Breakdown of Ich kann vor dem Training nicht essen.
ich
I
essen
to eat
nicht
not
können
can / to be able to
vor
before (in time)
das Training
the training/practice
Questions & Answers about Ich kann vor dem Training nicht essen.
Why is it dem instead of das in vor dem Training?
In this sentence, vor is used as a temporal preposition to say when something happens (before practice). When talking about time, vor always requires the dative case. Since Training is a neuter noun (das Training), the dative article changes das to dem.
I thought vor was a two-way preposition that could take the accusative. Can it take the accusative here?
Good memory! vor is indeed a two-way preposition when talking about physical location (in front of). However, when vor is used for time (before), it strictly takes the dative case. So it must be vor dem Training, never accusative.
Why is the main verb essen at the very end of the sentence?
This is because of the modal verb kann (from können, meaning can or to be able to). In German, modal verbs take the second position in the sentence, pushing the main verb (essen) to the very end in its original infinitive form.
Why is nicht right before essen instead of after kann?
In German, nicht usually goes towards the end of the sentence. When you have a two-verb structure like this (the modal kann and the infinitive essen), nicht is placed right before the final verb to negate the whole action.
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