Ich schließe die Haustür, bevor ich zum Markt zurückgehe.

I close the front door before I go back to the market.

Breakdown of Ich schließe die Haustür, bevor ich zum Markt zurückgehe.

• dem: the; (masculine or neuter, dative)
• ich: I
• zu: to
• bevor: before
• der Markt: the market
• die Haustür: the front door
• schließen: to close
• zurückgehen: to go back

Questions & Answers about Ich schließe die Haustür, bevor ich zum Markt zurückgehe.

Why is there a comma before bevor?

In German, any subordinate clause introduced by a subordinating conjunction (like bevor, weil, dass, etc.) must be set off from the main clause with a comma. That’s why you write
Ich schließe die Haustür, bevor ich ...

Why is the verb at the end of the clause bevor ich zum Markt zurückgehe?

Because bevor is a subordinating conjunction. In German subordinate clauses, the conjugated verb moves to the very end of that clause. Here, the verb stem geh + prefix zurück combine to form zurückgehe, which sits at the end.

Why is zurückgehe written as one word instead of gehe zurück?

Zurückgehen is a separable-prefix verb.

• In a main clause you split it: Ich gehe zum Markt zurück.
• In a subordinate clause the entire verb (prefix + stem) moves to the end and attaches: ...bevor ich zum Markt zurückgehe.

What case do I use with zum Markt, and why is it zum instead of ins or auf den?

• The preposition zu always takes the dative case.
• zum is the contraction of zu dem (dative masculine/neuter).
• ins (in + das) would mean “into” rather than “to,” and auf den would mean “onto,” so zu is the correct directional preposition here.

What’s the difference between schließen and abschließen?

• schließen simply means “to close” (shut the door).
• abschließen means “to lock” (shut and lock with a key or bolt).
  In the example, you’re just closing the door, so schließen is sufficient. If you wanted to emphasize locking it, you’d say Ich schließe die Haustür ab.

Why is Haustür feminine, and why “die Haustür” instead of “das Haustür”?

German compounds take the gender of their final element.

• Haus is neuter, but Tür is feminine.
• Therefore Haustür is feminine, and its article is die in the nominative. In the accusative (direct object) it’s also die.

Can I replace bevor with wenn or nachdem?

• wenn means “if” or “whenever” (conditional/repeated events), not “before.”
• nachdem means “after” and requires a past tense in the subordinate clause.
  To express “before X happens,” you need bevor and keep the tense consistent (present or future).

Could I use zurückkehren instead of zurückgehen?

Yes, but there’s a nuance:

• zurückgehen is a separable verb focusing on the physical action of going back.
• zurückkehren is inseparable and more formal; it often implies returning in a more general sense.
  Both are correct, but you’ll most commonly hear zurückgehen in everyday speech.