Înainte de a împrumuta, Ana scanează legitimația de bibliotecă.

It means before doing something.

In Romanian, înainte de a + infinitive is a very common pattern:

• înainte = before
• de a = a structure used before an infinitive verb

So Înainte de a împrumuta means Before borrowing / Before checking something out.

A few similar examples:

• Înainte de a pleca = before leaving
• Înainte de a începe = before starting

Because after înainte de a, Romanian normally uses the infinitive.

So:

• a împrumuta = to borrow / to lend
• de a împrumuta = to borrow, in this structure after înainte

This is similar to English before borrowing or before she borrows, but Romanian uses this fixed grammar pattern:

• înainte de a + verb

It can mean either, depending on context.

That can feel strange to English speakers, because English clearly separates borrow and lend. Romanian often uses a împrumuta for both ideas, and context tells you which one is meant.

In this sentence, because it is about a library process, împrumuta most naturally means to borrow or to check out a book.

For example:

• Ana împrumută o carte de la bibliotecă. = Ana borrows/checks out a book from the library.
• Ana împrumută o carte prietenei ei. = Ana lends a book to her friend.

Most naturally, it is Ana.

Romanian often leaves the subject unspoken in infinitive structures when it is clear from context. Since the main clause says Ana scanează..., we understand that Ana is the one who is going to borrow something.

So the sentence is understood as: Before borrowing, Ana scans the library card.

If the subject were different, Romanian would usually make that clearer in some other way.

Scanează is the 3rd person singular present form of a scana = to scan.

It matches Ana, which is third person singular:

• eu scanez = I scan
• tu scanezi = you scan
• el/ea scanează = he/she scans

Romanian often uses the present tense for:

• habitual actions
• procedures
• narration of a normal step in a process

So this sentence can sound like:

• Before borrowing, Ana scans the library card or
• Before checking something out, Ana scans her library card

It means the library card.

Breakdown:

• legitimație = ID card, pass, membership card, card used to identify yourself
• legitimația = the card
• de bibliotecă = of/for the library, meaning a card connected with the library

So legitimația de bibliotecă is the normal way to say library card.

Because Romanian attaches the definite article to the end of the noun.

So:

• o legitimație = a card
• legitimația = the card

This is one of the biggest differences from English. Instead of a separate word like the, Romanian often adds it to the noun itself.

Examples:

• carte = book
• cartea = the book
• bibliotecă = library
• biblioteca = the library

So legitimația de bibliotecă literally means the library card.

Because de + noun is very common in Romanian for showing type, purpose, or association.

Here, legitimație de bibliotecă means a card associated with the library, just like English library card.

This is not really expressing possession in the sense of the library’s card. It is naming the kind of card.

Compare:

• sală de sport = gym / sports hall
• bilet de tren = train ticket
• card de credit = credit card

So legitimația de bibliotecă is the natural Romanian structure.

Romanian word order is fairly flexible, and starting with a time phrase is very natural.

By placing Înainte de a împrumuta first, the sentence emphasizes the sequence of actions:

1. first, the card is scanned
2. then the borrowing happens

English can do the same:

• Before borrowing, Ana scans the library card.

Romanian could sometimes be rearranged, but this order is very normal and clear.

A few important ones:

• Înainte: the â/î sound is a central vowel that does not exist in English. It is the same sound in Romanian whether written â or î.
• împrumuta: starts with that same î sound.
• legitimația: the ț is pronounced like ts in cats.
• scanează: the ă at the end is a short neutral vowel, similar to the a in sofa.

So some rough pronunciation help:

• Înainte ≈ uhn-EYEN-te
• împrumuta ≈ uhm-proo-moo-TA
• legitimația ≈ leh-jee-tee-ma-TSI-a
• scanează ≈ ska-NEA-zuh

These are only approximations, but they can help you get started.

Yes.

Romanian often does not use a possessive word like her when the meaning is obvious from context. So:

• Ana scanează legitimația de bibliotecă can naturally be understood as
  • Ana scans the library card
  • or more idiomatically in context, Ana scans her library card

If Romanian wanted to be more explicit, it could say:

• Ana își scanează legitimația de bibliotecă.

But the simpler version in your sentence is completely normal.