Do any blocks that break sand withstand water?
The falling sand breaks when the sand entity reaches a block that stops it. Then it tries to convert into a sand block. This may not be possible if there is already another block at that place - in that case the sand is dropped as item. This means the sand block breaks when it is partially inside another block when it stops falling. So all non-full height blocks will break sand e.g. torches, slabs, pressure plates, enchanting table etc.
Water will break all plants except reeds and cactus and all circuitry blocks + a few others: button, end rod, flower pot, lever, rails, redstone dust, repeaters and comparators, skulls, torches, string, web, and trip wire hook.
Here is an exhaustive list of blocks that fit both criteria:
- Bed (minecraft:bed)
- Brewing Stand (minecraft:brewing_stand)
- Cake (minecraft:cake)
- Chest (minecraft:chest)
- Daylight Sensor (minecraft:daylight_detector_inverted)
- Daylight Sensor (minecraft:daylight_detector)
- Enchantment Table (minecraft:enchanting_table)
- End Portal (minecraft:end_portal_frame)
- Ender Chest (minecraft:ender_chest)
- Farmland (minecraft:farmland)
- Grass Path (minecraft:grass_path)
- Iron Trapdoor (minecraft:iron_trapdoor)
- Purpur Slab (minecraft:purpur_slab)
- Red Sandstone Slab (minecraft:stone_slab2)
- Sugar Cane (minecraft:reeds)
- Sign (minecraft:wall_sign)
- Sign (minecraft:standing_sign)
- Stone Pressure Plate (minecraft:stone_pressure_plate)
- Stone Slab (minecraft:stone_slab)
- Trapped Chest (minecraft:trapped_chest)
- Weighted Pressure Plate (Heavy) (minecraft:heavy_weighted_pressure_plate)
- Weighted Pressure Plate (Light) (minecraft:light_weighted_pressure_plate)
- White Banner (minecraft:wall_banner)
- Wood Slab (minecraft:wooden_slab)
- Wooden Pressure Plate (minecraft:wooden_pressure_plate)
- Wooden Trapdoor (minecraft:trapdoor)