Skadlig

Skadlig is a Swedish adjective meaning harmful or injurious. It describes something that has the potential to cause damage to health, safety, or the environment. The term is common in health, environmental, and consumer-safety contexts, and in ordinary language it can modify nouns, as in skadlig påverkan, skadliga kemikalier, or skadlig dos. In English, skadlig is typically translated as harmful or injurious.

Etymology and form: the word derives from the verb skada, meaning to harm, with the suffix -lig, which indicates a quality or characteristic. It has cognates in Norwegian skadelig and Danish skadelig, and a related German word schädlich. As an adjective, skadlig can be used attributively or predicatively, for example en skadlig effekt or det är skadligt.

Usage and nuance: skadlig is used across domains such as health advice, toxicology, and environmental regulation. Examples include rökning är skadlig för hälsan (smoking is harmful to health), skadlig inverkan på miljön (harmful impact on the environment), and skadligt beteende (harmful/ damaging behavior). The term often conveys harm that may occur over time or through exposure, rather than an immediate, obvious danger.

Relation to farlig: while farlig means dangerous or posing an immediate risk, skadlig emphasizes harm or injury that can result from exposure or cumulative effects. In regulatory language, skadlig can describe substances, processes, or activities whose effects are injurious even if the danger is not instantaneous.