Breakdown of Мой брат хочет познакомиться.
брат
brother
мой
my (мой, моя, моё) / mine
хотеть
to want
познакомиться
to get acquainted, to meet
Questions & Answers about Мой брат хочет познакомиться.
How does the verb хотеть (to want) conjugate here?
The verb хотеть is one of the most important irregular verbs in Russian. In the singular forms (I, you, he/she/it), it takes an "е" like a first-conjugation verb: он хочет (he wants). But in the plural (we, you all, they), it takes an "и" like a second-conjugation verb: мы хотим (we want).
Why does познакомиться end in -ся?
The -ся ending makes it a reflexive verb. While reflexive verbs often mean doing an action to yourself, they are also used for mutual actions. Here, getting acquainted is something two people do together, so it requires the -ся ending.
Why is познакомиться not conjugated to match брат?
Just like in English, when you have two verbs back-to-back ("wants to get acquainted"), only the first verb is conjugated to match the subject. The second verb, познакомиться, stays in the infinitive (dictionary) form.
How would I say my brother wants to get acquainted "with me"?
You would add со мной (with me) after the verb. In Russian, getting acquainted is always done "with" someone, which requires the preposition с (or со) followed by a special grammatical form called the instrumental case. The full sentence would be: Мой брат хочет познакомиться со мной.