Kannst du bitte die Spülmaschine ausräumen, bevor wir den Tisch decken?

Yes. Kannst du ...? literally means Can you ...?

In German, this is a very common and polite way to make a request, just like Can you ...? in English. So although it literally asks about ability, in context it usually means a request:

• Kannst du bitte ...? = Can you please ...?

Because it is a yes/no question, the conjugated verb kannst comes first, followed by the subject du.

Bitte means please here.

It softens the request and makes it more polite:

• Kannst du die Spülmaschine ausräumen? = Can you empty the dishwasher?
• Kannst du bitte die Spülmaschine ausräumen? = Can you please empty the dishwasher?

German often uses bitte exactly where English uses please.

Both nouns are receiving the action of the verb, so they are in the accusative case.

The difference comes from the gender of the nouns:

• die Spülmaschine is feminine
• der Tisch is masculine

In the accusative:

• feminine die stays die
• masculine der changes to den

So:

• die Spülmaschine ausräumen
• den Tisch decken

This is a very common pattern in German.

Ausräumen means to empty out, to unload, or to clear out, depending on context. Here it means to empty/unload the dishwasher.

It is a separable verb:

• base verb: räumen = to clear / tidy / remove
• prefix: aus-

In a main clause, separable prefixes move to the end:

• Ich räume die Spülmaschine aus.
• Kannst du die Spülmaschine ausräumen?

In an infinitive form, as here after kannst, the verb stays together as ausräumen.

So:

• finite main verb: prefix separates
• infinitive: prefix stays attached

Because it depends on the modal verb kannst.

German modal verbs like können, müssen, wollen, sollen, dürfen, mögen usually work like this:

• the modal verb is conjugated
• the main verb goes to the end in the infinitive

So:

• Kannst du ... ausräumen?
• Wir müssen ... machen.
• Ich will ... lernen.

That is why the structure is:

• Kannst = conjugated modal verb
• du = subject
• other sentence elements
• ausräumen = infinitive at the end

Because bevor introduces a subordinate clause.

In German subordinate clauses, the conjugated verb normally goes to the end.

So:

• main clause: Wir decken den Tisch.
• subordinate clause: bevor wir den Tisch decken

This is one of the most important German word order rules.

Common subordinating conjunctions that also send the verb to the end include:

• weil = because
• dass = that
• wenn = if/when
• bevor = before
• obwohl = although

Bevor means before.

It introduces an action that happens later than the action in the main clause. In this sentence:

• first: empty the dishwasher
• then: set the table

So bevor wir den Tisch decken means before we set the table.

Because bevor introduces a subordinate clause, the verb goes to the end:

• bevor wir den Tisch decken

Literally, den Tisch decken means to cover the table, but that is not how it is usually understood in modern English.

The natural meaning is:

• to set the table

This is a fixed and very common expression in German.

Examples:

• Ich decke den Tisch. = I’m setting the table.
• Kannst du den Tisch decken? = Can you set the table?

Because the speaker is addressing you in the request, but then refers to we for the later action.

So the meaning is:

• Can you please empty the dishwasher
• before we set the table

This suggests that setting the table is something the speaker and the other person will do together, or that the speaker sees it as a shared activity.

This shift in subject is completely normal.

Yes, absolutely.

German allows either order:

• Kannst du bitte die Spülmaschine ausräumen, bevor wir den Tisch decken?
• Bevor wir den Tisch decken, kannst du bitte die Spülmaschine ausräumen?

If the subordinate clause comes first, it takes the first position in the sentence, so the main clause still follows the normal rule that the conjugated verb comes second:

• Bevor wir den Tisch decken, kannst du ...

Notice that kannst still comes immediately after the introductory clause.

Yes, it is informal because it uses du.

If you were speaking formally to one person, you would use Sie and the verb would change:

• Können Sie bitte die Spülmaschine ausräumen, bevor wir den Tisch decken?

Changes:

• du → Sie
• kannst → können

Everything else can stay the same.

Yes. Würdest du bitte ...? is also possible and can sound a little softer or more tentative, similar to Would you please ...? in English.

For example:

• Würdest du bitte die Spülmaschine ausräumen, bevor wir den Tisch decken?

But Kannst du bitte ...? is extremely common and natural in everyday German, so the original sentence is perfectly normal.

Without the modal verb, the main clause would need a fully conjugated main verb, and the separable prefix would split off:

• Du räumst bitte die Spülmaschine aus, bevor wir den Tisch decken.

Compare the two patterns:

With a modal:

• Kannst du bitte die Spülmaschine ausräumen ... ?

Without a modal:

• Du räumst bitte die Spülmaschine aus ...

This comparison helps show two important rules:

1. with a modal, the main verb is an infinitive at the end
2. without a modal, a separable verb splits in a main clause