Spanish subject pronouns and reflexive pronouns.

“Here is the table. You have no option but to memorize it. Over time, it will become hardcoded in your brain, though.

Spanish subject pronouns and reflexive pronouns to their English equivalents:

How to use them with body parts ?

Is this correct ? “Yo me lavo mi cabello”

No, “Yo me lavo mi cabello” is incorrect in Spanish.

Why?

In Spanish, when talking about body parts or personal belongings, you don’t use possessive adjectives (mi, tu, su, etc.) like in English. Instead, you use definite articles (el, la, los, las).

✅ Correct: “Me lavo el cabello.” (I wash my hair.)
❌ Incorrect: “Me lavo mi cabello.” (Sounds unnatural in Spanish.)

Here’s a table with examples for each subject pronoun using lavarse (to wash oneself) in the present tense:

To wash — llavar

Wait a minute!

“I know this pattern in names too, right?”
In Spanish, Me llamo Sam literally translates to “I call myself Sam.”
The verb llamar (to call) is reflexive in Spanish, which is why it’s used for self-identification.

In English, we would say “I call myself Sam,” but in Spanish, we use the reflexive structure Yo me llamo Sam.

The subject “Yo” (I) is often omitted in everyday conversation in Spanish because the reflexive verb construction inherently refers to the subject.
So, Me llamo Sam is understood without needing the subject Yo.

Below is a table showing how reflexive verbs are used with different subjects in Spanish, specifically for self-identification (e.g., using “Me llamo Sam”).

to call — llamar

Reflexive verbs llamar

There are other scenarios as well . Here’s a table that lists different scenarios where reflexive verbs are used in Spanish, similar to body parts and names.

other usages

Feel free to give feedback .Happy learning . Nos vemos en España.

Note-

you can skip vosotros if your focus is on a more general audience, especially outside Spain. In most Latin American countries, vosotros is rarely used, and instead, ustedes is the standard plural “you” form, which is used both formally and informally.

While vosotros is still commonly used in Spain, it’s true that in some contexts, especially in literature or religious texts, it might appear more frequently, but it’s not as commonly used in everyday conversation.