Harmillinen

Harmillinen is a Finnish adjective that describes something that causes harm, is disadvantageous, or leads to an unfortunate outcome. The term can refer to effects, situations, or choices that are problematic or burdensome, beyond merely being physically harmful.

Usage and nuance: In everyday language, haitallinen or vahingollinen are more common when speaking about clear health risks or direct damage. Harmillinen tends to be somewhat more evaluative, formal, or literary, often used for consequences or drawbacks rather than for concrete, measurable harm. Typical phrases include harmillinen seuraus (an unfortunate consequence) and harmillinen vaikutus ympäristöön (a detrimental effect on the environment). It can also describe social or moral drawbacks, such as harmillinen valinta (a misguided or disadvantageous choice).

Etymology: The word is formed from the noun harmi, meaning harm or misfortune, with the suffix -llinen, which yields adjectives meaning “having” or “characterized by.” Thus harmillinen literally conveys “having harm.”

Related terms: haitallinen, vahingollinen, epäedullinen, and harmi are closely connected in meaning or etymology. The choice among them depends on context, with haitallinen and vahingollinen often indicating clearer or more technical harm, while harmillinen emphasizes evaluative or unfortunate nature.

See also: Finnish vocabulary related to harm, risk, and consequence; usage notes in Finnish dictionaries.