# Slovak: Semená / osivá



## Riveritos

Hello,
Could anybody tell me the difference between semená and osivá? 
Thanks in advance for your help!


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## werrr

*Semeno* has more or less the same meanings as English *seed*.

*Osivo* (from _osiať_ = _to sow_) is, to my best knowledge, a concept not present in English vocabulary. It is a mass noun for _stuff for sowing_. Naturally, that's almost always _seed for sowing_, but you can't exlude the eventuality that it is something completelly different (e.g. salt used for sowing the ground).

Compare it with other verb based nouns ending in _-vo_ like _krmivo (feedstuff), palivo (fuel), farbivo (dyestuff), pečivo (bakery products)_.


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## Azori

werrr said:


> *Osivo* (from _osiať_ = _to sow_) is, to my best knowledge, a concept not present in English vocabulary. It is a mass noun for _stuff for sowing_. Naturally, that's almost always _seed for sowing_, but you can't exlude the eventuality that it is something completelly different (e.g. salt used for sowing the ground).


?

http://slovnik.juls.savba.sk/?w=osivo&s=exact&c=O642&d=kssj4&d=psp&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8

This is a Slovak thread.


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## TriglavNationalPark

*lior neith,*

*You are welcome to correct werr's response if you think that it's wrong or potentially misleading, but in that case, please also explain what the correct answer to Riveritos' question would be.*


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## Azori

In Slovak osivo is just "seed for sowing", not "stuff for sowing".


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## TriglavNationalPark

lior neith said:


> In Slovak osivo is just "seed for sowing", not "stuff for sowing".


 
Thanks! So would you say that the terms mentioned by Riveritos are synonymous in Slovak?


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## vianie

Riveritos and others, *semená* and *osivá* are plurals of *semeno* and *osivo*.

inflectional pattern *mesto*



TriglavNationalPark said:


> So would you say that the terms mentioned by Riveritos are synonymous in Slovak?



Not quite. I don't believe Slovak linguists and their work in all. The beginning *o-* in *osivo* says everything here.


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## bibax

> _Then, Iason sowed the teeth of a dragon into a field. The teeth sprouted into an army of warriors._


So the dragon's teeth can be *osivo* as well.


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## vianie

*osivo* has to be related to agricultural increases


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## francisgranada

TriglavNationalPark said:


> Thanks! So would you say that the terms mentioned by Riveritos are synonymous in Slovak?


 
No, because not every _semeno_ is _osivo._ Only an amount of _semená_ prepared for sowing is _osivo_ .



lior neith said:


> ?
> 
> http://slovnik.juls.savba.sk/?w=osivo&s=exact&c=O642&d=kssj4&d=psp&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8
> 
> This is a Slovak thread.


 
Trying this link I've found: 

*osivo*, -a, osív _str. poľnohosp._ semeno, zbožie určené na siatie

That is, seed or goods for sowing. This also confirms the explatation of *werr*.


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## vianie

_Gardeners know, there exists also sadivo - particularly vegetal parts of plants intended for planting._


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## Azori

francisgranada said:


> Trying this link I've found:
> 
> *osivo*, -a, osív _str. poľnohosp._ semeno, zbožie určené na siatie
> 
> That is, seed or goods for sowing. This also confirms the explatation of *werr*.


This doesn't confirm anything. The definition in this dictionary is old.

(By the way, zbožie doesn't really mean "goods" in Slovak: http://slovniky.korpus.sk/?w=zbozie...=scs&d=sss&d=peciar&d=hssjV&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8 )


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