Jeg lægger kopien i mappen, før mødet begynder.

Because lægge and ligge are different verbs in Danish:

• lægge = to lay / put / place something somewhere
• ligge = to lie / be lying somewhere

In this sentence, the subject is actively putting something somewhere, so Danish uses lægger:

• Jeg lægger kopien i mappen = I put the copy in the folder

Compare:

• Jeg lægger kopien i mappen = I place the copy in the folder
• Kopien ligger i mappen = The copy is in the folder / is lying in the folder

This is similar to the English difference between lay and lie, although English speakers often do not keep that distinction very clearly in everyday speech.

Those endings show the definite form in Danish.

In Danish, instead of usually putting the in front of a noun, you often attach it to the end:

• en kopi = a copy

• kopien = the copy

• en mappe = a folder

• mappen = the folder

• et møde = a meeting
• mødet = the meeting

So:

• kopien = the copy
• mappen = the folder
• mødet = the meeting

The ending depends on the noun’s gender:

• common gender nouns usually take -en
• neuter nouns usually take -et

Because Danish nouns have grammatical gender.

There are two genders in modern Danish:

• common gender → takes en
• neuter → takes et

So:

• en kopi
• en mappe
• et møde

Unfortunately, gender usually has to be learned with each noun. There is not always a reliable logic behind it.

A good habit is to memorize nouns together with their article:

• en kopi
• en mappe
• et møde

not just the bare noun by itself.

Because Danish normally expresses the by adding it to the noun as a suffix.

So instead of saying something like:

• the copy
• the folder
• the meeting

Danish usually says:

• kopien
• mappen
• mødet

This is one of the big structural differences from English.

Danish can use a separate definite word too, but typically only when there is an adjective or other special structure, for example:

• den store mappe = the big folder
• det vigtige møde = the important meeting

But in your sentence, there is no adjective, so the simple suffixed form is used.

Før means before.

Here it introduces a time clause:

• før mødet begynder = before the meeting begins

So the full sentence has:

1. a main clause
   
   • Jeg lægger kopien i mappen
2. a subordinate time clause
   
   • før mødet begynder

This is very similar to English structure:

• I put the copy in the folder before the meeting begins

Because after før, Danish uses a subordinate clause, and subordinate clauses usually keep the subject before the verb:

• mødet = subject
• begynder = verb

So:

• før mødet begynder = before the meeting begins

That is the normal order for a subordinate clause.

A useful contrast is:

• Mødet begynder nu. = The meeting begins now.
• ...før mødet begynder. = ...before the meeting begins.

In this particular sentence, the word order feels very similar to English, which makes it easier.

Because Danish often uses the present tense for future meaning when the context already makes the time clear.

So:

• mødet begynder literally looks like the meeting begins
• but in context it can mean the meeting begins / is going to begin

This is very natural in Danish, just as it often is in English:

• I leave tomorrow
• The meeting starts at 10
• before the meeting begins

So there is nothing unusual about begynder here.

I means in.

So:

• i mappen = in the folder

This tells you where the copy is being placed.

Danish i is used much like English in for being inside something. In this sentence, that is the natural preposition because a copy goes inside a folder.

Not if you mean inside the folder.

• i mappen = in the folder
• på mappen = on the folder

So på mappen would sound like the copy is physically on top of the folder, not inside it.

For the intended meaning, i mappen is the correct choice.

Because før mødet begynder is a subordinate clause, and many Danish writers place a comma before subordinate clauses.

So the comma separates:

• Jeg lægger kopien i mappen
• før mødet begynder

You may also see Danish written without that comma, depending on the comma style being used. So both of these can occur:

• Jeg lægger kopien i mappen, før mødet begynder.
• Jeg lægger kopien i mappen før mødet begynder.

The version with the comma is completely normal.

Not really in the way English speakers might expect.

In standard Danish, lægger is roughly pronounced like LEH-yer or LEH-uh, depending on how detailed or natural the pronunciation is. The gg does not sound like a strong English g in go.

Very roughly:

• lægger ≈ LEH-ger in a careful learner-style approximation
• but in real speech it is softer and more reduced

Also:

• æ is a front vowel, somewhat like the vowel in British man or air, depending on accent and comparison
• Danish unstressed endings often become weak or reduced

So if you pronounce every letter very clearly, native speakers will still understand you, but natural Danish pronunciation is softer than the spelling suggests.

Yes. Lægge is a general verb for placing something somewhere.

Depending on context, it can mean:

• put
• place
• lay
• set down

In your sentence, put or place is the most natural English match:

• Jeg lægger kopien i mappen = I put/place the copy in the folder

So you should think of lægge as the verb used when someone causes an object to be placed somewhere.

Yes, absolutely.

You can say:

• Før mødet begynder, lægger jeg kopien i mappen.

That means the same thing.

Notice what happens to the word order in the main clause after the fronted subordinate clause:

• ...lægger jeg...
• not ...jeg lægger...

This is because Danish main clauses follow the verb-second pattern. When another element comes first, the finite verb usually comes before the subject in the main clause.

So:

• Jeg lægger kopien i mappen, før mødet begynder.
• Før mødet begynder, lægger jeg kopien i mappen.

Both are correct.