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Body parts: definite articles instead of possessives

In English, when you talk about things you do to your body, you use possessive adjectives. You wash your hands, brush your teeth, and close your eyes. In French, you usually drop the possessive adjective.

Instead, French uses a definite article (le, la, l', or les). Because the context or the verb structure already tells the listener whose body is involved, adding a possessive would sound repetitive. Verbs like se laver les mains or lever follow this pattern.

Word list
fermerA1 to close fermer les yeux = to close one's eyes, not ses yeux leverA2 to raise lever la main = to raise one's hand, not sa main montrer du doigtA2 to point il m'a montré du doigt = he pointed at me, not de son doigt pointer du doigtA2 to point il m'a pointé du doigt = he pointed at me, not de son doigt se brosser les dentsA2 to brush one's teeth je me brosse les dents = I brush my teeth, not mes dents se laver les dentsA2 to brush one's teeth je me lave les dents = I brush my teeth, not mes dents se laver les mainsA2 to wash one's hands je me lave les mains = I wash my hands, not mes mains se raserA2 to shave se raser les jambes = to shave one's legs, not ses jambes agiter la mainB1 to wave elle agite la main = she waves her hand, not sa main faire non de la têteB1 to shake one's head il fait non de la tête = he shakes his head, not de sa tête faire oui de la têteB1 to nod il fait oui de la tête = he nods, not de sa tête faire un geste de la mainB1 to wave faire un geste de la main = to wave one's hand, not de sa main faire un signe de la mainB1 to wave il m'a fait un signe de la main = he waved at me, not de sa main froncer les sourcilsB1 to frown elle fronce les sourcils = she frowns, not ses sourcils frotterB1 to rub se frotter les mains = to rub one's hands, not ses mains hocher la têteB1 to nod hocher la tête = to nod, not sa tête se casserB1 to break elle s'est cassé le bras = she broke her arm, not son bras se peigner les cheveuxB1 to comb one's hair il se peigne les cheveux = he combs his hair, not ses cheveux secouer la têteB1 to shake one's head elle secoue la tête = she shakes her head, not sa tête hausserB2 to raise il a haussé la voix = he raised his voice, not sa voix lever les yeux au cielB2 to roll one's eyes il lève les yeux au ciel = he rolls his eyes, not ses yeux s'éclaircir la gorgeB2 to clear one's throat il s'est éclairci la gorge = he cleared his throat, not sa gorge s'écorcherB2 to scrape je me suis écorché le genou = I scraped my knee, not mon genou s'éraflerB2 to scrape je me suis éraflé le genou = I scraped my knee, not mon genou se fracturerB2 to break je me suis fracturé le bras = I broke my arm, not mon bras se gratterB2 to scratch je me gratte le nez = I scratch my nose, not mon nez se racler la gorgeB2 to clear one's throat il s'est raclé la gorge = he cleared his throat, not sa gorge cligner des yeuxC1 to blink il cligne des yeux = he blinks, not de ses yeux croiserC1 to cross croiser les bras = to cross one's arms, not ses bras hausser les épaulesC1 to shrug il hausse les épaules = he shrugs, not ses épaules se retrousser les manchesC2 to roll up one's sleeves se retrousser les manches = to roll up one's sleeves, not ses manches
Using reflexive pronouns

When you perform an action on your own body, French often uses a reflexive pronoun (like me, te, or se) to show who is affected. The body part itself just takes a definite article.

For daily hygiene, you will see this with se brosser les dents, se laver les mains, and se peigner les cheveux. You can also use it to talk about shaving specific body parts with se raser.

Je me lave les mains avant le dîner.
(I wash my hands before dinner.)
Elle s'est brossé les dents.
(She brushed her teeth.)

This same structure applies to habits, itches, and minor gestures, such as se racler la gorge, se frotter the hands, or se gratter an itch.

Il se gratte le nez parce qu'il a des allergies.
(He is scratching his nose because he has allergies.)

You also use this reflexive construction for injuries, like with se casser.

Je me suis cassé le bras au ski.
(I broke my arm skiing.)
Actions without a reflexive pronoun

Some verbs do not need a reflexive pronoun at all because the action is naturally something you only do with your own body parts. For these actions, you simply use the verb and the definite article.

You will see this with movements like lever the hand, fermer the eyes, croiser the arms, hocher la tête, and hausser les épaules.

Pour poser une question, il faut lever la main.
(To ask a question, you must raise your hand.)
Elle a croisé les bras et a attendu.
(She crossed her arms and waited.)
Il a juste haussé les épaules sans répondre.
(He just shrugged his shoulders without answering.)
Clothing extensions

This quirk sometimes extends beyond the physical body to clothing closely associated with the body. For example, se retrousser les manches uses the exact same reflexive structure to mean rolling up your own sleeves.

Nous allons nous retrousser les manches pour finir le travail.
(We are going to roll up our sleeves to finish the work.)
Summary

When describing an action performed on a body part, French replaces possessives like mon or sa with a definite article (le, la, les). If the action is done to yourself, use a reflexive pronoun to show whose body is affected.