and se promener take an accent (je me lève, il se promène) except with nous and vous; and s’appeler doubles its l in the same places: je m’appelle but nous nous appelons. In both cases it is the sound that changes, and the spelling follows.
In the negative, the pronoun stays glued to its verb, and ne…pas wraps round the pair: je ne me lève pas, on ne s’attache pas les mains tout seul.
What does it look like in the story?
These sentences come from lesson 17, “A night on deck”, where the narrator is crossing the Atlantic on the liner Provence with Arsène Lupin hidden among the passengers.
| French | English |
|---|---|
| Sur le pont, un officier se promène. | On deck, an officer is walking about. |
| L’homme se lève, très pâle. | The man gets up, very pale. |
| Alors Rozaine s’appelle vraiment Rozaine. | So Rozaine really is called Rozaine. |
Try it: In all three sentences a little word sits between the subject and the verb. Which word? And why does it shrink to s’ in the third sentence?
« Sous quel nom, sous quel masque se cachait le fameux Arsène Lupin? »
Under what name, behind what mask, was the famous Arsène Lupin hiding? Maurice Leblanc, L’Arrestation d’Arsène Lupin (1905).
How is it different from English?
English only says “myself” when it really means it: “he hides”, “I get up”, “we go for a walk”. French puts the pronoun in every single time, whether or not you would hear a “-self” in English. Think of se lever as one two-piece word.
What mistake do English speakers make?
Three classics. ✗ nous se levons: the pronoun must follow the person, ✓ nous nous levons. ✗ je me ne lève pas: the ne goes before the pronoun, ✓ je ne me lève pas. And ✗ je lève à sept heures, which makes a French speaker wonder what exactly you lift at seven o’clock: ✓ je me lève à sept heures.
Where can I practise it?
- Lesson 17: A night on deck: the story, the rule and interactive exercises, free.
- Review 4: lessons 16 to 20: this point again, in a summary table with the other lessons of the block.
- The A1 glossary: every word of the course, French to English.
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