Questions & Answers about Мы встретились в том же парке.
Why is the verb встретились reflexive? What’s the difference between встретились and встретили?
Встретились is the past tense, plural, reflexive form of встретиться (“to meet [each other]”), and it fits when the subject is meeting someone, often each other.
Мы встретились = “We met (each other).”
– Subject: we
– There is no direct object; the idea “each other” is built into the reflexive.Мы встретили его в парке = “We met/ran into him in the park.”
– Subject: we
– Direct object: him (его)
– Verb: встретили (non‑reflexive, встретить = “to meet, to encounter someone/something”)
So in Мы встретились в том же парке, the reflexive form emphasizes that “we” are both the ones doing the meeting and the ones being met (a mutual meeting).
What aspect is встретились (perfective or imperfective), and what would the imperfective version be?