| Кто себя очень любит, того другие не любят. Self-praise is no praise. [saying] |
| Introduction |
In today’s post we’ll be learning about the reflexive pronoun себя. This pronoun has a very high frequency in Russian – you’ll see, read, and use it a lot! It also declines, but its declension is rather simple.
| Due to this pronoun’s nature, depending on context, it could mean myself, yourself, himself, herself, oneself, ourselves, yourselves, or themselves. |
| Formation |
| nom. | gen. | dat. | acc. | inst. | prep. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| – | себя | себе | себя | собой | себе |
Because this is a reflexive pronoun, which acts on the subject, the nominative form is non-applicable here.
Also, notice that the genitive and accusative forms coincide with each other. And the dative and prepositional forms coincide with each other.
How easy is that?
| As mentioned above, this is a reflexive pronoun, meaning that it acts on the subject. The subject performs the action on themselves. Still not making sense? Look at these examples: I see myself in the mirror. He buys himself a car. They think only about themselves. Love yourself. We love ourselves. |
Here are some examples now:
| Она видит себя в зеркале. She sees herself in the mirror. |
| Посмотри на себя. Look at yourself. |
| Он купит себе спортивную машину. He will buy himself a sports car. |
Not too complex to use, right?
This pronoun is pretty straightforward.
| Расскажите, пожалуйста, немного о себе. Tell me a little about yourself, please. |
| Возьми с собой немного денег. Take some money with you. |
| Я у себя дома. I’m at my place. |
Still not making sense? Look at these comparisons.
| non-reflexive | reflexive |
|---|---|
| Я вижу тебя. I see you. | Я вижу себя. I see myself. |
| Он купил мне рубашку. He bought me a shirt. | Он купил себе рубашку. He bought himself a shirt. |
| Мы думаем о вас. We think about you. | Мы думаем о себе. We think about ourselves. |
There are some key expressions utilizing the reflexive pronoun.
| вести себя | to behave |
| чувствововать себя | to feel |
| представлять себе | to imagine |
| быть вне себя от + gen. | to be beside oneself with |
If you’re ever in Russia, these signs will appear on doors.
| к себе | pull |
| от себя | push |
Well, that is all for today’s post.
My Slavic Studies 