Questions & Answers about Me tiedämme olevamme ylivoimaisia.
Why does this sentence use olevamme instead of just saying että me olemme?
This sentence uses the partisiippirakenne (referative construction), which is a compact way to replace an että (that) clause. Instead of the longer Me tiedämme, että me olemme ylivoimaisia, Finnish uses the present active participle of olla (to be) to condense the clause.
Since this is a referative construction, why isn't it meidän olevan?
Because the subject of the main verb (me) is exactly the same as the subject of the participle. When these subjects match, you drop the genitive pronoun (meidän) and instead attach a possessive suffix to the participle. So, instead of meidän olevan, you use olevamme.
How exactly is the word olevamme built?
It starts with the present active participle of olla, which is oleva. In this construction, it normally takes the genitive ending -n to form olevan. However, when you add a possessive suffix like the first-person plural -mme, that final -n drops off. Thus, olevan plus -mme simply becomes olevamme.
Why is the adjective ylivoimaisia in the partitive plural here?
It acts as the predicative adjective describing the plural subject me (we). In Finnish, predicative adjectives describing a plural subject take the partitive plural case. The base word is ylivoimainen (superior), which becomes ylivoimaisia in the partitive plural.
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