"To meet" — in the sense of meeting up with someone, by arrangement or by appointment — is the reflexive aspect pair setkávat se / setkat se. Both halves carry an obligatory se: you never use them without it. The imperfective setkávat se describes meeting as a habit or a process ("we meet every Friday," "they keep meeting in secret"); the perfective setkat se packages one arranged encounter ("I'll meet the client tomorrow"). The conjugation is easy — both are regular Class V (-á-) verbs — but two things trip English speakers up: the person you meet stands in s + instrumental (you meet with someone, always), and setkat se belongs to a slightly formal register, so you need to know its everyday cousins potkat, sejít se and vidět se.
The two halves, side by side
Both verbs conjugate like dělat. The only visible differences are the -áv- of the imperfective stem and, of course, the ever-present se.
| Person | setkávat se (impf.) — present | setkat se (pf.) — future meaning |
|---|---|---|
| já | setkávám se | setkám se |
| ty | setkáváš se | setkáš se |
| on / ona / ono | setkává se | setká se |
| my | setkáváme se | setkáme se |
| vy | setkáváte se | setkáte se |
| oni | setkávají se | setkají se |
What the verb governs: s + instrumental
This is the heart of the page. In Czech you do not meet someone (accusative); you meet with someone — s + the instrumental case. The preposition is part of the frame and cannot be dropped, exactly as with other instrumental-governing verbs.
Zítra se setkám s klientem v kanceláři.
Tomorrow I'll meet the client in the office.
Here s klientem is s + instrumental of klient ("client"). Note how English drops any preposition ("meet the client"), but Czech insists on s.
Pravidelně se setkáváme s rodiči u babičky.
We regularly meet up with the parents at grandma's.
Na konferenci jsem se setkal se zajímavými lidmi.
At the conference I met some interesting people (male speaker).
The obligatory clitic se and where it goes
The se is not optional, and it is not glued to the verb — it is a clitic that wants the second position in the clause, even when that pulls it away from setkat. In the past tense it sits after the auxiliary jsem / jsi.
Včera jsem se s ním setkal úplnou náhodou.
Yesterday I met him completely by chance (male speaker).
Look at the order: jsem se s ním — auxiliary first, then reflexive se, then the prepositional phrase, with the participle setkal pushed to the end. This second-position behaviour is the same one introduced for reflexive se and si.
Kdy se zase setkáme?
When will we meet again?
The past tense
Both halves build the past from the l-participle, agreeing in gender and number, with se in the clitic cluster after the auxiliary.
| Subject | setkávat se | setkat se |
|---|---|---|
| masc. sg. | setkával jsem se | setkal jsem se |
| fem. sg. | setkávala jsem se | setkala jsem se |
| masc. anim. pl. | setkávali jsme se | setkali jsme se |
| fem. pl. | setkávaly jsme se | setkaly jsme se |
Aspect does real work in the past. Setkávali jsme se každý týden ("we used to meet every week") describes a repeated routine; setkali jsme se v úterý ("we met on Tuesday") reports one arranged encounter. English collapses both into "met," so this is a contrast you add on purpose.
Dřív jsme se setkávali skoro denně, teď se skoro nevidíme.
We used to meet up almost daily, now we hardly ever see each other.
The imperative and future
The imperatives keep se: imperfective setkávej se / setkávejte se, perfective setkej se / setkejte se. The future of the imperfective is the analytic budu-future — budu se setkávat ("I'll be meeting"); the perfective setkám se already carries future meaning.
Od září se budu pravidelně setkávat se studenty.
From September I'll regularly meet with the students. (formal)
setkat se vs potkat vs sejít se vs vidět se
This is where the pair earns a careful eye. setkat se is a touch formal — it's the verb of arranged meetings, conferences, official encounters and elevated prose. In everyday speech Czechs reach for three lighter alternatives, and choosing the wrong one makes you sound either stiff or oddly casual.
| Verb | Meaning | Register / nuance |
|---|---|---|
| setkat se (s + instr.) | meet (by arrangement), encounter | (formal) — appointments, conferences, official contexts |
| potkat (+ acc.) | bump into, run into (by chance) | (informal) — unplanned, takes a plain accusative, no se |
| sejít se (s + instr.) | get together, gather, meet up | (informal–neutral) — the everyday "let's meet up" |
| vidět se (s + instr.) | see each other, catch up | (informal) — "see" someone socially |
Cestou do práce jsem potkal starého spolužáka.
On my way to work I bumped into an old classmate (by chance — potkat, no se).
Sejdeme se v sedm před kinem?
Shall we meet up at seven in front of the cinema? (everyday — sejít se)
Musíme se brzy zase vidět, už je to věčnost!
We must see each other again soon, it's been ages!
The split is worth internalizing: potkat is the accidental "run into" and takes a bare accusative with no reflexive (potkal jsem ho, "I ran into him"); setkat se is the planned, slightly formal "meet" with s + instrumental.
Common mistakes
❌ Zítra se setkám klienta.
Incorrect — setkat se governs s + instrumental, not a bare accusative.
✅ Zítra se setkám s klientem.
Tomorrow I'll meet the client.
The person met always stands in s + instrumental. A bare accusative (klienta) belongs to potkat, not setkat se.
❌ Včera jsem setkal s kamarádem.
Incorrect — setkat se carries an obligatory se; it must not be dropped.
✅ Včera jsem se setkal s kamarádem.
Yesterday I met up with a friend (male speaker).
The se is part of the verb. Forgetting it is the single most common error here.
❌ V parku jsem se náhodou setkal se psem.
Stilted — for a chance encounter Czech uses potkat, and the reflexive sounds bookish here.
✅ V parku jsem náhodou potkal psa.
In the park I unexpectedly came across a dog.
A chance encounter ("náhodou") is the home turf of potkat, not the arranged setkat se.
❌ Setkáme se každý pátek na kafe.
Aspect mismatch — a repeated weekly habit needs the imperfective.
✅ Setkáváme se každý pátek na kafe.
We meet up every Friday for coffee.
The phrase každý pátek ("every Friday") signals a recurring routine, which forces the imperfective setkáváme se. The perfective cannot describe a habit.
Key takeaways
- setkávat se = imperfective (repeated/ongoing meeting); setkat se = perfective (one arranged encounter). Both always keep se.
- Government: s
- instrumental — Setkám se s klientem. Never a bare accusative.
- The clitic se sits in second position, after a past auxiliary: Včera jsem se s ním setkal.
- setkat se is (formal); for everyday meeting use sejít se (get together) or vidět se (see each other), and for a chance encounter potkat
- accusative (no se).
- Perfective setkám se = "I will meet"; for ongoing or habitual meeting, use setkávám se.
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