Breakdown of Den nye plan kan lykkes.
den
the (common, before adjective)
ny
new
kunne
to be able to / can
planen
the plan
Questions & Answers about Den nye plan kan lykkes.
Why does lykkes end in an -s? Is it a passive verb?
It looks passive, but it isn't! Lykkes belongs to a special group of words called deponent verbs. These verbs always end in -s but have a normal, active meaning. In this sentence, it simply means "to succeed".
Is lykkes in the infinitive or the present tense here?
It is in the infinitive form because it follows the modal verb kan (can). However, for deponent verbs like this one, the infinitive and the present tense look exactly the same! If you wanted to say "The plan succeeds" without using "can", it would still be Planen lykkes.
Why do we say Den nye plan instead of just Den ny plan?
This is because of the definite article Den (The). When an adjective comes between a definite article and a noun, the adjective must take its definite ending, which is almost always -e. So, ny (new) becomes nye.
What gender is plan, and how can we tell from this sentence?
Plan is a common gender word (an en-word). We can tell because the sentence uses the common gender "free-standing" definite article Den. If it were a neuter (et-word) noun, the article would be Det.