Jeg vil betale regningen selv.

I want to pay the bill myself.

Breakdown of Jeg vil betale regningen selv.

• jeg: I
• betale: to pay
• regningen: the bill
• ville: want

Questions & Answers about Jeg vil betale regningen selv.

Why is it jeg vil betale and not jeg betaler or jeg skal betale?

vil is a modal verb and most often means want to (and sometimes will in the sense of intention). So jeg vil betale is “I want to pay / I’m going to pay (because I want to).”

• jeg betaler (regningen) selv = “I’m paying (the bill) myself” (more factual, present/near-future in context).
• jeg skal betale (regningen) selv = “I’m going to pay (the bill) myself” (often sounds more like a plan/arrangement/decision, sometimes a bit more definite than vil).

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Why isn’t there an å before betale?

After modal verbs like vil, skal, kan, må, bør, Norwegian normally uses the bare infinitive (no å):

• jeg vil betale (not jeg vil å betale)
  You do use å when the verb is not governed by a modal:
• jeg liker å betale (“I like to pay”)

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Does vil here mean “want” or “will (future)”?

Most commonly vil means want. In many everyday situations it also implies a future action (“I’m going to…”), but the core idea is willingness/desire.
If you want to be unambiguously future/plan-focused, skal is often chosen: jeg skal betale regningen selv.

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