meter mano (a algo): tocar, intervenir, manipular. [Ojo: con el artículo definido (la) se suele referir a la acción de introducir la mano dentro de algo literalmente].
-Metió la mano en el bolso para sacar algo — He put his hand in the bag to get something [Véase artículo con valor posesivo]
→Le metió la mano para sacar algo — He put his hand in (it) to get something
-¿Por qué lo han despedido? -Metía la mano en la caja — Why has he been fired? -He was dipping his fingers in the till/ skimming of money from the till
-Metió mano a su recepcionista — He touched up/groped/fondled his receptionist
→Su jefe le metió mano — Her boss touched her up
-Este finde le meto mano a esa asignatura — This weekend I'll get stuck into / get on with that subject
-No le metas mano al motor — Don't fiddle /tinker with the engine
-Alguien ya ha metido mano a la tarta — Somebody has already got stuck into the cake
-El Gobierno por fin ha metido mano a las empresas con sedes en paraísos fiscales — The government has finally got involved/stepped in/decided to investigate companies based in tax havens
→El Gobierno por fin ha tomado cartas en el asunto
-Es muy listo. La policía no ha podido meterle mano por falta de pruebas sólidas— He's very smart. The police haven't been able to collar him /get anything on him due to lack of solid evidence
