Hinderlig

Hinderlig is an adjective found in historical Swedish usage, meaning harmful, injurious, or obstructive. The term is mainly attested in older prose, legal documents, and poetry, where it described actions, influences, or conditions that caused damage or impeded welfare. In sense, hinderlig signals that something has the quality of hindering or harming.

Etymology and meaning: hinderlig is usually analyzed as derived from hindra, meaning to hinder or obstruct, with the adjectival suffix -lig, denoting a characteristic. The compound form thus conveys “having the quality of hindering” or “harmful.” Over time, the word has largely fallen out of everyday Swedish, supplanted by more common terms such as skadlig (injurious) or farlig (dangerous).

Usage: In modern Swedish, hinderlig is rarely used outside scholarly, historical, or stylistic contexts. When encountered, it carries a somewhat archaic or literary tone. In contemporary writing, speakers typically replace hinderlig with skadlig or farlig, depending on whether the emphasis is on harm or danger. In older texts, it could appear in phrases describing the effects of policies, weather, or actions that impeded welfare or caused damage.

See also: Skadlig, Farlig, Hindra.

Note: Hinderlig is primarily of historical interest in Swedish language resources. Its usage today is limited and chiefly found in discussions of historical language, literature, or legal history.