preítaní

Preítaní is a term found in some Slovak-language educational texts as a nominalization of the verb čítať with the prefix pre- meaning “before,” indicating an action done in advance. It denotes the act of reading something in advance to obtain a quick overview or initial understanding before a more thorough reading. In standard Slovak, more common nouns for this idea are prečítanie or predčítanie; preítaní is less common and may be encountered as a variant, dialectal form, or in pedagogical writing to emphasize the preparatory nature of the activity.

Usage of preítaní appears primarily in teaching and study planning, where it is described as a preliminary reading task to identify main ideas, structure, and vocabulary. It is often paired with subsequent close reading or analysis. In practice, the exact meaning can vary by author, and some readers may interpret it as a nonstandard spelling of prečítanie.

Etymology is straightforward: it is derived from the prefix pre- and the verb čítať (to read), with the -aní nominalizing suffix. However, the form preítaní is not uniformly recognized in Slovak dictionaries and is less widely attested than standard terms.

See also: prečítanie, predčítanie, skimming, preview reading.