Impersonal se

Level 4

Put se before a third-person verb to say that something is done or said by people in general.

How It Works

Occitan	English
Aquí se parla occitan.	Occitan is spoken here.
Se ditz que fa fred.	They say it is cold.
Las fruchas se vendon plan aicí.	Fruit sells well here.
A Tolosa, se manja plan.	In Toulouse, people eat well.

The verb agrees with what is spoken, said or sold. A singular thing takes a singular verb (se parla occitan), and a plural thing takes a plural verb (las fruchas se vendon).

This se is not the reflexive se of se levar. It points to nobody, and it works with a verb that is not reflexive.

Occitan has another way to say the same thing, with òm. You will meet it at Level 5.

Examples (5)

Aquí se parla occitan.
Occitan is spoken here.
Se parla: the singular verb matches occitan.
Se ditz que fa fred.
They say it is cold.
Se ditz means people say.
Las fruchas se vendon plan aicí.
Fruit sells well here.
Se vendon is plural, to match fruchas.
A Tolosa, se manja plan.
In Toulouse, people eat well.
Se manja names no one.
Se vend pas de pan dins aquela botiga.
No bread is sold in that shop.
Pas follows the verb as usual.

Common Mistakes

Using the French pronoun on.
On parla occitan aquí.
Aquí se parla occitan.
Occitan has no on. It uses se, or òm.
Leaving the verb in the singular for a plural thing.
Las fruchas se vend plan aicí.
Las fruchas se vendon plan aicí.
The verb agrees with the thing that is sold, and fruchas is plural.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

Impersonal seLevel 4

Learn This First

Impersonal se is the reflexive pronoun used without a subject, so reflexive verbs and cossí se ditz come first.

Words in This Pattern

Practice Impersonal se in Bubblegum

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