Редко можно встретить пустую площадь в центре города.

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Breakdown of Редко можно встретить пустую площадь в центре города.

• город: the city
• площадь: the square
• центр: the center

Questions & Answers about Редко можно встретить пустую площадь в центре города.

Why is можно used in this sentence and what does it express?

Можно here is an impersonal modal word meaning “it is possible” or “one can.” In combination with an infinitive (встретить) it expresses general possibility or likelihood (“you can encounter,” “it’s possible to encounter,” “one may find”).

Why is встретить in the infinitive form?

Because after the impersonal modal можно we always use an infinitive verb. That pattern is:

• Можно + [infinitive]
  So we say можно встретить, not можно встречу or можно встречается.

Why is площадь in the accusative case as пустую площадь?

Площадь is the direct object of the verb встретить, so it takes the accusative case. Since площадь is feminine singular, its accusative form matches the nominative (no change in noun shape), but the adjective пустая changes to пустую to agree in gender, number, and case.

What role does the adjective пустую play here, and why is it declined that way?