r/norsk • u/dwchandler • Feb 16 '20

Søndagsspørsmål #319 - Sunday Question Thread

This is a weekly post to ask any question that you may not have felt deserved its own post, or have been hesitating to ask for whatever reason. No question too small or silly!

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u/[deleted] Feb 16 '20

Hi, this is my first ever post and the question may be silly but both I want and I will have are "Jeg vil ha" but is there a way to differentiate between the two as in some circumstances either one can be said but one is more demanding than the other?

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u/aaaadam Feb 17 '20

"Jeg vil ha" can only mean "I want". The literal translation is "I want to have". It's used when you want something/an object/food etc.

Example: Jeg vil ha en kopp kaffe/en kaffe. (I want a cup of coffee/a coffee.)

Jeg vil ha en ny bil. (I want a new car.)

The other way "Jeg vil" is used is when it's followed by a verb meaning you want to do something.

Example: Jeg vil spise en pølse. (I want to eat a hotdog/sausage)

Jeg vil kjøpe en bil. (Jeg want to buy a car.)

"Jeg vil" however, as you mention is sometimes used as "I will". This whole topic is really confusing and you could search a hundred different forum posts where everyone says different things and you never really get to the bottom of it. The truth is, when you see "vil" used as "will" it's either written or in a formal setting. In reality the word "skal" is used for all instances where "will" would be used in english.

To make it easy for you and to allow you progress further in norsk I'll explain it like this.

Jeg vil = I want to (followed by a verb)

Jeg vil ha = I want to have (followed by an object/food etc.)

Jeg skal = I will/shall

If there's still any confusion or you have any examples just send me message or reply here.

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u/[deleted] Feb 17 '20

Tusen takk! That was very useful, I appreciate your response!

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u/Nancywhinn Feb 16 '20

If I’m remembering correctly, one way to make it sound less demanding is to say “jeg vil gjerne ha» which makes it more like «I would like to have». But I’m not a native speaker .... and i don’t know if this even answers your question.

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u/Nancywhinn Feb 16 '20

There’s also «ønske» and «ha lyst til» if you want to use an entirely different phrase with a similar, but not entirely synonymous, meaning