Breakdown of Sie steckt den Schlüssel in den Ärmel ihres Mantels, damit sie ihn nicht verliert.
nicht
not
in
into
sie
she
damit
so that
Questions & Answers about Sie steckt den Schlüssel in den Ärmel ihres Mantels, damit sie ihn nicht verliert.
What does steckt mean here?
Here steckt comes from stecken. In this sentence, it means something like puts, sticks, or tucks into a place.
So Sie steckt den Schlüssel in den Ärmel ihres Mantels means she is tucking/putting the key into the sleeve of her coat.
This is a very common verb when something is being put into a narrow or enclosed place:
- etwas in die Tasche stecken = to put something into a pocket
- etwas in die Schublade stecken = to put something into the drawer
- den Schlüssel in den Ärmel stecken = to tuck the key into the sleeve
Why is it den Schlüssel and not der Schlüssel?
Because den Schlüssel is the accusative case, which is used here for the direct object of the verb.
The verb stecken is acting on the key. She is putting the key somewhere, so the key is the direct object.
- nominative: der Schlüssel = the key
- accusative: den Schlüssel = the key
Since Schlüssel is masculine, der changes to den in the accusative.
Why is it in den Ärmel and not in dem Ärmel or im Ärmel?