lacul

Lacul is the Romanian definite form of the noun lac, meaning "the lake." The base noun lac denotes a body of water, natural or artificial. In Romanian, the definite article is suffixed to the noun, producing lacul for "the lake." The plural definite form is lacurile, used when referring to multiple lakes. The word lac itself comes from Latin lacus, via Romanian.

In use, Lacul appears in everyday speech and in geographic names. It is commonly used in toponyms to designate specific lakes, often as part of a fixed name rather than as a separate article. Examples include Lacul Morii in Bucharest or Lacul Sfânta Ana in the region of Harghita. In such names, the capitalization follows standard Romanian conventions for place names.

Beyond geography, lacul can appear in literature and media as a symbol or motif representing water, tranquility, or boundary. When used generically, it is not a proper noun and is written with a lowercase lacul; it becomes a proper noun only within a fixed toponym or when introduced as part of a titled name.

See also: lac, toponymy, Romanian language.