Previously, I wrote about the verbs that are going to use SE either always or in certain meanings. As you might remember, there is a small group of verbs that is going to use SE every time and here we talk about them: Verbs that always use SE.

Reflexive-only verbs (or absolute reflexive verbs) are those that exist exclusively alongside the particle SE. How to recognize them? Actually, they usually express feelings, behavior, mutual actions, or are verbs with the prefix NA- that indicate an action has been carried out to its absolute limit or to the point of saturation.

The List of Serbian Verbs That Always Use SE with examples

Here comes the list of verbs, together with their use in the sentence:

The verb in Serbian	English translation	The use in a sentence	The case it requires
diviti se, divim se	to admire	Divim se svim upornim ljudima.	dative
obratiti se, obratim se	to talk to	Obratio sam se institucijama koje su nadležne za moj problem.	dative
bojati se, bojim se	to be afraid of	Bojim se nepoznatih ljudi.	genitive
plašiti se, plašim se	to be afraid of	Da li se plašiš pasa?	genitive
smejati se, smejem se	to laugh, to smile	Smejem se često.	/
nadati se, nadam se	to hope	Nadam se boljim vremenima.	dative
radovati se, radujem se	to be joyful for	Radujem se tvom rođendanu.	dative
zaljubiti se, zaljubim se	to fall in love	Zaljubio sam se u tebe.	u + accusative
kajati se, kajem se	to repent	Kajem se što sam to rekao.	/
zgražavati se, zgražavam se	to be disgusted	Zgražavam se zbog te ideje.	optional
truditi se, trudim se	to put an effort, to try	Trudimo se da budemo bolji ljudi.	/
sećati se, sećam se	to remember	Da li se sećaš svog detinjstva?	genitive
boriti se, borim se	to fight	Borimo se protiv kriminala.	optional
smrkavati se, smrkava se	to get dark	Smrkava se sva kasnije u junu.	/
dogoditi se, dogodim se	to happen	Šta se dogodilo juče?	optional
desiti se, desim se	to happen	Šta se desilo juče?	optional
baviti se, bavim se	to be engaged in	Čime se bavite?	instrumental
ponositi se, ponosim se	to be proud of	Ponosim se svojim uspesima.	instrumental
rukovati se, rukujem se	to shake hands	Rukovali smo se pre satanka.	/
sastati se, sastajem se	to meet	Sastali smo se u njenoj kancelariji.	optional
najesti se, najedem se	to eat until full	Najeli smo se palačinki.	genitive
napiti se, napijem se	to get one’s fill of drinking water	Napili smo se vode pre ručka.	genitive
stideti se, stidim se	to be ashamed of	Stidimo se svojih grešaka.	genitive
crveneti se, crvenim se	to blush	Crvene se kad lažu.	/
takmičiti se, takmičim se	to compete	Takmičile su se dve ekipe.	/
svađati se, svađam se	to argue	Svađam se retko.	optional

Mastering reflexive verbs takes time, but you’ve already taken the first step. Don’t lose your momentum! Check out our study plan to keep building your fluency today.

And, just to get the hint: