potkáváte

Potkáváte is the second-person plural present tense form of the Czech imperfective verb potkávat, meaning to meet or encounter. It is used when describing habitual or repeated meetings or when addressing more than one person (vy). The imperfective aspect emphasizes ongoing or repeated action rather than a single completed event. The corresponding perfective form is potkáte, which is used for a single meeting or to indicate a future action in contexts where the perfective aspect is appropriate.

Grammatical notes: Potkáváte is transitive and takes a direct object in the accusative (potkáváte koho? koho potkáváte). Example: Potkáváte lidi na ulici. It can also appear with the reflexive pronoun in potkáváte se, meaning you meet each other or run into each other: Potkáváte se často na nádraží.

Origin and aspect: potkávat is formed from potkat (to meet) with the iterative suffix -vávat, producing an imperfective, repeated-meeting meaning. The form potkáváte reflects ongoing or repeated encounters rather than a single occurrence.

Pronunciation and usage: The word is pronounced roughly as [ˈpotkavaːtɛ], with stress on the first syllable. It is common in everyday speech and in writing to describe routine encounters or to address a group of people about their typical activities.

Examples: Potkáváte se každý týden na kávě. Potkáváte-li starého přítele, pozdravte ho. Related terms include potkat (to meet, perfective) and potkávávat (the imperfective, iterative form).