The 4 Must-Know Uses of "Se" in Spanish

[@realfastspanish]

Do you have any feedback or questions about the pronoun "se"? Please share them below.

[@andrewgreenfield8623]

What about the "accidental se"?

[@incognito96]

No "de" is the hardest for me because "from , about" but it has other ways that make no sense.

[@carmenvelez5327]

@@incognito96 hello “ de “is a preposition and the meaning is belong to. The confusion is this: in English you say This is joseph’s car. In spanish is . Este es el carro de Joseph. Your confusion is the position of the words. Y have this problem in English. If You need more help let Me know because i need help in English a lot please😢

[@incognito96]

@@carmenvelez5327 if you need help, I will gladly help. Thankyou for explaining "de"

[@ry4ncoughlin]

@realfastspanish for the IOP change to se when combined with DOP you used only the lo, la , los.. ect. does it still change if your DOP is te, me or nos? or do sentences with these combinations not exist? 10:06 example - le te to se te

[@eziola]

Hands down the best explanation of the passive voice in both English and Spanish that I've ever heard. And I've been struggling with it a lot.

[@realfastspanish]

Thank you, I'm glad it helped! 😊

[@laurenseise1490]

Spanish teacher here. Amazing explanation - using this in class ❤. Thanks

[@realfastspanish]

Thanks for the feedback! I hope this helps your students!! 😊

[@onlyoneamong300]

Wow! You just took on one of the hardest particles to explain in Spanish because SE has many uses! Love your simple examples when SE acts as a passive pronoun! Glad you emphasize that using the English passive sounds awkward to native Spanish speakers and should definitely be avoided! Keep up the good work! 🤓

[@realfastspanish]

Thanks for the kind words!! 😊

[@Soulpatrol-zu7ry]

Yo Dawg, it's a crying shame that I can only give you one like/ thumbs up for this video. Well done my man.

[@realfastspanish]

Thanks for the kind words and support! I appreciate it! 🙏

[@The_Rizz_Lord_]

Why call him a dog ??

[@imptie]

@@The_Rizz_Lord_please shutup.

[@altanaltay6106]

@@The_Rizz_Lord_it is not offensive, it is slang, and it means “Dude”

[@theacondeify]

He is actually my favorite Spanish teacher in KZbin coz he doesn't stutter or add on unnecessary things, he's not nervous and his calming voice and he explains clearly

[@dieguincatin6435]

I am a spanish native speaker. I wrote this using the word 'se' several times, if you understand it, you've got it En el corazón de un pequeño pueblo, se encontraba un hotel antiguo y misterioso. Se decía que se escuchaban susurros por las noches, se veían sombras moverse detrás de las cortinas y se sentía una presencia inexplicable en cada habitación. Se rumoraba que se trataba de un hotel encantado, donde alguna vez se hospedaron hechiceros y brujas.

[@kenidyelise2528]

this explanation was the best i’ve ever seen in my life, you have a talent for both spanish, history, and language!!

[@realfastspanish]

I really appreciate the kind words!! 😊

[@Coachat]

Se the most common pronoun in spanish 0:25 How does one say it? 04:10 the inpersonal se we want to use se whenever we are talking in an impersonal way in spanish 04:38 passive se someone is doing 07:41 reflexive se ..doing something to oneself

[@leensatti]

One of the best spanish teachers ❤

[@deekay1066]

Such a complicated topic for beginners like me, but you have made it so simple and perfect to understand and use it. Could not thank you enough..

[@ImpossibleKnots]

This is the only video that was actually able to explain this! Thank you!

[@realfastspanish]

Thanks for the feedback, I'm glad it helped! 😊

[@rossomaguire17]

I think I commented on one of your videos with praise before. Looked up this exact subject and here you are again with an explanation that has helped me to no end. Just brilliant 👏

[@lunfa]

Soy hablante nativo de español y la verdad no sé por qué en vez de ir a ver una explicación en español sobre el "se", preferí verlo en inglés. Y creo que no se podía explicar mejor. Esto no se enseña en las escuelas primarias, simplemente se aprende con el habla cotidiana, o por lo menos yo no recuerdo que me lo hayan enseñado. Gracias por este video, muy educativo 👏

[@amen_ra6926]

At what point in learning Spanish will one be able read and more importantly hear the above comment and know what was said?

[@Malik-Ibi]

​@amen_ra6926 In Spanish learning to read is very easy, just learn the sounds of each letter (not the names of the letters), and then put the sounds together. e.g. 'mamá' = m-a-m-á. Just the sounds. And the listening comes along with the reading and writing. Because in Spanish 99% of the time writing and listening are equal. *one will be *be able to read

[@brentbuchanan7044]

The only thing I regret is not finding your channel sooner! I’ve been learning Spanish 5 years and in 1 video you’ve taught me a subject I’ve struggled with the entire time!

[@WendyWilliamsLiving]

I always have at least one A-HA! moment with each of your lessons. Fantastic teaching!

[@braianvargas2458]

Como hablante nativo, entendí perfectamente tu explicación. Explicaste y ejemplificaste perfectamente todos los usos. Muy buen video.

[@braianvargas2458]

Un ejemplo que dices al final está muy bueno: el "se recíproco" María and Juan love each other. --> María y Juan se aman (el uno al otro).

[@Cherry-df7fm]

One of the best Spanish teachers on KZbin!

[@realfastspanish]

Thanks for the kind words Cherry! 😊

[@CatherineGates-p5r]

Great video-thanks! My Spanish teacher explained the "combined objects" se using Eric Clapton's song Lela-good song, bad grammer, so change it to se. Made it easy to remember!

[@stevemartinez6455]

Need to watch this again. I am starting to understand the use if se. Thank you.

[@beachbound9397]

You always have just the VERY BEST explanations for topics. 😮. Thank you! Amazing…..

[@Der_Ermahner]

Muy informativo y muy útil. Buen trabajo.

[@realfastspanish]

¡Muchas gracias! 🙏

[@MS-sr6mj]

OMG I FINALLY GET IT! THANK YOU!!!!!

[@joho9815]

You explain it really well.

[@whatwelearned]

This, especially the passive voice part, was terrific. It's so good when a video just makes a certain thing 'click' for you. Thanks Andrew!

[@realfastspanish]

Thanks for the feedback! I'm so pleased to hear that this video helped something click for you! 😊

[@daafahachannell7622]

This is the only videos that explained it well coz it gave confusions before .thank you

[@rosie8094]

I loved the video! At 7:50, you used Me despierto. I was wondering if you had a video or explanation as for when we use yo and me eg. Why is it not yo despierto? Thank you!

[@janetaustin7502]

Tú eres excelente! Muchas gracias!

[@ginabee1212]

This video and the article in the blog were extremely helpful! At my more advanced level in Spanish, the indirect object pronoun STILL often trips me up. I sometimes forget the reflexive "se", as well. If I can master these, I believe I can finally reach another level of speaking and comprehension.

[@realfastspanish]

Thanks Gina, I'm glad it was helpful!! 😊

[@lexokhubulava]

Such a clear explanation. Thank you!

[@steinbrugge]

It is a very easy and fast way to teach this. In fact, I don't even to think about this matters, because I'm a native Spanish speaker, but I think your explanation is comprehensible even for me. Congratulations.

[@realfastspanish]

Thank you for the kind words! 🙏

[@shemkatz1881]

Amazing explanation, thank you!

[@catskillsonline]

Great tutorial. Thank you.

[@SH-lv7pd]

Yet another brilliant video, explained with both patience and logic… thank you.

[@latikadhar73]

This was a wonderful revision of se !

[@realfastspanish]

Thanks for the comment! 🙏

[@GoodlyRogue]

That explanation at the end was very interesting. Thanks.

[@terredee]

I appreciate your videos so much. Thank you!

[@realfastspanish]

I'm glad you like them! 😊

[@esosaimasuen8122]

Amen. You are doing God's work, my friend.

[@realfastspanish]

Thank you! 🙏

[@rosevenegas1101]

excellent explanation.. thank you for posting videos like this

[@haramanggapuja]

This is an important feature of Spanish that often gets overlooked ir ignored: the ‘passive se.’ Norwegian has a similar set-up, which I believe is or was once called the ‘mediopassive.’ ‘I write’ = ‘Jeg skriver/‘It is written’= Det skrives. The beauty of it to me is that the tense is carried in the verb. ‘It was written’ becomes ‘Det skrivast.’ Se escribe vs Se escrito. I’d never thought about this until I watched video. Thanks for the presentation.

[@indra4470]

What a fantastic teacher you Are.great explanation for se i am a newbie.thanks😅

[@mikeg6991]

Dude. EXCELLENT lesson! Can't wait for more!

[@realfastspanish]

Thanks!! 🙏

[@StudySpanish-ff7tm]

Puede hacer un video que tiene que ver con la frase ?

[@xxanthonyxx03]

Yeah, you are a saint for this, best examples of what might be the more challenging part of Spanish. Making it very easy . Thank you

[@anneb3097]

A very good lesson. Thank you!

[@valeriegorey3133]

Can you do a clip of use of verb Suponer?

[@diegorivera6500]

Both of you are right; the evolution from pronoun ge to se is because Spanish language avoids cacophony, harsh pronunciation of similar sounds; lelo meant to pronounce two ls following each other, which ended up changing the first l to s to facilitate faster talking. It happened in another words like cosecha, harvest, which comes from cogecha (cf. Verb coger).

[@geminisax6115]

Terrific video help !

[@bear1417]

Excellent explanations. Thank You

[@realfastspanish]

I'm glad you liked the video! 😊

[@brancho8600]

The best "se" class!!

[@brendanriley5543]

Excellent!. I'll keep reviewing this video 'till it sinks in. Thanks.

[@dpaul4peace2]

how about exampes using plural and past/ imperfect , pst tenses, like -for a sentencces likes " the proposals were discussed , " gracias

[@musashidanmcgrath]

The 5th common use is the 'lexical se'. These are verbs that have se stuck on the end, but they are not reflexive verbs. 😊

[@marykayvann]

Thanks!

[@realfastspanish]

Thank you so much for the support Mary! 🙏

[@indra4470]

How can I contribute

[@braveheart1810]

Super amazing and simple explanation bro 👏🏻👏🏻

[@MrMar2929]

Great way used. 😊

[@malachyolson942]

Heya! I'm gonna go read the article after I comment this so maybe it will be revealed to me there, but my one question: Is there a stark difference between saying "Se me olvidó" and "Me olvidó"? There are other verbs often used in this way, but this is just one I find myself using often. After watching this video I feel like "Se me olvidó" translates to something like "It is forgotten to me", but is using this form of the verb too formal/ uncommon? Thanks!

[@malachyolson942]

Just read the article - the passive "se" is used to convey forgetting on accident! Thanks so much for your great teaching!

[@realfastspanish]

Thanks for the feedback, I'm glad the article answered your question!

[@glennshrom5801]

I would just add that within the reflexive tense, "se" is used not just to talk about the same person doing the action also being the one receiving the action, but also just to spice up the language a little bit. I compare it in English to how we add words like "up, off, down" to verbs to spice them up. Instead of just, "He ran", we can say, "He ran off", or "he darted off". Instead of just "She ate the peas" we could say "She ate up the peas." Etc. Instead of just "he cleaned his spot", we might say "He cleaned off his spot."

[@realfastspanish]

Hola Glenn, yes, you're right! 👍 The reflexive "se" can have these subtle shifts in meaning or spice in the language as you have described it.

[@yagaboya9048]

THANK YOU SO MUCH. Aunque no entiendo el uso de “se” totalmente. Tengo un mejor idea del tema. Muchas gracias 😭🙏

[@fadimantium]

So helpful. Thank you so much!

[@realfastspanish]

I'm glad it was helpful!

[@johnkearns7381]

Thank you Andrew

[@paularmond]

Hello, I wonder if you could help. Your explanation video of lo que suggests that lo que requires conjugated verbs either side. But I can not work out where the phrase bueno, esto es lo que se necesita hacer fits into this. I am not sure where the first conjugated verb is. Is it es from ser.

[@truestory923]

Always like your videos. Glad they're popping up. Not sure but it seems to me that when you speak Spanish, you have a nasal sound but not in your English. I've noticed this about other foreigners speaking good Spanish. Any reason?

[@realfastspanish]

I'm not sure, it's not something I think about. The letters "n", "m" and "ñ" will require nasal articulation naturally. But, I recommend all students focus on getting their Spanish vowels as accurate as possible. This is what I think about when I'm speaking Spanish. So, if your vowels are accurate, your Spanish will sound great!

[@jhicksbo]

Very helpful video. I am curious though, what was the name of that book your former student referenced about the history of Spanish?

[@PC-kd7dj]

I have been studying Spanish for a few years and all the uses of “se” have been confusing to me. Thanks for clarification. I subscribed to your channel.

[@dpaul4peace2]

I mean the passive use using plural and other tenses past, future

[@kaycetaylor9365]

Thank you!

[@realfastspanish]

Thanks for your support! 😊

[@DrMott]

Fantastico

[@timquain5341]

I think the first part helped me. The further I went through, the more lost I became. Perhaps because I knew all of the other nouns and verbs in the first part. I might need to come back to the last sections when I know more words.

[@realfastspanish]

Thanks for the feedback Tim! I didn't mean to use more complex vocabulary as the video went on but it may have happened by accident. I hope you are able to understand more of the video when you view it after learning some more words.

[@MaxBronson]

Thank you for great content as usual! I have read lots of learners´s comments over the years that say that nearly every reference on the internet teaching Impersonal SE says that it can only be in the singular, while Passive SE constructions can use both singular and plural. For example: From one site it says, ´Impersonal se constructions are always formed with se + a third person singular verb.´ and from the same page, ´Passive se constructions can be formed with se + a third person singular verb or a third person plural verb, depending on what is being discussed.´ Many learners are told this or see this written and it confuses the hell out of us. Can you break it down once and for all and confirm or correct the above? Thank you. :)

[@realfastspanish]

Thanks for the question Max! Firstly, this is a confusing topic that natives debate and don't always agree on. We can also find regional variations here. So, I'm not going to solve this "once and for all". But, I would say this is a question that largely doesn't matter. As I mentioned in the video at the end of the passive section, "how do I know if something is passive or impersonal?", it doesn't matter, it's simply a question of definition which linguists can debate but as Spanish students, we just need to say the sentences without thinking about them too much. I have a book on my bookshelf called "las 500 dudas más frecuentes del español" and it covers questions like this. I wouldn't recommend this book to students because 80% of the book is getting into the weeds and I think this question is getting close to this. An example from the book, the question is "¿Se alquila habitaciones o Se alquilan habitaciones?" which is correct? And the answer is the second is more common but both are allowed. It then goes on to discuss your point that impersonal is formed with a singular verb construction therefore the first is "impersonal" and the second is "passive". For me, as a Spanish teacher, the most important information here is that both are possible and the second is more common. Last point, in the video, I use my own definitions of "passive" and "impersonal" to get around this problem. If we compare these sentences "Aquí se habla español y francés" vs "Aquí se hablan español y francés", some would define the first as "impersonal" and the second as "pasiva refleja" and others would define them both as "pasiva refleja". Personally, I would rather define them both as impersonal since they are talking about an action in a general way. Then, in comparison "Se habló español en la reunión" (Spanish was spoken in the meeting), I would prefer to define this as passive because it was done by a specific group of people. That said, all of the examples I have provided above are acceptable sentences in Spanish. It is simply a question of how we define them, which again, I think for the most part doesn't matter because they are all grammatically correct.

[@MaxBronson]

@@realfastspanish Thank you so much for taking the time to write such a comprehensive response. I understand where you're coming from and I think I need to let go of needing to know how to define everything gramatically and focus more on correct usage and understanding. Thank you!

[@DavidHuggett-p9y]

Hi, Great video and at last I'm sort of starting to get it...why does Spanish need to be oh so complicated for us learners?

[@JeffC-fq1be]

This is really good, but at 5:22 why is it construida instead of construido? I know about the gender, but as this is a verb I am unsure. Thanks.

[@deescards1]

Awesome video 👍🏽👍🏽👍🏽

[@realfastspanish]

Thank you 👍

[@jackiebat8844]

Muy bien!aprendi Algonquin hoy!

[@MrMar2929]

Do you have subjunctive videos?

[@Kalza86]

Hey there. Great video and thank you for explaining this. I have a question though. Sometimes when I read information on the internet or books etc sometimes i see the "se" being used but don't understand why. So for example "Los manzanos se cultivan en todo el mundo." Apples are cultivated and you're not saying who so impersonal Se. But on the same hand why include the se? if you said "los manzanos cultivan..." I would read it the same! Thank you

[@SaneBSBfan98]

The sentence is an example pf the passive se. Here is another example: "Los tacos se venden aqui= tacos are sold here

[@realfastspanish]

¡Hola Kalza! You're example is like what I spoke about in terms of passive vs impersonal, it could be either depending on the context. But if we remove the "se", "Los manzanos cultivan...", then this would read as "Apple trees cultivate...", it would imply that the apple trees are cultivating something else, maybe a busy insect population such as bees". E.g. "Apple trees cultivate a big bee population" -> "Los manzanos cultivan una gran población de abejas". Whereas if we just want to say that "Apple trees are cultivated", then we need the "se". I hope that helps!!

[@mausilili1371]

is the se in llamarse also a bit like the category 3 reflexive se ?

[@realfastspanish]

Yes, absolutely! It can be both! It depends on the sentence. In the example "¿Cómo se llama esto?" (What is this called?), this is impersonal #1, but in the example ¿Cómo se llama? (what is his name?), it is reflexive #3. As I mentioned in the video, the label of #1 and #3 doesn't matter too much, it's more important to get used to the patterns.

[@mausilili1371]

@@realfastspanish oh i see, thank you so much ! : )

[@bienvenidospanish7463]

Buena lección como siempre. (La casa se construyeron en 2008.)

[@lanierosenberg]

Great video. For a second, I was confused by the title. Although I know that "I know" in Spanish has an accent mark, I was trying to determine how there could be so many different uses of it!😆

[@betsyshuster4299]

I found a sentence with “se le”, “Qué más se le puede decir?” Can you explain why le? Thanks!

[@BarnabasBoehler]

Could you also you "I" in the first example. por ejemplo "Donde se puedo pagar?"

[@pablodavidradusky9471]

¿Dónde se puede pagar? "Puede" is the right verb.

[@realfastspanish]

Yes, absolutely, if you want to say "Where can I pay?", you can translate literally "¿Dónde puedo pagar?". This is a normal sentence in Spanish. You just need to remember to drop the "se" if you are going to say "I". But, it's also important to practice using the impersonal se as well so you can get used to it.

[@mausilili1371]

@@realfastspanish puede in ''se puede'' is the 3rd person singular conjugation of poder, right?

[@matai21]

@@mausilili1371yes that’s correct

[@solascriptura-e7t]

I’ve been slacking….hard….on my studies; and, the KZbin algorithm gifts me this gem. Thank you, profesor

[@realfastspanish]

Nice, I'm glad this video helped you get back on track with your studies! 😊

[@Top_Striker9]

You the man 👍🏾👍🏾👍🏾

[@amen_ra6926]

Up until I was 5 or 6 I spoke fluent Spanish. It's a long story. So I had the vocabulary of a 6 year old. I'm in my 60s and basically almost starting over. Although some phrases have been still used in the house by my mom so they stuck with me. But for a beginner, one needs a broad enough vocabulary to understand the words and context. A beginner may hear "se" and think it's a form of the verb Ser and not a pronoun. It won't be contextually correct but as a beginner, how would they know the difference? If you read it, it may make more grammatical sense. But if you hear it, you may be totally wrong. When you grow up speaking it, you just learn from hearing others. You don't learn sentence structure or parts of speech and usage until much later. Just like when English is learned. That has been my biggest challenge. Knowing expressions created from words that are put together that don't have a literal English translation. Like en vez de... for instead of... I mean who knew? I would have thought in time of... 🤷🏾‍♂️

[@Emile.gorgonZola]

""A la ciudad se la conoce como la ciudad de blablabla." Is this the passive se, the reflexive se, the impersonal se? (also why the "a" in "a la" when it's a direct object, and why the "la" in "se la"?)

[@Emile.gorgonZola]

passive se, I reckon

[@ChadAgain]

I've been hearing ''accidental se'' and thought it was se said on accident. But, apparently not. I was hoping you would clarify that here for me. Maybe your next Se video? More please =-)

[@realfastspanish]

Thanks for the question Chad! I just said this to another comment and I'll repeat it here for your reference: "I consider the "accidental se" as the 3rd category, the reflexive se, because it is always referring to the object or thing that the verb is modifying. I've seen other people say there are 5 categories or even 6, and as I mentioned at the end we could break out 3rd category into reflexive and reciprocal. But, for me, there are 4 basic sentences structures that "se" will appear in, and we can consider the "accidental" or "reciprocal" as subcategories of reflexive."

[@looneygoon1543]

5:40

[@Raj997]

Tú eres mejor.

[@bcawana3121]

Funny aside: Many years ago, my high school Spanish teacher - with tongue firmly planted in cheek - told us that you don't use "le la" or "les la" or any other double L combination because it sounded to Hawaiian. You're welcome.

[@manjirit]

What about this sentence: Como se puedo ayudar? How do you explain "se" here?

[@danstokes]

thanks for that, but i'll need to watch it again without distractions, maybe again and again and again lol

[@tommyg.9069]

What about the incidental " se .?" When you use " se " in order to excuse a fault of your own. For example, in English we say: I lost the keys. However, in Spanish they take the blame away from the person & say the keys lost themselves -- they do that by using " se " in the sentence.

[@Thesussysuscat]

What's conjugation is esto?😊

[@NabsRandomVideos]

Genial! Keep uploading!

[@realfastspanish]

¡Gracias! 🙏

[@kennethschwartz898]

el micrófono de la chica se escucha como. What is the purpose of the SE... is it part of escucharse?

[@sikexzc]

THIS IS SUPER USEFUL! Oh my god brain blown

[@FrancoRamírez-u3v]

Aquí si voy a aprender Inglés 😅😅😅😅

[@eziola]

This video was 99% perfect. He forgot the "accidental se". 😢 Should've been 5 uses

[@realfastspanish]

Thanks for the feedback! I consider the "accidental se" as the 3rd category, the reflexive se, because it is always referring to the object or thing that the verb is modifying. I've seen other people say there are 5 categories or even 6, and as I mentioned at the end we could break out 3rd category into reflexive and reciprocal. But, for me, there are 4 basic sentences structures that "se" will appear in, and we can consider the "accidental" or "reciprocal" as subcategories of reflexive.

[@JerInCrik]

EXCELLENT! BTW, Only Eric Clapton gets to use "Le la"! 😅

[@heatheroberg6313]

I just want to say I have the hardest time remembering the word for carabiner in English as a native speaker. Maybe I’ll have better luck with mosquetón?

[@MsDodgerzfan]

Where (In Spain) is the closest to Mexican Spanish. I know there are different languages all over Spain. I'm looking for an area that speaks closest to Mexican Spanish