Quan el cel està ennuvolat i hi ha núvols negres, la meva germana no vol sortir sense paraigua.

Quan usually means when, but in sentences like this it often has the sense of whenever or when(ever) in a general situation.

So here, Quan el cel està ennuvolat... means something like:

• When/Whenever the sky is cloudy...

Catalan often uses quan for both a specific time and a repeated/general situation, just like English can.

Catalan often uses the definite article more than English does.

So:

• el cel = the sky

Even where English might sometimes omit the, Catalan usually keeps the article. This is very normal with nouns in general.

Catalan commonly describes weather conditions with estar + adjective/participle.

Here:

• està = is
• ennuvolat = cloudy / cloud-covered

So el cel està ennuvolat literally means the sky is clouded, but naturally it means the sky is cloudy.

This is a very common pattern:

• està obert = it is open
• està tancat = it is closed
• està brut = it is dirty

Ennuvolat is an adjective/participle meaning cloudy or covered with clouds.

It comes from núvol (cloud). You may also see related forms like:

• ennuvolar-se = to become cloudy
• un dia ennuvolat = a cloudy day

Because cel is masculine singular, the form is ennuvolat. If the noun were feminine singular, it would become ennuvolada.

Hi ha means there is / there are.

In this sentence:

• hi ha núvols negres = there are black clouds

This is one of the most important Catalan expressions.

Why hi ha?

• ha comes from the verb haver
• hi is a locative particle that is part of this fixed expression

You should learn hi ha as a chunk:

• Hi ha un problema = There is a problem
• Hi ha moltes persones = There are many people

Do not replace it with és/són, because és/són means is/are for identification or description, not existence.

A learner might feel it is repetitive, but it sounds natural.

The sentence says:

• el cel està ennuvolat = the sky is cloudy
• hi ha núvols negres = there are black clouds

The first part gives the general condition of the sky. The second adds a more vivid detail: the clouds are black. This kind of repetition is completely normal and natural in Catalan, just as it can be in English.

Because Catalan has its own adjective forms.

• núvol = cloud
• plural: núvols
• negre = black
• masculine plural: negres

So:

• núvols negres = black clouds

The adjective agrees with the noun in gender and number:

• núvol negre = one black cloud
• núvols negres = black clouds
• casa negra = black house
• cases negres = black houses

In Catalan, most descriptive adjectives normally come after the noun.

So:

• núvols negres = literally clouds black

That is the standard order in Catalan. Some adjectives can come before the noun, but most basic descriptive ones like colors usually come after it.

Catalan usually uses the definite article with possessives.

So:

• la meva germana = my sister
• literally: the my sister

This is normal Catalan grammar.

Other examples:

• el meu pare = my father
• la nostra casa = our house

In some special contexts, the article may be omitted, but in ordinary usage article + possessive + noun is the usual pattern.

They are forms of the possessive my, and they must agree with the noun that follows.

• el meu = masculine singular
• la meva = feminine singular
• els meus = masculine plural
• les meves = feminine plural

Because germana is feminine singular, Catalan uses meva:

• la meva germana

If it were brother, it would be:

• el meu germà

Vol is the 3rd person singular of voler (to want).

So:

• la meva germana no vol sortir = my sister does not want to go out

Breakdown:

• no = not
• vol = wants
• sortir = to go out / to leave

Catalan puts no before the conjugated verb:

• no vol = does not want

Because after vol (wants), Catalan uses an infinitive, just like English does after want to.

• vol sortir = wants to go out
• literally: wants go out

This is very common:

• vol menjar = wants to eat
• vol dormir = wants to sleep

Catalan does not need a separate word for to before the infinitive in this structure.

It can mean several related things depending on context:

• to go out
• to leave
• to come out
• sometimes to appear / to turn out

In this sentence, sortir most naturally means to go out or to go outside.

So no vol sortir means:

• she doesn’t want to go out

After sense (without), Catalan often uses a noun without an article when speaking generally.

So:

• sense paraigua = without an umbrella

This is very natural. Adding un is possible in some contexts, but here the article-free version sounds more idiomatic and general.

Similar examples:

• sense diners = without money
• sense cotxe = without a car
• sense problemes = without problems

Paraigua means umbrella.

It is normally masculine in standard Catalan:

• el paraigua
• un paraigua

That is why, if you did include an article, you would say un paraigua, not una paraigua.

Because i means and, and Catalan usually does not put a comma before i when simply joining two coordinated parts.

So this is normal:

• Quan el cel està ennuvolat i hi ha núvols negres...

There is a comma after negres because the opening Quan... clause ends there, and the main clause begins:

• ..., la meva germana no vol sortir...

It has two main parts:

1. A time/condition clause introduced by Quan

   • Quan el cel està ennuvolat i hi ha núvols negres
   • When/Whenever the sky is cloudy and there are black clouds

2. The main clause

   • la meva germana no vol sortir sense paraigua
   • my sister doesn’t want to go out without an umbrella

So the pattern is:

• Quan + clause, main clause

This is a very useful Catalan structure.

Catalan can sometimes reorder things, but in this sentence the natural order is to begin with the Quan... clause because it sets the situation first.

English often does the same:

• When the sky is cloudy..., my sister...

If you put the main clause first, you could say something like:

• La meva germana no vol sortir sense paraigua quan el cel està ennuvolat i hi ha núvols negres.

That is grammatical, but it slightly changes the rhythm and emphasis. The original version sounds very natural.

A rough pronunciation guide for an English speaker:

• Quan ≈ kwan
• cel ≈ sel
• està ≈ es-TA
• ennuvolat ≈ en-noo-vo-LAT
• hi ha ≈ roughly ee AH
  (the h is silent)
• núvols ≈ NOO-buls / NOO-vols depending on accent
• negres ≈ NEH-gres
• meva ≈ MEH-va
• germana ≈ jer-MA-na
  (with a softer Catalan g/j sound)
• vol ≈ bol
• sortir ≈ sor-TEER
• sense ≈ SEN-sa
• paraigua ≈ pa-RAI-gwa

Pronunciation varies by dialect, but these approximations are enough to get started.

Not exactly.

• Quan = when / whenever
• Si = if

In this sentence, Quan presents a situation that regularly happens:

• Whenever the sky is cloudy...

If you used si, it would sound more like a possible condition:

• If the sky is cloudy...

Sometimes both are possible, but they are not identical. The original sentence suggests a habitual reaction: when that weather happens, she doesn’t want to go out without an umbrella.

Yes. Catalan often uses the present tense for habits and repeated actions, just like English does.

So:

• està = is
• hi ha = there are
• vol = wants

Together they describe a general repeated pattern:

• whenever this weather happens, she reacts this way

That is a very normal use of the present tense in Catalan.