syylliseksi

Syylliseksi is a Finnish linguistic form derived from the adjective syyllinen, meaning guilty. It is the translative form, used to express becoming or designation as guilty. In practice, syylliseksi appears in legal and formal contexts to indicate that someone has been found or declared guilty.

Grammatically, syylliseksi is formed by adding the translative suffix -ksi to the adjective syyllinen. It is used with verbs and constructions that denote a change of state or an assignment of guilt, such as todettiin syylliseksi (“was found guilty”) and tuomittiin syyllisiksi (“were convicted as guilty”). The form also has a plural version, syyllisiksi, used when referring to multiple people: Heidät tuomittiin syyllisiksi.

In everyday Finnish, syylliseksi is most commonly encountered in reporters’ language and courtroom discourse, where it conveys a formal finding of culpability. It can contrast with more general or subjective expressions of guilt, which might use different phrases or constructions. The word is not typically used to describe personal remorse or moral fault outside of legal or formal contexts; those senses are usually expressed with related terms such as syyllisyys (guilt or culpability) or tuntea itsensä syylliseksi (to feel oneself guilty) in more personal speech.

See also: syyllinen, syyllisyys, todeta syylliseksi, julistaa syylliseksi.