Tricky Words in this week's OVI

Recreation. The idea of enjoying free-time activities, especially sports, in a leisurely, non-professional way shows that the meaning of this word has developed quite far from the original sense of "znovu vytvoriť", like when astrophysicists try to re-create the conditions of the very early universe. When originally Latin words are adapted into Slovak, special developments in meaning take place, which makes them tricky words. I wouldn't automatically translate "regeneračný pobyt" as regenerative, because that makes me think of body organs growing again after injury. I might choose "recuperative" instead, meaning "getting your health back" generally, or even "recreational", because most people associate doing sports with improving their health.

Andy's Wordshop

Carnival. More about this kind of celebration, which like "fašiangy" started out meaning the last two days before Lent (Pôst), but now covers the whole period from Epiphany (Zjavenie Pána, Traja králi) until Ash Wednesday (Popolcová streda). So people talk about "Carnival time" or the "Carnival period", while others use the old-fashioned term "Shrove-tide", literally "čas na rozhrešenie". Shrove Tuesday is the day before Ash Wednesday, and in England, Ireland, Australia and Canada it is known as "pancake day", as it's the time for using up the rich ingredients like eggs, milk, sugar and lard (masť) before Lent. The French equivalent is "Mardi Gras" (Fat Tuesday), which is also the name for the carnival celebrations in New Orleans, Louisiana and Mobile, Alabama.