Nej, jag vill hellre dricka te ikväll.

No, I would rather drink tea tonight.

Breakdown of Nej, jag vill hellre dricka te ikväll.

• jag: I
• dricka: to drink
• vilja: to want
• ikväll: tonight
• teet: the tea
• hellre: rather
• nej: no

Questions & Answers about Nej, jag vill hellre dricka te ikväll.

Why is there a comma after Nej?

In Swedish it’s common to write a comma after a short interjection like Nej, Ja, Jo, especially when it introduces the rest of the sentence: Nej, jag vill …
In informal writing you may also see it without the comma, but the comma is very standard.

Does vill mean want or would like here? Is it polite enough?

vill literally means want, but in everyday Swedish it’s often used where English would say would like, especially in simple, friendly contexts (ordering, choosing, suggesting).
If you want to sound more explicitly polite/soft, Swedish often uses skulle vilja (or skulle gärna vilja): Nej, jag skulle vilja dricka te ikväll.

Why is dricka in the infinitive form?

Because vill is a modal/helping verb. After modals like vill, kan, måste, får, Swedish uses the bare infinitive (no att):

• Jag vill dricka (not jag vill att dricka)

Where does hellre go in the sentence, and why is it there?

hellre (rather / preferably) typically comes after the finite verb (here vill) and before the infinitive phrase:

• Jag vill hellre dricka te
  This is a very common adverb placement in Swedish main clauses.

How do I say “I’d rather drink tea than coffee” with hellre?

You usually use the pattern hellre X än Y:

• Jag dricker hellre te än kaffe.
  With vill:
• Jag vill hellre dricka te än kaffe.
  (än = than)

Why is it te without an article? Shouldn’t it be “a tea” or “the tea”?

Swedish often uses the bare noun for drinks/food in a general sense, similar to English “drink tea”:

• dricka te, dricka kaffe, äta pasta
  If you mean a specific serving, you can add something:
• en kopp te = a cup of tea
  If you mean a specific tea already known in context, you might use definiteness:
• teet = the tea

What’s the difference between ikväll and i kväll?

They mean the same: tonight. Both spellings exist.

• ikväll is very common as one word.
• i kväll is also correct and sometimes feels a bit more “spelled-out.”
  You’ll see both in real Swedish.

Does ikväll usually go at the end?

Very often, yes. Time adverbials like ikväll, idag, imorgon commonly appear near the end:

• Jag vill hellre dricka te ikväll.
  But Swedish allows movement for emphasis:
• Ikväll vill jag hellre dricka te. (emphasizes tonight)

Is the word order always Subject + verb + … like this?

In Swedish main clauses, the “V2 rule” applies: the finite verb is in the second position. Here the first position is jag, so vill comes second:

• Jag (1) vill (2) …
  If you start with something else (like Ikväll), vill still stays second:
• Ikväll (1) vill (2) jag …

How would I make this sentence negative (like “I don’t want…”), and where does inte go?

inte usually comes after the finite verb in a main clause:

• Nej, jag vill inte dricka te ikväll.
  With hellre you might say:
• Jag vill inte dricka te ikväll, jag vill hellre dricka kaffe.
  (or Jag vill hellre inte dricka te ikväll if you mean “I’d rather not drink tea tonight,” which is a different nuance.)

Can I say ha instead of dricka?

Yes, depending on meaning. dricka te focuses on the action of drinking. ha te is more like “have (some) tea” (often implying being served or choosing it):

• Jag vill hellre ha te ikväll. = “I’d rather have tea tonight.”
  Both are natural.

How is this pronounced, especially hellre and ikväll?

Approximate pronunciations (varies by region):

• Nej ≈ “nay”
• jag often sounds like ya in casual speech (especially in central Sweden)
• vill ≈ “vill” (short i)
• hellre ≈ “HELL-reh” (often with a clear -re ending)
• dricka ≈ “DRIK-ka”
• te ≈ “teh”
• ikväll ≈ “ih-KVELL” (stress on the second part, kväll)