Questions & Answers about Vuohi on lammasta viisaampi.
Where is the word for "than" in this sentence?
In this sentence, the idea of "than the sheep" is expressed without using the word kuin (than). Instead, the standard of comparison is put into the partitive case, which gives us lammasta. This is a very common and natural way to make comparisons in Finnish.
Why is the partitive word lammasta placed before the adjective viisaampi?
When you use the partitive case to express "than", that partitive word must come immediately before the comparative adjective. If we used kuin instead, the word order would be the same as in English: Vuohi on viisaampi kuin lammas.
How do we get the partitive form lammasta from the basic word lammas?
Words ending in -as or -äs (like lammas or vieras) form their partitive by simply adding -ta or -tä to the basic nominative form. Because of this straightforward rule, lammas directly becomes lammasta.
How is the comparative viisaampi formed from viisas?