Bevor wir die Rolltreppe nehmen, frage ich die Mitarbeiterin, ob dieser Ausgang auch nachts offen ist.

Before we take the escalator, I ask the employee whether this exit is also open at night.

Breakdown of Bevor wir die Rolltreppe nehmen, frage ich die Mitarbeiterin, ob dieser Ausgang auch nachts offen ist.

• sein: to be
• ich: I
• wir: we
• auch: also
• ob: whether
• bevor: before
• fragen: to ask
• nehmen: to take
• dieser: this
• offen: open
• nachts: at night
• die Rolltreppe: the escalator
• der Ausgang: the exit
• die Mitarbeiterin: the employee

Questions & Answers about Bevor wir die Rolltreppe nehmen, frage ich die Mitarbeiterin, ob dieser Ausgang auch nachts offen ist.

Why does nehmen come at the end in Bevor wir die Rolltreppe nehmen?

Because bevor is a subordinating conjunction. In German, a clause introduced by a subordinating conjunction usually sends the conjugated verb to the end.

So:

• main clause word order: Wir nehmen die Rolltreppe.
• subordinate clause after bevor: bevor wir die Rolltreppe nehmen

This is a very common pattern:

• bevor = before
• weil = because
• dass = that
• ob = whether/if

All of these normally push the conjugated verb to the end of their clause.

Why is it frage ich instead of ich frage after the comma?

German main clauses follow the verb-second rule. The conjugated verb must come in the second position.

Here, the whole clause Bevor wir die Rolltreppe nehmen counts as the first position. That means the main clause must begin with the verb:

• Bevor wir die Rolltreppe nehmen, frage ich ...

If you started with the subject, you would break the verb-second pattern.

Compare:

• Ich frage die Mitarbeiterin ...
• Bevor wir die Rolltreppe nehmen, frage ich die Mitarbeiterin ...

So the word order changes because something else has been placed first.

Why is die Rolltreppe in die form here?

Because nehmen takes a direct object, and direct objects are usually in the accusative case.

The noun is die Rolltreppe. Since Rolltreppe is feminine, the article is:

• nominative: die
• accusative: die

So the form looks the same here, even though the function is accusative.

Also, die Rolltreppe nehmen is a natural German expression meaning to take the escalator, similar to English take the stairs or take the elevator.

Why is it die Mitarbeiterin and not der Mitarbeiterin?

Because the verb fragen uses the person being asked as a direct object, so that person goes in the accusative, not the dative.

In German:

• jemanden fragen = to ask someone

So:

• Ich frage die Mitarbeiterin.

This often feels surprising to English speakers, because English often uses ask someone, but learners may expect a dative pattern because of the idea of asking to someone. German does not use dative here.

If you included both objects, you could say:

• Ich frage die Mitarbeiterin etwas.

That means I ask the employee something.

Why does German use ob here? Could it be wenn?

Here it must be ob, not wenn.

Ob is used for an indirect yes/no question, meaning whether or sometimes if in English.

So:

• ob dieser Ausgang auch nachts offen ist
• whether this exit is also open at night

Use ob when the answer could be yes or no.

By contrast, wenn usually means:

• if in a conditional sense
• when in repeated or future situations

So:

• Ich frage, ob ... = I ask whether ...
• Wenn es regnet, bleiben wir hier. = If it rains, we stay here.

That is an important distinction in German.

Why is it dieser Ausgang and not diesen Ausgang?

Because dieser Ausgang is the subject of the clause ob dieser Ausgang auch nachts offen ist.

The verb there is ist, and the thing that is open is dieser Ausgang. Since it is the subject, it must be in the nominative case.

Ausgang is masculine, so:

• nominative masculine: dieser Ausgang
• accusative masculine: diesen Ausgang

Here, nominative is needed, so dieser is correct.

Why is ist at the end in ob dieser Ausgang auch nachts offen ist?

Because ob also introduces a subordinate clause, and subordinate clauses usually place the conjugated verb at the end.

The basic statement would be:

• Dieser Ausgang ist auch nachts offen.

But after ob, it becomes:

• ob dieser Ausgang auch nachts offen ist

So the same rule is working twice in the full sentence:

• bevor sends nehmen to the end
• ob sends ist to the end

What does nachts mean, and why is there no preposition like in or at?

Nachts means at night or during the night.

It is an adverb, so German does not need a preposition here. You can think of it as a fixed time expression.

Examples:

• nachts = at night
• morgens = in the morning / mornings
• abends = in the evening / evenings

So:

• auch nachts offen = also open at night

This is very natural German. You do not need to say in der Nacht here, though that phrase also exists in other contexts.

What is auch doing in auch nachts?

Auch means also or too.

In this sentence, it shows that nighttime is being included as well. The idea is something like:

• Is this exit open at night too?
• Is this exit also open at night?

Its position suggests that nachts is the part being especially added or emphasized.

So:

• auch nachts offen = open at night as well

German word order with auch can vary depending on emphasis, but this placement is very natural here.

Why are there commas in this sentence?

German uses commas more consistently than English to mark subordinate clauses.

There are two commas here:

• Bevor wir die Rolltreppe nehmen,
• ..., ob dieser Ausgang auch nachts offen ist.

The first comma separates the opening subordinate clause from the main clause.

The second comma introduces the ob clause, which is another subordinate clause.

So the commas are not optional here; they are required by standard German punctuation.