Vor dem Trinken schüttle ich die Flasche mit dem Saft.

Before drinking, I shake the bottle with the juice.

Breakdown of Vor dem Trinken schüttle ich die Flasche mit dem Saft.

• dem: the; (masculine or neuter, dative)
• ich: I
• mit: with
• der Saft: the juice

Questions & Answers about Vor dem Trinken schüttle ich die Flasche mit dem Saft.

What does Vor dem Trinken mean exactly?

It means before drinking or before I drink, depending on context.

In German, vor can be used for time expressions, so vor dem Trinken is a very common way to say before drinking.

A close literal breakdown is:

• vor = before
• dem Trinken = the drinking

So the whole phrase is literally something like before the drinking, but in natural English we usually say before drinking.

Why is Trinken capitalized?

Because here Trinken is being used as a noun, not as a verb.

German normally capitalizes all nouns. The verb trinken means to drink, but when you turn it into a noun meaning drinking, it becomes das Trinken.

So:

• trinken = to drink
• das Trinken = the drinking / drinking

This is called a nominalized verb.

Why is it dem Trinken?