sétirer

S’étirer is a French verb used primarily as a reflexive verb meaning to stretch one’s body, often to loosen muscles or relieve stiffness. It can also be used metaphorically to describe something that lengthens or extends, such as a distance, a duration, or a line of objects. In everyday language, common contexts include physical activity, relaxation, sports, and descriptions of time or space that seem to grow longer.

Etymology and form: s’étirer derives from the verb étirer, which means to stretch or lengthen, combined with the reflexive pronoun se. The reflexive form indicates that the action is performed on the subject itself. The non-reflexive counterpart étirer is transitive (étirer quelque chose, to stretch something). The spelling s’étirer is the standard form; misspellings such as sétirer are incorrect in standard French.

Conjugation: As a regular -er verb in the present tense, s’étirer follows the standard pattern with the reflexive pronoun. Common present forms include je m’étire, tu t’étires, il s’étire, nous nous étirons, vous vous étirez, ils s’étirent. The passé composé uses être as the auxiliary: je me suis étiré(e), tu t’es étiré(e), il s’est étiré, nous nous sommes étiré(e)s, vous vous êtes étiré(e)(s), ils se sont étirés. The imperfect and other tenses follow regular -er verb endings. The noun étirement means the act or result of stretching.

Usage notes: s’étirer is appropriate for humans and animals and describes deliberate movement. Étirer, the non-reflexive form, is used when stretching an object or when describing lengthening in a non-self-directed sense. Examples: Je m’étire après le réveil. Le chat s’étire au soleil. Le trajet s’étire sur plusieurs heures.

See also: étirement (the noun for the act of stretching), étendre (to extend), tirer (to pull).