לפני שהיא משלמת, היא מקבלת קפה.

לפני means before.

In this sentence, it introduces the action that happens earlier: before she pays.

A useful distinction is:

• לפני + noun = before something
  
  • לפני השיעור = before the lesson
• לפני ש־ + clause = before someone does something
  
  • לפני שהיא משלמת = before she pays

Because לפני is followed here by a full clause, not just a single word.

Hebrew usually uses לפני ש־ when it means before + a whole sentence/action:

• לפני שהיא משלמת = before she pays
• לפני שהוא מגיע = before he arrives

You cannot normally say לפני משלמת by itself for this meaning.

If you wanted a shorter noun-style expression, you would use something like:

• לפני התשלום = before the payment

The ש is the short form of אשר in modern Hebrew, and here it works like a connector introducing the subordinate clause.

After לפני, Hebrew commonly uses ש־:

• לפני שהיא משלמת
• לפני שאני הולך
• לפני שהם אוכלים

So שהיא is basically that she / when she as part of the structure before she....

In writing, the ש־ is attached directly to the next word.

Because there are two clauses, and each clause has its own subject:

1. לפני שהיא משלמת
2. היא מקבלת קפה

In English, we also usually repeat she:

• Before she pays, she gets coffee.

Hebrew often repeats the subject this way, especially when the clauses are clearly separate.

Also, even though the verb form already shows feminine singular, using היא makes the sentence clearer and more natural.

Because both verbs are in the present tense feminine singular form, matching the subject היא.

• היא משלמת = she pays / is paying
• היא מקבלת = she gets / receives

Compare:

• הוא משלם = he pays

• היא משלמת = she pays

• הוא מקבל = he gets
• היא מקבלת = she gets

So the ending ־ת is a very common sign of feminine singular in the present tense.

Yes, both verbs are in the Hebrew present tense.

But Hebrew present tense is broader than English is paying / is getting. It can express:

• an action happening now
• a habitual action
• a general fact
• sometimes a vivid, natural-sounding sequence

So היא משלמת can mean:

• she pays
• she is paying

depending on context.

In this sentence, the most natural English translation is before she pays, she gets coffee, because that sounds like a routine or sequence.

Yes. If you are talking about a specific future event, future tense is often very natural:

• לפני שהיא תשלם, היא תקבל קפה.
  = Before she pays, she will get coffee.

But the sentence you have uses the present tense, which often sounds like a general rule, habit, or standard sequence.

So:

• לפני שהיא משלמת, היא מקבלת קפה = a routine / general pattern
• לפני שהיא תשלם, היא תקבל קפה = a specific future situation

The basic meaning of מקבלת is receives, from the verb לקבל.

But in everyday English, gets is often the more natural translation.

So in this sentence, היא מקבלת קפה could be understood as:

• she receives coffee
• she gets coffee

In normal conversation, gets coffee usually sounds more natural.

Because קפה here is indefinite: coffee or a coffee, not the coffee.

Compare:

• היא מקבלת קפה = she gets coffee / a coffee
• היא מקבלת את הקפה = she gets the coffee

Hebrew often leaves a noun without ה־ when it is indefinite or general.

It is usually pronounced she-hi.

So the sentence is roughly:

lifnei she-hi meshalemet, hi mekabelet kafe

A learner-friendly breakdown:

• לפני = lifnei
• שהיא = she-hi
• משלמת = meshalemet
• היא = hi
• מקבלת = mekabelet
• קפה = kafe

The comma is normal and helpful because the sentence starts with a subordinate clause:

• לפני שהיא משלמת, היא מקבלת קפה.

It works like English:

• Before she pays, she gets coffee.

In informal writing, punctuation may vary, but using the comma here is standard and clear.