Gevaarlijke

Gevaarlijke is a Dutch adjective meaning dangerous, used to describe things, situations, or persons that can cause harm or risk. It appears in everyday language as well as in safety, regulatory, and risk-communication contexts. Examples include gevaarlijke stoffen (hazardous substances), een gevaarlijke situatie (a dangerous situation), and gevaarlijke rijstijl (dangerous driving).

In Dutch, gevaarlijke is the attributive form of the base adjective gevaarlijk and is placed directly before a noun. It is used in both definite and indefinite noun phrases, for example de gevaarlijke stof or een gevaarlijke stof, as well as in plural forms like gevaarlijke stoffen. The predicative form, used after a linking verb, remains gevaarlijk, as in De situatie is gevaarlijk.

Common collocations and contexts include safety labeling, workplace risk assessments, and regulatory language. Phrases such as gevaarlijke stoffen, gevaarlijke situaties, and gevaarlijke handelingen recur in manuals, warnings, and compliance documents. The term is also widely found in public signage and media when communicating potential risks to the public.

Etymologically, the word derives from gevaar (danger) with the attributive suffix -lijk, giving gevaarlijk, and its inflected form gevaarlijke when used before a noun. As a fundamental descriptive term, it is essential for expressing risk and hazard in Dutch, spanning everyday usage to formal regulatory discourse.