Breakdown of Jeg betaler for billetten med kontanter.
jeg
I
med
with
for
for
betale
to pay
billetten
the ticket
kontanter
the cash
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Questions & Answers about Jeg betaler for billetten med kontanter.
Why is the preposition for used before billetten?
In Norwegian, when you use betale (“to pay”), you normally pair it with for to indicate what you’re paying for. It’s exactly like English “pay for.” Without for, the sentence would sound ungrammatical.
Could you leave out for and say Jeg betaler billetten med kontanter?
No. You must include for after betaler if you want to specify the object of payment. Omitting it would confuse the listener and break standard Norwegian syntax.
Why is billetten in the definite form instead of en billett?
You use the definite form billetten (“the ticket”) because you’re talking about a specific ticket you intend to buy or have already chosen. If you said en billett, it would mean “a ticket” in general, without identifying which one.
What is the infinitive form of betaler, and how might it be used?
The infinitive is å betale. You use å betale after modal verbs or other verbs that require an infinitive, for example:
- Jeg må betale for billetten. (I have to pay for the ticket.)
- De vil betale med kort. (They want to pay by card.)
Why is med used before kontanter? Could you use a different preposition?
Med indicates the instrument or means—in this case, kontanter (“cash”). It literally means “with cash.” Using another preposition like i kontanter is not common in everyday Norwegian; the standard pattern is betale med + means of payment.
Why is there no article before kontanter?
Kontanter is treated like a mass noun in the plural when you talk about “cash” in general. You don’t say en kontant or noen kontanter here because you’re not specifying an exact number of bills or coins, just the payment method.
Can you express “with cash” in another way, for example using kontant?
Yes. You can use kontant as an adverb, dropping med entirely:
- Jeg betaler kontant.
This means “I pay in cash,” and is very idiomatic.
Is it possible to swap the order and say Jeg betaler med kontanter for billetten?
Yes, you technically can swap the two prepositional phrases. It’s still correct, but the original order (for billetten med kontanter) is more neutral. Swapping may shift emphasis slightly toward the payment method.