Breakdown of Я машинально положил ключи на полку у двери и сразу забыл об этом.
я
I
дверь
the door
и
and
на
on
Questions & Answers about Я машинально положил ключи на полку у двери и сразу забыл об этом.
Why is it положил, not клал or поставил?
Положил is the past tense of положить, a perfective verb. Perfective verbs present an action as a completed whole.
Here that makes sense because the speaker is talking about one finished action:
- he put the keys down,
- and then forgot about it.
Compare:
- положил = put down / placed as a completed act
- клал = was putting / used to put / put repeatedly depending on context
Поставил usually suggests setting something upright or placing something in position, while положил suggests laying something down. With keys on a shelf, положил is the most natural choice.
Why does положил end in -л? What does that form show?
Положил is past tense, masculine singular.
Russian past tense forms agree with gender and number:
- положил = masculine
- положила = feminine
- положило = neuter
- положили = plural
So this sentence suggests the speaker is male. If the speaker were female, it would be:
Я машинально положила ключи на полку у двери и сразу забыла об этом.
The same applies to забыл.
Why is ключи used here? What case is it in?