Kan du fylla kannan med vatten från kranen?

Here it functions as a request, like Could you... ? or Can you... ? in English.

Literally, kan means can / be able to, so the sentence could also be understood as asking about ability. But in everyday Swedish, Kan du + infinitive is a very common way to ask someone to do something politely.

So Kan du fylla kannan ... ? is naturally understood as:

• Can you fill the pitcher ... ?
• Could you fill the pitcher ... ?

Because fylla is the infinitive form of the verb, meaning to fill.

After the modal verb kan, Swedish uses the infinitive without att:

• kan fylla = can fill

Compare:

• att fylla = to fill
• jag fyller = I fill / am filling
• Fyll kannan! = Fill the pitcher! (imperative)

So in Kan du fylla kannan ... ?, fylla is correct because it follows kan.

Because kannan is the definite singular form: the pitcher / the jug.

Swedish often adds the definite article as an ending:

• en kanna = a pitcher
• kannan = the pitcher

So:

• fylla kanna would be wrong here
• fylla en kanna = fill a pitcher
• fylla kannan = fill the pitcher

You have to learn Swedish nouns together with their gender:

• en kanna
• ett
  • some other nouns

Since kanna is a common-gender noun (an en-word), its forms are:

• en kanna = a pitcher
• kannan = the pitcher

If it were an ett-word, the pattern would be different.

Because vatten here means water in a general, uncountable sense.

In Swedish, as in English, you usually do not use the definite form for a substance when you mean it generally:

• med vatten = with water

You would use vattnet if you meant some specific water already known from the context:

• med vattnet i flaskan = with the water in the bottle

So in this sentence, med vatten is the natural choice.

Because kranen means the tap, and the sentence is referring to a specific, known tap — most likely the one in the kitchen or wherever the speakers are.

Forms:

• en kran = a tap / faucet
• kranen = the tap / faucet

Swedish often uses the definite form when the object is obvious from the situation.

So:

• från kranen = from the tap
• från en kran = from a tap (any tap, not a specific one)

Sometimes, yes, but från kranen is the most straightforward choice here.

• från means from
• ur means out of

Because water comes out of a tap, ur kranen can sound natural in some contexts. But in a basic sentence like this, från kranen is very standard and easy to understand.

So as a learner, från kranen is the safer default.

The sentence starts with the verb Kan, because it is a yes/no question.

Pattern:

• Kan
  • subject + infinitive + object + other information

So:

• Kan = verb
• du = subject
• fylla = infinitive
• kannan = object
• med vatten från kranen = extra information

In a statement, the word order would be different:

• Du kan fylla kannan med vatten från kranen. = You can fill the pitcher with water from the tap.

It is usually polite enough in everyday Swedish.

Kan du ... ? is very common for ordinary requests. It does not usually sound rude by itself. If you want to sound softer or more polite, you can add words like:

• snälla = please
• tack = thanks
• Kan du snälla fylla kannan med vatten från kranen?
• Kan du fylla kannan med vatten från kranen, tack?

So the original sentence sounds normal and polite in most everyday situations.

The double n shows that the vowel before it is short.

So:

• kan has a different vowel length from
• kann- in kanna / kannan

This is an important spelling-pronunciation pattern in Swedish:

• a double consonant usually means the vowel before it is short
• a single consonant often means the vowel before it is long

That is one reason why kan and kanna do not sound the same, even though they look similar.

Yes. Kanna is a general word for a container used to pour liquids, so in English it can often be translated as:

• jug
• pitcher

The best translation depends on context and on the variety of English you speak. In many learner materials, pitcher is a common translation, but jug can also be correct.

It tells you what to fill the pitcher with.

The structure is:

• fylla kannan med vatten = fill the pitcher with water

Then från kranen tells you where the water comes from:

• water from the tap

So the full phrase works like this:

• med vatten från kranen = with water from the tap

In other words:

• med connects the thing being filled to the substance used
• från kranen modifies vatten, not kannan