Die Picknickdecke liegt schon im Rucksack, damit wir im Park bequem sitzen können.

The picnic blanket is already in the backpack so that we can sit comfortably in the park.

Breakdown of Die Picknickdecke liegt schon im Rucksack, damit wir im Park bequem sitzen können.

• wir: we
• können: can
• schon: already
• der Park: the park

Questions & Answers about Die Picknickdecke liegt schon im Rucksack, damit wir im Park bequem sitzen können.

Why is it die Picknickdecke and not der/das?

Picknickdecke is a feminine noun in German, so its nominative singular article is die.

• die Decke = the blanket/cover (feminine)
  Since Picknickdecke is a compound noun ending in Decke, it keeps the gender of the final noun (Decke), so it’s also feminine.

What does liegt mean here, and how is it different from legt?

liegt is from liegen = to lie / to be lying / to be located (somewhere) (a state).
legt is from legen = to lay / to put (something down) (an action that causes something to lie).
So:

• Die Picknickdecke liegt im Rucksack. = The blanket is (lying) in the backpack.
• Ich lege die Picknickdecke in den Rucksack. = I put the blanket into the backpack.

Why is it im Rucksack and not in dem Rucksack?

im is a contraction of in dem. It’s very common in spoken and written German.

• in dem → im (used with masculine/neuter dative singular)
  Here, Rucksack is masculine (der Rucksack), and after (location), you use , so → .