DELE A2 Reflexive Verbs: Practice Test & Review

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Reflexive verbs describe actions you do to yourself — waking up, getting dressed, going to bed. They are the backbone of daily routine vocabulary, and they appear in every section of the DELE A2 exam. If you can’t place the reflexive pronoun correctly, you’ll lose points.

This page gives you a five-part practice quiz: an evaluation set to see where you stand, three practice sets to drill the main reflexive verbs, and a challenge set to confirm mastery. If you get stuck, scroll down for the full explanation. Ready? Start with the evaluation set below.

Grammar Guide

The Rule

Reflexive verbs describe actions that the subject does to itself. The subject and the object are the same person or thing. In Spanish, reflexive verbs take a reflexive pronoun that matches the subject.

Levantarse means “to get oneself up.” The pronoun changes with the subject: me levanto, te levantas, se levanta, nos levantamos, os levantáis, se levantan.

Reflexive Pronouns

Subject	Pronoun	Example with levantarse
Yo	me	me levanto
Tú	te	te levantas
Él / Ella / Usted	se	se levanta
Nosotros	nos	nos levantamos
Vosotros	os	os levantáis
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes	se	se levantan

The pronoun always matches the subject. Se is used for both él/ella/usted and ellos/ellas/ustedes.

Common Reflexive Verbs (Daily Routine)

Verb	Meaning	Example
levantarse	to get up	Me levanto a las siete.
acostarse	to go to bed	Se acuesta a las once.
despertarse	to wake up	Me despierto temprano.
dormirse	to fall asleep	Se duerme rápido.
ducharse	to shower	Me ducho por la mañana.
bañarse	to bathe	Se baña por la noche.
lavarse	to wash oneself	Me lavo las manos.
cepillarse	to brush	Me cepillo los dientes.
peinarse	to comb one’s hair	Se peina antes de salir.
vestirse	to get dressed	Me visto rápido.
desvestirse	to undress	Se desviste en el baño.
ponerse	to put on	Me pongo la chaqueta.
quitarse	to take off	Se quita los zapatos.
sentarse	to sit down	Nos sentamos aquí.
llamarse	to be called	Me llamo Ana.

Reflexive vs. Non-Reflexive

Some verbs change meaning depending on whether they are reflexive.

Verb	Non-Reflexive	Reflexive
lavar	to wash (something)	lavarse
acostar	to put to bed	acostarse
despertar	to wake someone	despertarse
dormir	to sleep	dormirse
poner	to put	ponerse
quitar	to remove	quitarse

Lavo el coche = I wash the car. Me lavo las manos = I wash my hands.

Body Parts and Reflexive Verbs

With reflexive verbs, body parts take the definite article (el, la, los, las), not the possessive.

• Me lavo las manos. (I wash my hands.)
• Se cepilla los dientes. (He brushes his teeth.)
• Nos peinamos el pelo. (We comb our hair.)

Not “me lavo mis manos” — the reflexive pronoun already shows whose hands they are.

Common Mistakes

1. Forgetting the reflexive pronoun.
   ✗ Levanto a las siete.
   ✓ Me levanto a las siete.
   Levantarse is reflexive. The pronoun is required.
2. Using the wrong reflexive pronoun.
   ✗ Yo te levanto a las siete.
   ✓ Yo me levanto a las siete.
   The pronoun must match the subject. Yo takes me.
3. Making a non-reflexive verb reflexive when the object is different.
   ✗ Me lavo el coche.
   ✓ Lavo el coche.
   Lavar el coche is not reflexive. The subject is not the object.
4. Using a possessive with body parts.
   ✗ Me lavo mis manos.
   ✓ Me lavo las manos.
   With reflexive verbs, body parts take the definite article.

Quick Decision Chart

Ask yourself	Answer	Form
Is the subject doing the action to itself?	Yes	Reflexive verb + matching pronoun
Is the action for someone or something else?	Yes	Non-reflexive verb
Is the verb on the daily routine list?	Yes	Reflexive — use the pronoun
Is there a body part as the object?	Yes	Use the definite article, not the possessive
Is the subject yo?	Yes	Pronoun: me
Is the subject tú?	Yes	Pronoun: te
Is the subject él / ella / usted?	Yes	Pronoun: se
Is the subject nosotros?	Yes	Pronoun: nos
Is the subject ellos / ellas / ustedes?	Yes	Pronoun: se

Two Sentences That Show the Difference

Me lavo las manos.
I wash my hands.

• Reflexive. The subject (I) is washing itself (my hands).

Lavo el coche.
I wash the car.

• Non-reflexive. The subject (I) is washing something else (the car).

Me levanto a las siete.
I get up at seven.

• Reflexive. The subject (I) is getting itself up.

Levanto la caja.
I lift the box.

• Non-reflexive. The subject (I) is lifting something else (the box).