Learn Hardcore Russian: Мы встретились в торговом центре на прошлых выходных.

встретились is the past‐tense, plural form of the perfective reflexive verb встретиться (“to meet up”). It conveys a single, completed action: “we met.”

Why is the perfective встретиться used instead of the imperfective встречаться?

Perfective встретиться focuses on a one‐time, finished meeting (“we met once, and that’s it”). Imperfective встречаться would imply repeated or habitual meetings (“we used to meet regularly”).

What case is торговом центре in в торговом центре, and why?

торговом центре is in the prepositional case because after в it indicates location (“where?”). The adjective торговый becomes торговом, and the noun центр becomes центре.

What does торговый центр literally mean?

Literally “trade center” (торговый = “trade/commercial”, центр = “center”). In modern usage it means “shopping mall” or “shopping centre.”

Why is на прошлых выходных plural, and what case is it?

выходные (“weekend”) is always in plural form since it covers Saturday and Sunday. After на expressing time (“when?”) it takes the prepositional (plural) case: на прошлых выходных = “last weekend.”

Is the subject pronoun мы necessary here?

No. Russian verbs encode person and number, so you could simply say Встретились в торговом центре на прошлых выходных. Including мы adds emphasis or clarity but isn’t obligatory.

Can the word order be changed?

Yes. For example:
• Мы на прошлых выходных встретились в торговом центре.
• На прошлых выходных мы встретились в торговом центре.
Both mean the same; shifting the time phrase or pronoun slightly changes the emphasis.

How do you pronounce в торговом центре, and where is the stress?

Pronounce it roughly as [v tɐˈrgovəm ˈtsɛntrʲe], with stress on торговом (toRGOVom) and on центре (TSEN-tre).