värjäytyivät

Värjäytyivät is the past passive plural form of the Finnish verb värjäytyä. This verb itself is a reflexive form of the verb värjätä, which means "to dye" or "to stain." Therefore, värjäytyivät translates to "became dyed," "were dyed," or "got stained."

The verb implies a passive process where something undergoes a change in color. This change can be intentional, such as fabric becoming dyed with a specific color, or unintentional, like a surface becoming stained by a substance. The plural form indicates that more than one subject experienced this process. For example, "Kankaat värjäytyivät kauniisti" would mean "The fabrics became dyed beautifully." Conversely, "Pöydät värjäytyivät viinistä" translates to "The tables got stained from the wine."

The reflexive nature of värjäytyä suggests that the action of dyeing or staining happened to the subject itself, without an explicit external agent always being mentioned. This can sometimes imply a natural process or a consequence of contact with a coloring agent. The past tense aspect of värjäytyivät clearly indicates that the staining or dyeing occurred in the past. Understanding this grammatical structure is key to interpreting its meaning in various Finnish sentences.