Breakdown of Мы часто встречаемся в кафе.
мы
we
кафе
cafe
часто
often
в
in / to (direction)
встречаться
to meet (each other)
Questions & Answers about Мы часто встречаемся в кафе.
Why does the verb встречаемся have -ся at the end if no one is doing something to themselves?
The ending -ся is used for reflexive verbs (actions done to yourself), but it is also used for reciprocal actions, where two or more people do something to each other. Here, встречаемся means we meet each other.
Why does this verb end in -ся instead of -сь?
To conjugate a reflexive verb, you first conjugate it normally and then add the ending. The normal form for we is встречаем, which ends in a consonant (м). After a consonant, you always add -ся. If the regular form ended in a vowel (like встречаю for I), you would add -сь to make встречаюсь.
What is the difference between встречать and встречаться?
You use the non-reflexive встречать when you are meeting a specific direct object, like meeting a friend (Я встречаю друга). You use the reflexive встречаться when people are meeting each other without a direct object, like 'We meet' (Мы встречаемся).
Why doesn't кафе change its ending to show it is in the prepositional case?
It actually is in the prepositional case here because of the preposition в (in). However, кафе is a borrowed foreign word. In Russian, many foreign nouns that end in vowels like -е, -о, or -и (such as метро or такси) are indeclinable, meaning they never change their endings in any grammatical case.
Learn Мы часто встречаемся в кафе and more in Russian
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free