Explanation
Use a reflexive pronoun when the subject and the object are the same person or thing. The forms are "myself, yourself, himself, herself, itself, ourselves, yourselves," and "themselves."
For example, "She hurt herself at the park." In this sentence, "She" is the subject, "hurt" is the verb, and "herself" shows that the action happened to the same person. Japanese often leaves this idea implicit, so learners may forget the reflexive pronoun in English. You can also use a reflexive pronoun for emphasis, as in "I made this cake myself."
主語と目的語が同じ人や物になるときに、再帰代名詞を使います。形は "myself, yourself, himself, herself, itself, ourselves, yourselves, themselves" です。
たとえば、"She hurt herself at the park." では、"She" が主語、"hurt" が動詞、"herself" が「自分自身」を表します。日本語ではこの意味を言わずに自然なことが多いので、英語でも抜けやすいです。"I made this cake myself." のように、強調のためにも使えます。
Examples
- I washed myself after soccer practice. サッカーの練習の後で、私は体を洗いました。
- She looked at herself in the mirror. 彼女は鏡に映る自分を見ました。
- Did you hurt yourself? けがをしましたか。
- He taught himself English. 彼は独学で英語を学びました。
- We fixed the bike ourselves. 私たちはその自転車を自分たちで直しました。
- I did not blame myself for the mistake. 私はそのミスを自分のせいにしませんでした。
Common Mistakes
Japanese learners often use "me" or "you" when English needs a reflexive pronoun.
Wrong: "I hurt me."
Right: "I hurt myself."
Wrong: "Did you enjoy you at the party?"
Right: "Did you enjoy yourself at the party?"
日本人学習者は、英語で再帰代名詞が必要な場所に "me" や "you" を入れがちです。
誤り: "I hurt me."
正しくは "I hurt myself."
誤り: "Did you enjoy you at the party?"
正しくは "Did you enjoy yourself at the party?"