Relajarse Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Spanish

relajarse means "to relax" in English, and this page shows you how it actually sounds in everyday Spanish — not just the conjugation table, but the verb in real sentences, in short dialogues, and in the mistakes learners make with it. Relajarse means "to relax" — after work, on holiday, in a bath, with music. It is the reflexive partner of relajar (to relax someone or something): el masaje me relaja (the massage relaxes me) versus me relajo con un masaje (I relax with a massage). It is also used for muscles relaxing (los músculos se relajan) and for rules relaxing (las normas se relajan). It is a regular -ar verb: me relajo, te relajas, se relaja, nos relajamos, os relajáis, se relajan. The phrase relájate is the imperative — relax! — and it is one of the most heard pieces of advice in Spanish. Below you will find twelve example sentences grouped by meaning, two short dialogues, the most common mistakes with corrections, and a ten-question quiz with explained answers. If you want the full tables first, start with the full conjugation of relajarse; if you want to study one tense in depth, see the relajarse present tense page.

relajarse in everyday use: examples with translations

Relaxing after work

  1. Yo me relajo después del trabajo. — "I relax after work."
  2. Tú te relajas con música. — "You relax with music."
  3. Ayer yo me relajé en el spa. — "Yesterday I relaxed at the spa."
  4. De niño, yo me relajaba en el campo. — "As a child, I used to relax in the countryside."

Relaxing on holiday

  1. Nosotros nos relajamos en la playa. — "We relax on the beach."
  2. Ellos se relajan en vacaciones. — "They relax on holiday."
  3. Nosotros nos relajaremos en la playa mañana. — "We will relax on the beach tomorrow."
  4. Yo me he relajado mucho hoy. — "I have relaxed a lot today."

Relaxing the body

  1. Mi madre se relaja en el baño. — "My mother relaxes in the bath."
  2. Los músculos se relajan con el masaje. — "The muscles relax with the massage."
  3. Yo me relajaría más si tuviera tiempo. — "I would relax more if I had time."
  4. Vosotros os relajáis en el jardín. — "You relax in the garden."

relajarse in conversation

Two short dialogues that use relajarse the way people really speak it. Notice how the verb changes with the person, and how the same verb fits different situations.

After a long day at work.

  • Ana: Yo me relajo después del trabajo. — "I relax after work."
  • Luis: ¿Tú te relajas con música? — "Do you relax with music?"
  • Ana: Nosotros nos relajamos en la playa. — "We relax on the beach."
  • Luis: Ayer yo me relajé en el spa. — "Yesterday I relaxed at the spa."

On holiday, by the sea.

  • Marta: Nosotros nos relajamos los fines de semana. — "We relax at the weekends."
  • Pedro: El perro se relaja al sol. — "The dog relaxes in the sun."
  • Marta: Mi madre se relaja en el baño. — "My mother relaxes in the bath."
  • Pedro: Nosotros nos relajaremos en la playa mañana. — "We will relax on the beach tomorrow."

Common mistakes with relajarse

The errors learners actually make with relajarse, each with the wrong form, the right form, and why the right form is right.

✗ *Yo relajo después del trabajo (dropping the pronoun).

✓ Correct: Yo me relajo después del trabajo.

Relajarse is reflexive: me relajo. Yo relajo means "I relax (someone or something else)".

✗ *Tú relajas con música (missing te).

✓ Correct: Tú te relajas con música.

The pronoun is obligatory: te relajas, not relajas.

✗ *Nosotros relajamos los fines de semana (missing nos).

✓ Correct: Nosotros nos relajamos los fines de semana.

Again, the pronoun is part of the verb: nos relajamos.

✗ *Vosotros relajáis en el jardín (missing os).

✓ Correct: Vosotros os relajáis en el jardín.

Vosotros needs os: os relajáis. And relajáis carries the written accent on the á.

Quiz: relajarse in use

Ten questions on relajarse — its forms, its tenses and its everyday use. Choose the best answer for each one, then check the answer key below, where every answer is explained.

1. Complete the sentence: Yo ______ después del trabajo. — "I relax after work."

  • a) me relajé
  • b) te relajas
  • c) se relaja
  • d) me relajo

2. Complete the sentence: Ayer yo ______ en el spa. — "Yesterday I relaxed at the spa."

  • a) se relajó
  • b) me relajo
  • c) te relajaste
  • d) me relajé

3. Complete the sentence: Ellos ______ en vacaciones. — "They relax on holiday."

  • a) se relajaron
  • b) se relajan
  • c) me relajo
  • d) te relajas

4. Complete the sentence: Mi madre ______ en el baño. — "My mother relaxes in the bath."

  • a) me relajo
  • b) se relajó
  • c) te relajas
  • d) se relaja

5. Which is the correct present tense form of relajarse for yo?

  • a) me relajo
  • b) te relajas
  • c) nos relajamos
  • d) se relaja

6. Which is the correct present tense form of relajarse for tú?

  • a) nos relajamos
  • b) me relajo
  • c) se relaja
  • d) te relajas

7. Which is the correct present tense form of relajarse for ellos/ellas/Uds.?

  • a) se relajan
  • b) me relajo
  • c) te relajas
  • d) se relaja

8. Which sentence uses relajarse correctly?

  • a) Nosotros nos relajamos los fines de semana.
  • b) Nosotros se relaja los fines de semana.
  • c) Nosotros relajamos los fines de semana.

9. What is the past participle of relajarse?

  • a) relajado
  • b) relajó
  • c) relajándose
  • d) relajo

10. What does relajarse mean in English?

  • a) to get stressed
  • b) to go
  • c) to have
  • d) to relax

Answer key

  1. d) me relajo — The sentence needs the yo form in the present: me relajo.

  2. d) me relajé — The sentence needs the yo form in the preterite: me relajé.

  3. b) se relajan — The sentence needs the ellos/ellas/Uds. form in the present: se relajan.

  4. d) se relaja — The sentence needs the él/ella/Ud. form in the present: se relaja.

  5. a) me relajo — The present tense form for yo is me relajo.

  6. d) te relajas — The present tense form for tú is te relajas.

  7. a) se relajan — The present tense form for ellos/ellas/Uds. is se relajan.

  8. a) Nosotros nos relajamos los fines de semana. — Nosotros nos relajamos los fines de semana. is correct. The other sentences use the wrong person, the wrong tense, or the wrong pattern for this verb.

  9. a) relajado — The past participle is relajado. You need it for every perfect tense with haber: he relajado, has relajado, ha relajado.

  10. d) to relax — relajarse means "to relax".

Frequently asked questions

How do I use relajarse in everyday conversation?

Start with the phrases in the examples above — especially the common combinations such as relajarse en la playa and relajarse con música. Use the present tense for habits and general facts, and the preterite for things that happened once. Say the sentences aloud until the forms feel automatic, then swap in your own details: your own town, your own family, your own routine.

What is the difference between relajarse and estresarse?

relajarse means "to relax", while estresarse means "to get stressed". They are related words that learners often meet together, but they are not interchangeable — use relajarse when you mean "to relax" and estresarse when you mean "to get stressed".

Which tense do I need most with relajarse?

The present tense, for habits, routines and general facts — that is where you will use relajarse most. The preterite comes next, for things that happened once and ended. The examples on this page use both, plus the imperfect, the future and the present perfect, so you can see the verb across the tenses you actually need.

Is relajarse formal or informal?

relajarse is neutral — it is used in both formal and informal Spanish, at home, at work and at school. There is no special formal version of it; the same forms work in a conversation with a friend and in a letter to a company. What changes is the situation, not the verb.

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