It happened to you

se me olvidó

I forgot (it slipped away from me)· tap the form for the whole table

Say these out loud

Why it works

Se me + verb takes the blame off you: the thing did it, not you.

The verb agrees with the thing: se me olvidó el móvil, se me olvidaron las llaves.

Se me cayó, se me rompió, se me perdió, se me pasó — the everyday excuses.

Why not olvidé

olvidé el móvil

I forgot my mobile

Correct, but it sounds deliberate and a little formal. Se me olvidó is what you would actually say.

In a full sentence

Se me olvidó el cargador en la oficina.
I forgot the charger at the office.
It slipped your mind; you did not do it deliberately.
Se le cayó el café sobre el teclado.
He spilled coffee on the keyboard.
The coffee fell accidentally, without blaming him.
Se me perdió la tarjeta del metro.
I lost my metro card.
The card went missing; this avoids assigning blame.
Se le rompió la pantalla del móvil ayer.
Her phone screen broke yesterday.
The screen broke accidentally; she is not presented as responsible.

5 gaps to fill, then 3 sentences from the English · say or type each one