A2 · Pronouns
Reflexive pronouns
sich, mich, mir — and the verbs that need them
A large group of German verbs carries a pronoun that translates into nothing at all.
A reflexive pronoun points back at the subject: Ich wasche mich. The forms are the ordinary accusative pronouns except in the third person, where all of them — singular, plural, and the polite Sie — are sich.
What makes this a topic rather than a footnote is that many German verbs are reflexive where the English equivalent is not: sich freuen (to be pleased), sich erinnern (to remember), sich beeilen (to hurry), sich setzen (to sit down), sich fühlen (to feel). The pronoun translates into nothing and has to be there.
A few verbs take a dative reflexive instead, and then the first and second person forms differ: ich wasche mir die Hände, not mich. The rule is mechanical — if there is already an accusative object, the reflexive is dative — and it is exactly what makes German say "I wash myself the hands" where English says "my hands".
Die Form
| accusative | mich, dich, sich, uns, euch, sich |
| dative | mir, dir, sich, uns, euch, sich |
| reflexive verb | Ich freue mich auf den Urlaub. |
| with an object | Ich wasche mir die Hände. |
| reciprocal | Wir treffen uns um sieben. |
Die Regeln im Einzelnen
The third person reflexive is sich in every gender, number and case.
Er hat sich verletzt.He has hurt himself.
Many German verbs are reflexive where the English verb is not, and the pronoun is obligatory.
Ich erinnere mich gut daran.I remember it well.
If the verb already has an accusative object, the reflexive is dative.
Ich putze mir die Zähne.I am brushing my teeth.
In the plural a reflexive can also be reciprocal — each other rather than themselves.
Sie kennen sich seit der Schulzeit.They have known each other since school.
Genauer hingesehen
Why so many German verbs are reflexive
The reflexive marks something happening to the subject rather than being done by them to something else. Sich freuen, sich ärgern, sich wundern, sich fühlen are all internal states, and German treats an internal state as something the person undergoes.
English marks the same idea with a different device: it uses an adjective and a copula — "I am pleased", "I am annoyed", "I feel". Where German conjugates a reflexive verb, English reaches for be plus a participle. Recognising that correspondence turns a long vocabulary list into a single pattern.
Ausnahmen und Sonderfälle (2)
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the verb has a second, non-reflexive use
the meaning changes: sich vorstellen is to imagine, vorstellen is to introduce.
Darf ich mich vorstellen? Ich stelle Ihnen meinen Kollegen vor.May I introduce myself? Let me introduce my colleague to you.
The reflexive is doing real work, so removing it produces a different verb rather than a mistake.
-
the sentence could be reflexive or reciprocal
gegenseitig or selbst removes the ambiguity.
Sie helfen sich gegenseitig.They help each other.
Sie helfen sich can mean they help themselves or each other, and only an extra word settles it.
Woran man es erkennt
- sich
- mich
- mir
- dich
- dir
- uns
- euch
- gegenseitig
Beispielsätze
Ich freue mich auf das Wochenende.I am looking forward to the weekend.
Setz dich bitte.Do sit down.
Wir müssen uns beeilen.We have to hurry.
Sie hat sich sehr geärgert.She was very annoyed.
Zieh dir eine Jacke an.Put a jacket on.
Noch 8 Beispielsätze
Ich interessiere mich für Geschichte.I am interested in history.
Wie fühlst du dich?How are you feeling?
Er hat sich für die Stelle beworben.He has applied for the job.
Wir sehen uns morgen.We will see each other tomorrow.
Bitte melden Sie sich bis Freitag.Please get in touch by Friday.
Sie hat sich den Arm gebrochen.She has broken her arm.
Ich kann mir das gut vorstellen.I can well imagine that.
Kümmere dich bitte darum.Please see to it.
Besonderheiten (2)
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German says "the hands", not "my hands"
With parts of the body German uses the definite article and a dative reflexive: <z>Ich wasche mir die Hände</z>, <z>sie hat sich das Bein gebrochen</z>. The dative already says whose, so a possessive would be saying it twice — and saying it twice sounds as wrong in German as leaving it out does in English.
Er hat sich in den Finger geschnitten.He has cut his finger.
-
sich covers he, she, it, they and formal you
Every third-person reflexive is <z>sich</z>, and so is the polite <z>Sie</z> form — and unlike the pronoun <z>Sie</z>, it is not capitalised: <z>Setzen Sie sich bitte</z>. One form for six persons is unusually generous by German standards and worth simply noticing.
Setzen Sie sich bitte.Please take a seat.
Die typisch deutsche Falle
Aufgepasst
The reflexive pronoun has no English counterpart in these verbs, so it is simply left out — and the sentence becomes ungrammatical rather than merely odd. The only reliable fix is to learn the pronoun as part of the verb: not erinnern but sich erinnern an, with the preposition attached too.
Learn the pronoun as part of the verb, not as an extra.
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