Abans de respondre, vull preguntar això a la professora.

Abans de + infinitive is a very common Catalan pattern meaning before doing something.

So:

• abans = before
• de = of / to / before in this structure
• respondre = to answer

Together, Abans de respondre means Before answering.

This is similar to Catalan patterns like:

• abans de marxar = before leaving
• abans de parlar = before speaking
• abans de decidir = before deciding

In English, we often use before + -ing. In Catalan, the usual structure is abans de + infinitive.

Because after abans de, Catalan normally uses the infinitive.

So:

• Abans de respondre = before answering
• not Abans de responc
• not Abans de respon

This is the same idea as in English:

• Before answering, ...
• not Before I answer in this exact structure

If you want to include a full clause with a subject, Catalan can do that too, but it is a different structure. In your sentence, respondre is infinitive because it follows abans de.

Vull preguntar means I want to ask.

This is a normal Catalan structure:

• vull = I want
• preguntar = to ask

Catalan often uses a conjugated verb followed by an infinitive, just like English:

• vull menjar = I want to eat
• vull saber = I want to know
• vull preguntar = I want to ask

So the main verb that is conjugated is vull, and the second verb stays in the infinitive.

Això means this in the sense of this thing / this matter / this.

It is a neuter demonstrative, used when you are referring to:

• an idea
• a situation
• something not named with a noun
• something abstract

Examples:

• Què és això? = What is this?
• Vull explicar això. = I want to explain this.
• No entenc això. = I don’t understand this.

By contrast:

• aquesta must go with a feminine singular noun
  • aquesta pregunta = this question
• així means like this / thus, not this

So in your sentence, això is correct because it refers to this matter / this thing.

Here a la professora means to the teacher.

With preguntar, Catalan commonly uses this structure:

• preguntar alguna cosa a algú = to ask someone something

So:

• preguntar = to ask
• això = this
• a la professora = to the teacher

The a introduces the person receiving the question.

Examples:

• Pregunto això al professor. = I ask the teacher this.
• Vols preguntar-ho a la Maria? = Do you want to ask Maria about it?

This is different from English, where word order alone often shows who is being asked. Catalan often uses a before the person after preguntar.

Yes. Catalan very often replaces objects with pronouns.

In your sentence:

• això can become ho
• a la professora can become li

So you could get:

• Abans de respondre, ho vull preguntar a la professora.
• Abans de respondre, vull preguntar-li això.
• Abans de respondre, li ho vull preguntar.

These all mean roughly the same thing: Before answering, I want to ask the teacher this.

A quick guide:

• ho = it / this / that, for a neuter idea or clause
• li = to him / to her / to you (formal)

Learners often see both the full noun phrase and the pronoun version, so it is useful to recognize both.

The given sentence is very natural, but Catalan word order is somewhat flexible.

Standard version:

• Abans de respondre, vull preguntar això a la professora.

Other possible orders include:

• Vull preguntar això a la professora abans de respondre.
• A la professora, li vull preguntar això abans de respondre.
• Abans de respondre, li vull preguntar això a la professora.

The most neutral version is usually the original one or the version with abans de respondre at the end.

Catalan often moves elements for emphasis, but for learners, the original sentence is an excellent default pattern.

Yes, depending on context.

Common alternatives:

• respondre ↔ contestar
• preguntar ↔ sometimes demanar, but not always

For answer:

• Abans de respondre...
• Abans de contestar...

Both are common. Respondre can sound slightly more formal in some contexts, but both are normal.

For ask:

• preguntar is the safe choice for asking a question.
• demanar often means to ask for / request.

So if you are asking the teacher a question, preguntar is best.

Catalan uses definite articles much more often than English.

So where English says:

• the teacher

Catalan says:

• la professora

And Catalan may also use the article in places where English would not. For example, when referring to people by role or title in a general but specific context, the article is very normal.

Also:

• professora = female teacher
• professor = male teacher

So a la professora specifically means to the female teacher.

Then you would probably use you instead of the teacher.

For example:

• Abans de respondre, vull preguntar-te això. = Before answering, I want to ask you this.

Here:

• -te = to you

If speaking formally to one person, you might see:

• Abans de respondre, li vull preguntar això.

So the original sentence talks about the teacher in the third person, while these versions speak to the teacher directly.