Breakdown of Sie müssen die Gebühr bezahlen, andernfalls untersagt der Entwickler den Zugriff.
Sie
you (formal)
bezahlen
to pay
müssen
to have to, must
der
who, which, that (relative pronoun; die, das)
die Gebühr
the fee
der Zugriff
the access (to data, IT systems)
andernfalls
otherwise
untersagen
to prohibit
der Entwickler
the developer
Questions & Answers about Sie müssen die Gebühr bezahlen, andernfalls untersagt der Entwickler den Zugriff.
Why does the verb untersagt come right after andernfalls?
andernfalls is an adverbial connector. In German, these connectors take up the first position in their clause. To satisfy the verb-second (V2) rule, the verb untersagt must come immediately after it, pushing the subject der Entwickler to the third position.
Could I just use sonst instead of andernfalls here?
Grammatically, yes. Both mean "otherwise" and trigger the exact same word order. However, andernfalls is more formal. Because this sentence has a legal or technical tone (dealing with fees and access rights), andernfalls is the much better stylistic choice.
Is untersagen a separable verb? I was expecting sagt ... unter.
No, untersagen (to prohibit) is an inseparable verb. While the prefix unter- can be separable in some verbs, it is inseparable here. That is why it stays together as a single word conjugated as untersagt.
How does untersagen differ from the more common word verbieten?
Both mean "to forbid" or "to prohibit" and take an accusative object for the thing being forbidden (here, den Zugriff). untersagen is simply more formal and bureaucratic, which matches the elevated tone of this sentence perfectly.
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