Questions & Answers about Eu vou pagar por ele.
Both can be translated as for him, but they are used differently.
pagar por ele – pay on his behalf / instead of him / for his benefit, often with the idea that you are covering his cost.
- Eu vou pagar por ele. → I’ll pay on his behalf / I’ll cover his bill.
pagar a ele / para ele – pay him (he is the person who receives the money).
- Eu vou pagar a ele. → I’ll pay him (he is the person I owe money to).
So:
- If he is the one who should be paying, but you will do it → por ele.
- If he is the one who receives the money, the creditor → a ele / para ele.
Yes. Ele can refer to:
- a masculine person (him)
- a masculine noun (it), e.g. o carro (the car), o jantar (the dinner)
Examples:
- Eu vou pagar por ele.
- If you were talking about your friend João → I’ll pay for him.
- If you were talking about o jantar (the dinner) → I’ll pay for it.
Context usually makes it clear whether ele means him or it.
Yes, in theory por ele can mean because of him or on account of him, because por is quite flexible.
For example:
- Estou a sofrer por ele. → I’m suffering because of him.
In Eu vou pagar por ele, the most natural interpretation is I’ll pay on his behalf / I’ll pay for him, but in the right context it could also be understood as I’ll pay (a price, in some sense) because of him. Normally, context and tone make the intended meaning clear.
In Portuguese, por contracts with definite articles, not with pronouns.
- por + o → pelo
- por + a → pela
- por + os → pelos
- por + as → pelas
But ele is a pronoun, not an article, so there is no contraction:
- por ele (for/by him/it) – correct
- pelo = por + o (for/by the…) – different structure
Yes, and in European Portuguese that is actually more natural in everyday speech.
Portuguese is a pro‑drop language: the subject pronoun is often omitted because the verb ending or the context shows who the subject is.
- Eu vou pagar por ele. – correct
- Vou pagar por ele. – also correct, and very common
You might keep Eu for emphasis:
- Eu vou pagar por ele. → I will pay for him (not someone else).
Both forms are grammatically correct:
- Eu vou pagar por ele.
- Eu pagarei por ele.
Differences:
vou pagar (ir + infinitive)
- Very common in spoken European Portuguese
- Feels neutral and natural in everyday conversation
- Often corresponds to English I’m going to pay / I’ll pay
pagarei
- More formal or literary
- More common in written language (documents, formal letters, some journalism)
- In speech it can sound a bit stiff or emphatic
If you are speaking, prefer vou pagar.
Vou pagar covers both:
- A near future / intention:
- Já vou pagar. → I’m about to pay / I’m going to pay now.
- A more general future:
- Vou pagar por ele amanhã. → I’m going to pay for him tomorrow.
It works much like English “going to + verb”: it can be very near or more distant future, depending on context.
Yes, mainly in aspect and typical use:
Eu vou pagar por ele.
- Focus on a future action (often a specific occasion).
- Similar to I’m going to pay for him / I’ll pay for him (this time).
Eu pago por ele.
- Simple present; could mean:
- a habit / repeated action: I pay for him (whenever we go out).
- a present/future plan in some contexts, but less common than vou pagar for future.
- Simple present; could mean:
In most situations where you promise a future action, vou pagar is more natural.
In European Portuguese, Eu vou pagar ele is not the natural or standard way to say I’ll pay for him or I’ll pay him.
Typical patterns in Portugal:
- pagar por alguém → pay on someone’s behalf
- Eu vou pagar por ele.
- pagar a alguém → pay someone (as the recipient)
- Eu vou pagar a ele.
- Eu vou pagar‑lhe. (using lhe, more formal/standard)
Using pagar directly with a person as a simple direct object (pagar ele) is much more associated with Brazilian speech; in European Portuguese it sounds odd or non‑standard.
After most prepositions in Portuguese, you must use the “strong” pronoun forms (ele, ela, eles, elas), not the clitic object pronouns (o, a, os, as, lhe…).
So:
- por ele – correct
- por o → contracts to pelo, but that is por + the, not for him
- por o meaning for him is incorrect; you must say por ele.
Rule of thumb: after a simple preposition (por, para, de, em, com…), use ele/ela/eles/elas, not o/a/os/as.
In European Portuguese:
- Vou pagar por ele. – neutral, everyday.
- Eu pagarei por ele. – more formal / written.
- Eu pago por ele. – could mean I cover his expenses (regularly).
- Eu vou pagar‑lhe. / Eu vou pagar a ele.
- Focus on paying him as the receiver of the money.
Choose based on what you mean:
- On his behalf → pagar por ele
- Pay him (to whom the money goes) → pagar‑lhe / pagar a ele
It is neutral. You can use it:
- with friends and family
- with colleagues
- in most everyday situations, even in semi‑formal contexts
For very formal written texts (contracts, legal language), pagarei por ele might appear instead, but in spoken European Portuguese Eu vou pagar por ele is perfectly fine and common.
Approximate IPA (European Portuguese):
- Eu → [ew]
- vou → [vo]
- pagar → [pɐˈɣaɾ] (first a is reduced, r is a tap)
- por → [poɾ] or [puɾ] (r is a tap)
- ele → [ˈelɨ]
Spoken together, it flows roughly like:
ew vo pɐˈɣaɾ poˈɾelɨ
- The r in pagar and por is usually a single tap [ɾ] in European Portuguese (not a strong English r).
- ele ends with a reduced vowel [ɨ], not a clear “ee” sound.
You only need por ele if you want to specify for whom / on whose behalf you are paying.
- Eu vou pagar. → I’ll pay.
(Context will fill in: the bill, the ticket, etc.) - Eu vou pagar por ele. → I’ll pay for him / I’ll cover his part.
If it is already clear from context who you are paying for, Portuguese speakers will often drop por ele and just say Eu pago or Vou pagar.