Breakdown of Bevor es regnet, bauen wir ein Zelt oberhalb des Wasserfalls auf.
ein
a, an (eine)
es
it
wir
we
regnen
to rain
aufbauen
to build up
das Zelt
the tent
bevor
before
der Wasserfall
the waterfall
oberhalb
above / above the
Questions & Answers about Bevor es regnet, bauen wir ein Zelt oberhalb des Wasserfalls auf.
Why do we use des Wasserfalls with an -s at the end here?
The preposition oberhalb (above or upstream of) requires the genitive case. Because Wasserfall is a masculine noun (der Wasserfall), its genitive article is des and the noun takes an -s ending.
How does oberhalb differ from über in this context?
While über means "over" and often implies being vertically directly above something, oberhalb means "at a higher elevation than" or "further up the slope or stream." You wouldn't pitch a tent hovering in the air directly over the waterfall, but rather on higher ground nearby!
Why does the main part of the sentence say bauen wir instead of wir bauen?
The subordinate clause Bevor es regnet occupies the first position of the entire sentence. Since the conjugated verb must always take the second position in a statement, bauen comes right after the comma, followed by the subject wir.
Why is auf placed at the very end, even after the long location phrase?
The verb is aufbauen (to set up). In a main clause, the separable prefix (auf) is always pushed to the absolute end. It wraps around everything else in the sentence, including the direct object (ein Zelt) and the genitive phrase (oberhalb des Wasserfalls).
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