Min søster lægger resterne i en beholder, før hun sætter den tilbage i fryseren.

Resterne means the leftovers. The ending -ne is the definite article for plural nouns in Danish.

• rester = leftovers
• resterne = the leftovers

So Danish usually puts definiteness at the end of the noun instead of using a separate word like the.

En beholder means a container.

Danish nouns have grammatical gender, and beholder is a common gender noun, so it takes en:

• en beholder = a container
• beholderen = the container

A learner often wants to know whether a noun takes en or et. Unfortunately, this usually has to be learned with the noun.

The preposition i usually means in or into, depending on context.

Here:

• lægger resterne i en beholder = puts the leftovers in/into a container
• sætter den tilbage i fryseren = puts it back in the freezer

English often distinguishes clearly between in and into, but Danish frequently uses i for both, and the verb helps show whether there is movement.

Danish often distinguishes between different kinds of putting something somewhere.

lægge is commonly used when something is laid or placed down, especially when the object is not thought of as standing upright.

So:

• lægger resterne i en beholder = puts the leftovers into a container

A very common learner question is why Danish does not just use one general verb everywhere. Danish often chooses a more specific placement verb than English does.

This is a classic Danish verb-choice issue.

sætte is often used when something is set or placed in a position where it is understood as standing or being placed as a unit. A container is often treated this way.

So the sentence uses:

• lægger resterne i en beholder = puts the leftovers into a container
• sætter den tilbage i fryseren = puts the container back in the freezer

In English, both are often just put, but Danish often prefers different verbs depending on the object and how it is positioned.

Den refers to en beholder.

Since beholder is a common gender noun, the pronoun is den:

• en beholder → den

If the noun were a neuter noun with et, the pronoun would normally be det.

So den here means it, specifically the container.

Because the pronoun logically refers to the nearest suitable noun: en beholder.

The leftovers are put into the container first, and then the container is put back in the freezer.

So the sequence is:

1. resterne go into en beholder
2. den = beholderen goes back into the freezer

Danish present tense is often used the same way English simple present is used for habits, routines, or general actions.

So this can mean something like:

• My sister puts the leftovers in a container before she puts it back in the freezer.

It may describe a habitual action, not necessarily something happening right this second.

Because før introduces a subordinate clause.

In Danish subordinate clauses, the subject usually comes before the verb:

• før hun sætter den tilbage i fryseren

That is different from main clause word order, where Danish often uses verb-second order.

Compare:

• Main clause: Hun sætter den tilbage i fryseren.
• Subordinate clause: før hun sætter den tilbage i fryseren

So after før, the order is more like standard English clause order.

Tilbage means back.

So:

• sætter den tilbage i fryseren = puts it back in the freezer

It shows that the container is being returned to its earlier place. Without tilbage, the sentence would just mean putting it in the freezer, not necessarily returning it there.

Fryseren means the freezer.

The ending -en is the definite article for a singular common-gender noun:

• en fryser = a freezer
• fryseren = the freezer

This makes sense because the speaker usually has a specific freezer in mind.

Yes, in everyday Danish, putter can often be used as a more general put verb:

• Min søster putter resterne i en beholder ...

That sounds natural too. But lægger is also perfectly normal, and it reflects the Danish tendency to choose a more specific placement verb.

So:

• putter = more general, often very common in speech
• lægger = more specific placement choice

Usually, yes, but the exact English wording depends on the sentence.

Here, før hun sætter den tilbage i fryseren means before she puts it back in the freezer.

Danish før can introduce a time relationship, just like English before.

These are tricky because Danish vowels do not match English ones very closely.

A rough guide:

• søster: the ø is somewhat like the vowel in French deux or German schön, if you know those. It is not like English o.
• lægger: the æ is somewhat like the vowel in English cat, but Danish pronunciation is still different.
• fryseren: the y is a front rounded vowel, not like English y in my. It is somewhat like German ü.

Also remember that Danish pronunciation is often softer and less fully pronounced than the spelling suggests, especially in endings like -er and -en.

Min søster is the normal way to say my sister in standard Danish.

Danish possessives usually come before the noun:

• min søster = my sister
• min beholder = my container

You can sometimes hear structures like søsteren min, but they are more marked and often have a slightly different emphasis, more like that sister of mine or my sister with special focus.

So in a neutral sentence, min søster is the expected choice.