látek

Látek is the genitive plural form of the Czech noun látka. Látka has several common meanings in Czech: a substance or chemical matter; a material or fabric used in making objects; and, in a broader sense, content or subject matter. In slang or everyday speech, látka can also refer to a drug or controlled substance. Because látek is the genitive plural, it appears in contexts where the noun governs a genitive plural, such as after numerals or in phrases describing quantity, type, or composition.

In practice, látek is most often encountered in phrases describing substances or materials, for example barvy látek (colors of fabrics) or množství látek ve vzorku (the amount of substances in a sample). In textile contexts, the contrast between látka (the fabric) and látek (the substances or components of several fabrics) can arise in more technical descriptions of mixtures, coatings, or finishes. In scientific and regulatory language, látek as genitive plural also appears in lists or specifications that specify ingredients, contaminants, or other chemical entities.

Gramatically, látek is a noun form that requires care with case and number; the base noun látka can refer to both physical fabrics and chemical substances, depending on context. The plural nominative is látky, while the genitive plural is látek, corresponding to the various syntactic constructions in which Czech requires genitive plurality.

See also: látka, látky.