Track 80

1. A recap of the uses of se Overview

Before the last one, worth listing what you already have.

• sé with a written accent: I know, from saber. Often heard as lo sé, since a bare sé is very short.
• se for self: himself, herself, itself, themselves, formal yourself, oneself.
• se from the phonetic change, when two l-words would collide: se lo preparo.

Se queda · Lo preparo · Se lo preparo

2. The "on me" se Rule

The last use. Combine se with me, te, nos, le or les and you get the English on me feeling, as in the computer died on me.

English can only do this with a few verbs. Spanish does it far more freely.

La cena se quema / La cena se me quema · La cena se quemó / La cena se me quemó · La cena se nos quemó

Word order stays flexible: la cena se me quema or se me quema la cena.

3. Recognising it is enough for now Method

You do not need to start using this structure until you are really comfortable with all the little words. It is here so it does not confuse you when you hear it.

4. le, not lo, for "on you" Grammar

Since the meaning is on you, it belongs to the le group, which carries to, on, from and for.

¿La batería se te acaba? (informal) · ¿La batería se le acaba? (formal) · La batería se les acaba (plural)

5. New vocabulary Vocabulary

La batería se acaba · La batería siempre se me acaba

6. Spanish avoids "my" here too Note

Rather than my battery always runs out, Spanish says the battery always runs out on me. The me already tells you whose it is.

La batería siempre se me acaba.