Impersonal and passive se; reciprocal se

What it is

Spanish often talks about actions without saying who does them: rules, notices, ads, customs and general truths. The main tool is se, in two closely related uses:

• the impersonal se (se impersonal): Aquí se vive bien (people live well here);
• the passive se (pasiva refleja): Se venden casas (houses for sale), where the verb agrees with the thing.

A third se looks the same but means something else: the reciprocal se (se recíproco), "each other": Se quieren mucho (they love each other very much).

Spanish has three more ways to speak in general: uno ("one", "you"), the third-person plural (dicen que…, "they say") and a generic tú (cuando tienes hijos, no duermes).

How to form it

se + verb in the third person. The verb is singular or plural depending on what follows it:

The noun can come first (Las tarjetas se aceptan en la caja), but in signs and ads it usually follows the verb: Se busca vendedor. Se alquilan cuartos.

uno + verb in the third person singular: Uno nunca sabe. Uno se acostumbra a todo. A woman talking about herself may say una. Uno is the only option with verbs that already carry se, like levantarse or acostumbrarse: En el campo uno se levanta temprano.

Third-person plural with no subject: Dicen que va a llover. Me robaron la bicicleta. Te llaman por teléfono. The speaker doesn't know or doesn't care who did it, and it never includes the speaker.

la gente (people) + verb in the singular: La gente dice que es un buen barrio.

Generic tú, frequent in conversation: En esta ciudad, si no tienes carro, pierdes mucho tiempo.

Reciprocal se / nos: a plural verb with nos or se can mean "each other": Nos vemos los lunes. Se conocieron en 2015. Se escriben todos los días. If the meaning isn't clear, add el uno al otro: Se ayudan el uno al otro.

When to use it

Notices, ads and rules, everywhere in a city:

• Se alquila departamento amueblado.Furnished flat for rent.singular noun, singular verb
• Se necesitan meseros con experiencia.Experienced waiters needed.plural noun, plural verb
• No se admiten mascotas.No pets allowed.building rule
• Se prohíbe tirar basura.No littering.infinitive: singular

Instructions and how things are done: ¿Cómo se dice «weekend» en español? Esta camisa se lava a mano. Primero se corta la cebolla.

Customs and general facts: En Cusco se habla español y quechua. En mi casa se cena a las nueve.

News and rumours: Se dice que… and Dicen que… are two ways of passing on what people say.

Things people do to each other: Mis padres se conocieron en la universidad y se casaron muy jóvenes.

Contrasts and traps

• Make it agree. Se venden casas, not Se vende casas: look at the noun after the verb.
• An infinitive counts as singular. Se prohíbe tomar fotos: what is forbidden is one action.
• Reflexive verbs need uno. Uno se acostumbra a todo; you can't stack two se.
• Specific people. With a + people, the verb stays singular: Se busca a los responsables. Recognise it for now; you'll practise it later.
• Reflexive or reciprocal? Se miran en el espejo (themselves) / Se miran y sonríen (each other). Context decides.
• No ser passive in everyday speech. "English spoken" is Se habla inglés, not Inglés es hablado.
• Which one should I use? se is neutral and fits signs, rules and instructions; uno includes you and sounds more personal; dicen points to other people; tú is the most conversational.

If you also speak Portuguese

Vende-se casa / vendem-se casas is the same structure, but in Spanish se always comes before the verb: se vende casa / se venden casas. Keep the agreement that Brazilian signs often skip: aluga-se apartamentos → se alquilan departamentos. Where Portuguese uses a gente or você for people in general, Spanish prefers uno, se or tú: a gente nunca sabe → uno nunca sabe. And la gente means "people", never "we".