värillisenä

Värillisenä is a Finnish word that functions as the essive form of the adjective värillinen, meaning “colorful.” The essive case expresses a temporary state or role, and in English is often rendered as “as” or “in the state of.” Therefore värillisenä literally means “as colorful” or “in a colorful state.” It is used when describing something or someone in a colorful condition or while portraying a particular colorful role.

Morphology and usage notes: The form is created by adapting the adjective värillinen to the essive case, producing värillisenä. This construction is common in descriptive or literary Finnish, and can be found in contexts such as art, theatre, and media, where a subject is described in terms of color or appearance rather than as a permanent attribute. In everyday speech, speakers may instead use adjectives like kirkkaan värinen or värikäs to convey similar ideas.

Examples:

- Kuvassa hahmo esiintyy värillisenä hahmona, pukeutuneena kirkkaisiin väreihin. (In the picture, the character appears as a colorful figure, wearing bright colors.)

- Teoksessa värit on käytetty vahvoina, ja teos esitetään värillisenä elämyksenä katsojalle.

Related terms and etymology: värillinen derives from väri (color) with the common adjective suffix -llinen, indicating a characteristic. The essive suffix -nä/-nä, here appearing as -nä in värillisenä, marks a state or role during observation or description. The combination allows nuanced descriptions of appearance, mood, or presentation in Finnish.

See also: värillinen, essive case, Finnish grammar, color terminology in Finnish.