English Reflexive Verbs: Definition, Examples

In English grammar, reflexive verbs are used when the subject and the object of the sentence are the same person or thing. These verbs go hand in hand with reflexive pronouns like myself, yourself, himself, and themselves. 

Understanding how and when to use reflexive verbs correctly can make your English sound more natural and fluent. In this blog, we will break the what English reflexive verbs are, how to use them, and give you easy and common examples with easy exercises that will help you test your knowledge 

What Are Reflexive Verbs?

A reflexive verb shows that the subject of the sentence is also the receiver of the action. These verbs are often used with reflexive pronouns. In simple terms, to make a verb reflexive, we use reflexive pronouns like myself, yourself, himself, herself, itself, ourselves, yourselves, and themselves.

Structure: Subject + Reflexive Verb + Reflexive Pronoun

In order to understand reflexive verbs, you must first understand the fundamental components of an English phrase. To start with, let us break a basic sentence: ‘I hurt myself while lifting heavy boxes.’ In this sentence, ‘I’ did the action, and ‘myself’ received it. 

Also Read: Types of Verbs: Definition, Examples, Verb Conjugation

Examples of Reflexive Verb 

Here are some examples of reflexive verbs: 

• I cup myself while chopping tomatoes.
• She blamed herself for the mistake.
• They introduced themselves in the class. 

List of Some Common Reflexive Verbs

Here is a list of some common reflexive verbs in English. Reflexive verbs are those where the subject and object of the verb are the same, and they typically use reflexive pronouns like myself, yourself, himself, etc. 

Common reflexive verbs	Sentence
Introduce oneself	I introduced myself to the new class.
Hurt oneself	Be careful not to hurt yourself.
Enjoy oneself	They enjoyed themselves at the party.
Pride oneself	She prides herself on being punctual.
Blame oneself	He blamed himself for the mistake.
Prepare oneself	She prepared herself for the exam.
Teach oneself	I taught myself how to play the guitar.
Express oneself	He finds it hard to express himself.
Remind oneself	I had to remind myself to stay calm.
Apply oneself	You need to apply yourself more in class.
Talk to oneself	Sometimes he talks to himself when he’s thinking.
Convince oneself	She convinced herself that it was the right choice.
Behave oneself	Please behave yourself at the dinner.
Dress oneself	The child can dress himself now.
Look after oneself	It’s important to look after yourself.

Also Read: 500+ Common Verbs in English That You Must Know!

How to Use English Reflexive Verbs

Use reflexive verbs when the subject and object are the same and the subject is doing the action to themselves. You want to emphasise that someone did something alone or without any help. 

For example: ‘I washed the car myself.’ In the sentence, you did something alone or without help. (No one helped me wash the car.) 

Some other examples of English Reflexive Verbs

• I fixed the sheet myself.
• She taught herself English
• They blamed themselves for the loss.

English Reflexive Verbs Exercise

Test your understanding of reflexive verbs with these fun and practical exercises. Practice using reflexive pronouns correctly in real-life sentence examples.

Instruction: Fill in the blanks with the correct reflexive pronoun

(Use: myself, yourself, himself, herself, itself, ourselves, yourselves, themselves)

1. I accidentally cut __________ while cooking.
2. She taught __________ how to play the guitar.
3. We enjoyed __________ at the amusement park.
4. The cat hurt __________ when it jumped from the wall.
5. They introduced __________ to the new teacher.
6. You must believe in __________.
7. He blamed __________ for missing the bus.
8. Kids, behave __________!

Answers:

1. myself
2. herself
3. ourselves
4. itself
5. themselves
6. yourself
7. himself
8. yourselves

Also Read: Verb Forms v1 v2 v3 v4 v5: Meaning, Examples 

FAQs 

Related Reads:

Verb Cheat Sheet: Types of Verbs Explained in Detail	Verb Exercise with Answers (Download Free PDF)
Regular and Irregular Verbs Exercises with Answers	Singular and Plural Verbs: Definition, Examples, Chart
Nouns vs Verbs: Difference You Must Know!	All about Regular and Irregular Verbs

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