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.

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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)

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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)

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Example Sentences

Bohumil Havel, a business law expert from Prague's Charles University, said the statutes were "complicated" and enabled "multiple interpretations".

From Barron's • Mar. 12, 2026

By declining to endorse the mantra, Havel wrote, the greengrocer goes from “living within a lie” to “living within the truth.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 30, 2026

Havel calls for people to remove the signs and endorse a different world order than the one imposed upon them.

From Salon • Jan. 20, 2026

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 prescribed exactly what our work seemed to require.

From "Just Mercy" by Bryan Stevenson