Prima di uscire, abbottono il cappotto perché fuori fa freddo.

After prima (“before”), Italian normally uses di + infinitive when the subject is the same in both parts of the sentence.

• Prima di uscire = before going out / before I go out

So in this sentence, the person who buttons the coat is also the person who goes out.

If the subject changes, Italian usually uses prima che + subjunctive:

• Prima di uscire, abbottono il cappotto. = Before going out, I button my coat.
• Prima che tu esca, abbottono il cappotto. = Before you go out, I button the coat.

Uscire means to go out, to leave, or to head outside, depending on context.

In this sentence, it most naturally means something like:

• to go out
• to go outside
• to leave the house/building

So prima di uscire is a very common everyday phrase.

Abbottono is the present indicative, first person singular of abbottonare:

• (io) abbottono = I button / I button up

So if the meaning you were shown is something like Before going out, I button my coat because it’s cold outside, then abbottono is exactly the right form.

Important note: if the subject were they, the form would be abbottonano, not abbottono.

Because Italian is a pro-drop language: subject pronouns are often omitted when the verb ending already makes the subject clear.

• abbottono already tells you the subject is io (“I”)

So:

• Io abbottono il cappotto
• Abbottono il cappotto

both mean I button the coat, but the second is more natural unless you want emphasis or contrast.

For example:

• Io abbottono il cappotto, ma lui no. = I button my coat, but he doesn’t.

Italian often uses the definite article with clothing and body-related items when ownership is obvious from context.

So:

• abbottono il cappotto

can naturally mean:

• I button my coat

even though mio is not stated.

Italian does this more often than English. If you want to emphasize possession, contrast it with someone else’s, or be extra explicit, you can say:

• abbottono il mio cappotto

But in ordinary speech, il cappotto is often enough.

Often, yes.

Italian very commonly uses an indirect object pronoun with clothing:

• Mi abbottono il cappotto.

Literally, this is something like I button the coat on myself, but in natural English it is just I button my coat.

So:

• Abbottono il cappotto = I button the coat / my coat
• Mi abbottono il cappotto = I button my coat

The version with mi can sound more personal and a bit more natural in many everyday contexts, especially when talking about putting on or adjusting your own clothes.

Perché means because here and introduces the reason:

• abbottono il cappotto perché fuori fa freddo
• I button my coat because it’s cold outside

A couple of useful points:

• perché always has the accent
• it can mean both because and why, depending on context

Examples:

• Perché studi? = Why are you studying?
• Studio perché ho un esame. = I’m studying because I have an exam.

Because Italian normally uses fare in common weather expressions:

• fa freddo = it’s cold
• fa caldo = it’s hot
• fa fresco = it’s cool

So fuori fa freddo is the standard way to say it’s cold outside.

You can use essere with freddo in other situations, but it works differently:

• Il pavimento è freddo. = The floor is cold.
• La stanza è fredda. = The room is cold.

For general weather or outside conditions, fa freddo is the normal choice.

Fuori is an adverb meaning outside.

In fuori fa freddo, it tells you where the cold condition is:

• outside, it’s cold
• more naturally: it’s cold outside

Italian can also move it around:

• Fuori fa freddo
• Fa freddo fuori

Both are possible. The version in your sentence puts fuori first for a slightly more scene-setting feel.

Italian present tense is very flexible. Abbottono can describe:

• a habitual action: I button my coat before going out
• an action in a general situation: Before going out, I button my coat
• even a near-immediate action, depending on context

Italian often uses the simple present where English might choose either:

• simple present
• present continuous
• sometimes a more context-specific phrasing

So the present tense here is completely normal and natural.