Questions & Answers about Luuletko tuota miestä neroksi?
Why use luuletko here instead of ajatteletko?
The verb luulla means to suppose, assume, or hold a belief, which fits perfectly when guessing someone's identity or qualities. Ajatella refers more to the cognitive process of thinking or having a thought, while miettiä means to ponder.
Why is the phrase 'that man' in the partitive case (tuota miestä)?
In this specific structure, the person or thing you are making an assumption about is the object of the verb luulla. When luulla is used to express an opinion or assumption about someone, it requires its object to be in the partitive case.
Why does nero (genius) have the -ksi ending (neroksi)?
This is the translative case. When using luulla to say you assume someone to be something, the role or quality you assign to them must take the translative ending. You can think of it as assuming someone into a certain role.
How would the sentence change if I used pitää to express a stronger, firmer opinion?
If you use pitää (to consider or regard as), the object stays in the partitive, but the assumed role must be in the essive case (-na or -nä) rather than the translative. The sentence would become Pidätkö tuota miestä nerona?