Breakdown of Ich probiere diesen Mantel an.
ich
I
dieser
this / that (fem.: diese, neut.: dieses)
der Mantel
the coat
anprobieren
to try on
Questions & Answers about Ich probiere diesen Mantel an.
Why is the word for "this" written as diesen here instead of dieser?
Mantel (coat) is a masculine noun (der Mantel). Because you are trying the coat on, it is the direct object of the sentence, which means it needs to be in the accusative case. For masculine nouns in the accusative, the "this" word dieser changes its ending to become diesen.
Could I just use den instead of diesen in this sentence?
Yes, you could! In spoken German, people often say Ich probiere den Mantel an and just put a strong spoken emphasis on den to mean "this coat". However, diesen is the most precise way to say "this" rather than just "the".
Why is the word an all the way at the end of the sentence?
The complete verb for "to try on" is anprobieren. This is a separable verb. In a normal present-tense sentence, the main part of the verb (probiere) stays in the second position, and the small prefix (an) gets pushed to the very end of the sentence.
If I want to look up the verb in a dictionary, what do I search for?
You need to search for the full word anprobieren. If you only look up probieren, you will see that it means "to try" (like attempting a task) or "to taste" (like trying food). The prefix an is what changes the meaning specifically to trying on clothes.