Havel

American  

[hah-vel] / ˈhɑ vɛl /

noun

1. Václav 1936–2011, Czech writer and political leader: president of Czechoslovakia 1989–92; president of the Czech Republic 1993–2003.

---

Havel ¹ British  

/ ˈhaːfəl /

noun

1. a river in E Germany, flowing south to Berlin, then west and north to join the River Elbe. Length: about 362 km (225 miles)

---

Havel ² British  

/ ˈhavɛl /

noun

1. Václav (ˈvʌtslav). 1936–2011, Czech dramatist and statesman: founder of the Civil Forum movement for political change: president of Czechoslovakia (1989–92) and of the Czech Republic (1993–2003). His plays include The Garden Party (1963) and Redevelopment (1989)

---

Example Sentences

Carney’s speech referenced a landmark 1978 essay by Czech dissident and later president, Václav Havel, called “The Power of the Powerless.”

From Salon • Jan. 20, 2026

Previous winners of the prize include Pope Francis, Ukranian leader Volodymr Zelensky along with the Ukranian people, as well as French president Emmanuel Macron and former Czech president and anti-communist dissident Vaclav Havel.

From Barron's • Jan. 17, 2026

Václav Havel and the Civic Forum played the same role in Czechoslovakia.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 7, 2025

But the choice that Havel set out — of living within a lie or living within the truth — is as potent as ever.

From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 12, 2025

Havel had said that people struggling for independence wanted money and recognition from other countries; they wanted more criticism of the Soviet empire from the West and more diplomatic pressure.

From "Just Mercy" by Bryan Stevenson