Breakdown of Ich stelle den Papierkorb zwischen das Bett und den Schreibtisch.
ich
I
und
and
das Bett
the bed
zwischen
between
der Papierkorb
the wastebasket
stellen
to place / to put (upright)
der Schreibtisch
the desk
Questions & Answers about Ich stelle den Papierkorb zwischen das Bett und den Schreibtisch.
Why are das Bett and den Schreibtisch in the accusative case here?
zwischen (between) is a two-way preposition. Because you are actively moving the wastebasket to a new destination (answering the question Wohin? or Where to?), the nouns following the preposition must take the accusative case.
Why is it das Bett but den Schreibtisch?
Both nouns follow the preposition zwischen and are in the accusative case, but they have different genders. Bett is neuter, so its accusative form is das Bett. Schreibtisch is masculine (der Schreibtisch), so it changes to den Schreibtisch.
Why use stelle instead of another word for 'put', like lege?
In German, the verb for 'putting' something changes depending on the object's orientation. stellen is used for placing something upright on its base. Because a wastebasket usually stands vertically, you use stellen. If you were laying it down flat on its side, you would use legen.
Why does the sentence say den Papierkorb instead of der Papierkorb?
der Papierkorb (the wastebasket) is the direct object of the sentence because it is the thing being acted upon. Direct objects take the accusative case, which changes the masculine article der to den.
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