Povinné

Povinné is an adjective used in Czech and Slovak to denote something that is required by law, regulation, or policy; it translates roughly as mandatory or obligatory. The term is commonly found in legal, administrative, and educational contexts.

In legal texts and policy documents, povinné describes duties or requirements that must be fulfilled by individuals or organizations. Examples include povinné předměty (mandatory subjects in schools) or povinné ručení (mandatory car liability insurance in the Czech Republic). In Slovak, similar constructions are used, such as povinné zmluvné poistenie. In everyday language, people may say something is povinné, meaning one is obliged to do it.

Grammatically, povinné is a form of the adjective povinný and agrees with the noun it modifies in gender, number, and case. The word’s etymology traces to povinnost, meaning duty or obligation, from Proto-Slavic roots. The semantic field covers formal requirements set by institutions as well as commonly understood obligations in daily life.

See also: povinnost, povinný, obligatory.