Breakdown of Der Chef sagt, dass die Maßnahme in das Protokoll gehört.
in
in
sagen
to say
der Chef
the boss (male)
gehören
to belong to
dass
that
der
who, which, that (relative pronoun; die, das)
die Maßnahme
the measure
das Protokoll
the protocol
Questions & Answers about Der Chef sagt, dass die Maßnahme in das Protokoll gehört.
Why is it in das Protokoll (accusative) and not dative? Doesn't gehören usually take the dative?
When gehören means ownership (belonging to a person), it takes the dative, as in Das gehört mir. But when it means belonging in a place, it is followed by a preposition. Here, in is a two-way preposition. Since the measure is being put into the record (a destination or movement), it triggers the accusative case for das Protokoll.
Does das Protokoll mean diplomatic rules here?
Probably not. While it can mean diplomatic or technical protocol, in everyday German business language, das Protokoll usually means the written minutes, log, or official record of a meeting.
Why is the verb gehört at the end instead of right after die Maßnahme?
The word dass (that) is a subordinating conjunction. It creates a dependent clause, which forces the conjugated verb (gehört) to move to the very end of that specific clause.
How could I express this same idea using the sein + zu + Infinitive passive alternative from this lesson?
To express that it must be put into the protocol using this lesson's grammar, you could rephrase the dependent clause as ...dass die Maßnahme in das Protokoll einzutragen ist (that the measure is to be entered into the minutes). The original sentence uses gehören in as a more direct, everyday way to express that it needs to go there.
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