Podlaí

Podlaí is a term used in Czech and Slovak to describe a horizontal division of a building that is used as a separate floor or storey. The word appears as podlaží in Czech and as podlažie or podlažia in Slovak; the plural forms are podlaží (Czech) and podlažia (Slovak). The ground level is usually called přízemí (Czech) or prízemie (Slovak). Higher floors are numbered sequentially, for example 1. podlaží (the first floor above ground), 2. podlaží, and so on. In everyday speech, patro is often used, but in architectural, legal, and real estate contexts podlaží remains common.

A podlaí corresponds to a distinct level within a building, bounded above and below by structural floors or ceilings. Each podlaí typically contains rooms or spaces designated for living, working, storage, or other use. The layout and area of a podlaí, as well as its height, depend on the building type. Residential floors usually have floor-to-ceiling heights around 2.6 to 3.0 meters, while offices or industrial spaces may be higher. The number and arrangement of podlaí are important for design, evacuation planning, and energy performance.

Basements are referred to as podzemné podlažie, mezzanines as mezipatro, and additional levels above the ground as higher podlaží. The concept of podlaí is common across Czech and Slovak-speaking contexts and is closely related to the broader architectural idea of storeys or floors in a building.