# Norwegian would like to



## Elske_m

Hello,

I've been trying to figure out how to say 'I would like to' in Norwegian (apologies if there's already a thread which discusses this but I can't find it!) - is it something like 'Jeg ville like å ...'?


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## kirsitn

There's no direct translation that works for every situation, but some fairly general options are:

-Jeg kunne gjerne tenke meg å...
-Jeg har lyst til å...
-Jeg skulle likt å...
-Jeg skulle gjerne... (+verb in perfect tense)


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## Elske_m

Ahhh thank you very much, that's very helpful


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## oskhen

A context would definitely help, because, as was said, none of the examples given works as well (or works at all) in every situation.


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## Grefsen

kirsitn said:


> There's no direct translation that works for every situation, but some fairly general options are:
> 
> -Jeg kunne gjerne tenke meg å...
> -Jeg har lyst til å...
> -Jeg skulle likt å...
> -Jeg skulle gjerne... (+verb in perfect tense)



*Tusen takk* for these good examples *kirsitn*.   

Before reading this thread, if someone had asked me to say *på norsk* "I would like to have a glass of beer," my reply would have been:

*Jeg vil gjerne ha et glass øl.*

Would a more accurate translation of this be "I want to have a glass of beer" and would it be more accurate to say "*Jeg skulle gjerne ha et glass øl*" or would the use of "*vil gjerne ha*" and *"skulle gjerne ha"* be more or less interchangeable in this example?


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## oskhen

Grefsen said:


> *Tusen takk* for these good examples *kirsitn*.
> 
> Before reading this thread, if someone had asked me to say *på norsk* "I would like to have a glass of beer," my reply would have been:
> 
> *Jeg vil gjerne ha et glass øl.*
> 
> Would a more accurate translation of this be "I want to have a glass of beer" and would it be more accurate to say "*Jeg skulle gjerne ha et glass øl*" or would the use of "*vil gjerne ha*" and *"skulle gjerne ha"* be more or less interchangeable in this example?


 
In this example, I would say "Jeg vil gjerne ha". "Jeg kunne godt tenke meg" could also be used. "Skulle gjerne" implies a higher degree of necessity, I think, or something one attempts to do. It's really difficult to explain.


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## valdo

Another option (a bit ny-norsk):

Eg hev hug til...


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## Elske_m

oskhen said:


> A context would definitely help, because, as was said, none of the examples given works as well (or works at all) in every situation.


 
Good point 

Here is the context... I'm trying to translate this sentence:
I would like to tell you a bit about myself and my family.


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## oskhen

Elske_m said:


> Good point
> 
> Here is the context... I'm trying to translate this sentence:
> I would like to tell you a bit about myself and my family.


 
If this sentence stands alone, I think I would say "Jeg vil gjerne". 

(My choice could depend a bit on the context of the sentence, though)


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## oskhen

valdo said:


> Another option (a bit ny-norsk):


 
It's "nynorsk", not "ny-norsk"


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## Elske_m

oskhen said:


> If this sentence stands alone, I think I would say "Jeg vil gjerne".
> 
> (My choice could depend a bit on the context of the sentence, though)


 
hahaha would you like the whole text? Basically it's a paragraph, that is the first sentence and in the sentences that follow the person goes on to talk about himself and his family... that context enough?


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## oskhen

Elske_m said:


> hahaha would you like the whole text? Basically it's a paragraph, that is the first sentence and in the sentences that follow the person goes on to talk about himself and his family... that context enough?


 
I guess "Jeg vil gjerne" works fine. Other options might have been more appropriate, I think, in certain contexts, but if the text starts with, "I would like to", then my suggestion seems the best (if nobody has a better one).


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