Questions & Answers about Hun vil ha hovedrollen i neste teaterstykke.
What does vil ha mean here? Is it “wants” or a future tense like “will have”?
In this sentence, vil ha means “wants (to have)”, not a neutral future tense.
- vil = want
- ha = have
So hun vil ha hovedrollen = she wants the main role.
Norwegian doesn’t use vil in the same way English uses “will” for a neutral future. For future meaning, Norwegian more often uses:
- skal for planned/arranged future:
- Hun skal ha hovedrollen = She is going to have the main role (it’s decided/planned).
- Present tense + time expression:
- Hun har hovedrollen i neste teaterstykke can also imply a future arrangement in context (she has the main role in the next play).
Why do we need ha after vil? Why not just Hun vil hovedrollen?