Hovoíme

Hovoíme is a nonstandard verb form that appears in some texts as the first-person plural present tense of the verb meaning “to speak.” It is not recognized as standard in Czech or Slovak, where the conventional forms are hovoríme in Slovak and hovoříme in Czech.

Origin and relationship to standard forms: The verb meaning “to speak” belongs to the Slavic root family around hovori- or hovor-. In standard Slovak, the present first-person plural is hovoríme, while in standard Czech it is hovoříme. The spelling hovoíme is generally understood as a nonstandard variant, possibly arising from dialectal phonology, mixing of roots, or orthographic error, rather than from an accepted dialect or official standard.

Usage and notes: Because hovoíme is not part of standard Czech or Slovak, it is rarely found in formal writing and is typically encountered only as a misspelling or in nonstandard dialect texts. When conveying the idea “we speak” in these languages, writers should use hovoríme (Slovak) or hovoříme (Czech). The form hovoíme may appear in casual online communication or transcription errors, but it is not considered correct in formal contexts.

Examples:

- Slovak (standard): Hovoríme spolu o plánoch. Translation: We are talking together about plans.

- Czech (standard): Hovoříme s našimi klienty. Translation: We are speaking with our clients.

- Nonstandard (not recommended): Hovoíme spolu o plánoch. Translation: We are speaking together about plans (not correct in standard Slovak or Czech).

See also: hovoriť, hovor, hovorit, hovoríme, hovoříme.