Planterne kan ikke overleve uden vand.

Because -ne is the usual ending for the definite plural in Danish.

Here is the pattern:

• en plante = a plant
• planter = plants
• planterne = the plants

So planterne means the plants, not just plants.

It could be, but it would mean something slightly different.

• Planterne kan ikke overleve uden vand = the plants cannot survive without water
• Planter kan ikke overleve uden vand = plants cannot survive without water

The version with planterne points to specific plants, while planter talks about plants more generally.

Kan is the present tense of kunne, which often means can or to be able to.

In this sentence, kan ikke overleve means cannot survive or are not able to survive.

So:

• kan = can
• kan ikke = cannot / can’t

Because in a normal Danish main clause, the finite verb usually comes early, and ikke often comes after it.

So the order is:

• Planterne = subject
• kan = finite verb
• ikke = not
• overleve = infinitive
• uden vand = prepositional phrase

This is very common in Danish:

• Jeg kan ikke komme. = I cannot come.
• Han vil ikke spise. = He does not want to eat.

Because kan is a modal verb, and modal verbs are usually followed by an infinitive.

So:

• kan = modal verb
• overleve = infinitive, to survive

This is similar to English:

• can survive

Danish often works the same way with modals:

• Jeg vil spise. = I want to eat.
• De skal gå. = They must go.

They are related, but not identical.

• leve = to live
• overleve = to survive

In this sentence, overleve is the natural choice because the idea is that without water, the plants will not continue to stay alive.

So overleve emphasizes survival, not just existence.

Because vand here is being used as an uncountable noun, just like water in English.

You normally do not say:

• a water when you mean water in general

Likewise in Danish:

• vand = water in general

So uden vand means without water.

If you used vandet, that would mean the water, referring to specific water already known from context.

Yes. The noun is:

• et vand = a water

But in practice, when vand means water as a substance, you usually just see vand without an article.

So although the dictionary form is et vand, the sentence naturally uses just vand.

A rough guide is:

• planterne ≈ PLAN-tuh-nuh

A few useful notes:

• The r in Danish is not like a strong English r
• The final -ne is usually pronounced lightly
• Danish pronunciation is often softer and more reduced than spelling suggests

If you are learning pronunciation, it helps to listen closely to native audio, because Danish pronunciation can be less phonetic than English learners expect.

Yes, but with a small nuance.

• Planterne kan ikke overleve uden vand can refer to specific plants in a particular situation
• Planter kan ikke overleve uden vand sounds more like a general scientific truth

So if you want the most general statement, Planter kan ikke overleve uden vand is often more natural. But the original sentence is still perfectly correct.

Not always. Danish main clauses often follow a verb-second pattern, which means the finite verb tends to be in the second position.

In the original sentence:

• Planterne = first element
• kan = second element

If you move something else to the front, the subject usually moves after the verb:

• Uden vand kan planterne ikke overleve. = Without water, the plants cannot survive.

Notice that kan still stays in the second position.

Almost:

• Planterne = the plants
• kan = can
• ikke = not
• overleve = survive
• uden = without
• vand = water

So a very close word-for-word version is:

• The plants can not survive without water

Natural English usually writes this as:

• The plants cannot survive without water
• The plants can’t survive without water