Translation guide
How to express 'pay for' in Japanese, covering payment for goods/services, treating someone, bearing costs, and idiomatic expressions like 'pay for a mistake'.
The speaker pays money in exchange for an item or service.
The most common and neutral way to say 'pay for something'. Use the particle を for the thing being paid for.
I'll pay for the meal.
I forgot to pay the rent.
More explicit: 'pay the price/charge for something'. Often used in formal or business contexts.
Pay for the product.
Used for paying fees, charges, or fares (e.g., utilities, admission, transportation).
Pay the electricity bill.
A more formal or written equivalent of 払う, often used in business or official contexts.
Pay the invoice.
The speaker pays on behalf of another person, often as a treat or gesture.
Means 'to treat someone to something'. The person being treated is marked with に, and the thing paid for with を.
I treated my friend to lunch.
It's my treat today.
Literally 'to hold (the bill) for someone', meaning to pay for them. Casual and friendly.
I'll cover this one.
Means 'to pay someone's share'. Used when splitting costs but covering someone else's portion.
I paid for his share too.
Taking financial responsibility for something, often in a business or formal context.
To suffer negative consequences as a result of one's actions, equivalent to 'pay for (a mistake)'.
Literally 'pay the price/compensation for something'. Used for both literal and figurative consequences.
He paid for his mistake.
Idiomatic: 'pay the bill/tab for something', implying delayed consequences catching up.
Means 'to receive punishment', used when 'pay for' implies being punished.
He paid for his crime.
払う is the everyday verb for 'pay'. 支払う is more formal and often used in business writing or when referring to scheduled payments like bills or invoices. In casual speech, 払う is preferred.
I'll pay today.
We will pay at the end of the month.
買う means 'buy', not 'pay for'. Saying これを買う means 'I'll buy this', which implies ownership transfer. To focus on the payment act, use 払う or おごる as appropriate.
I'll pay (for it).
It is the citizens who bear the cost of that decision.
The time has come to pay for overdoing it.
I'll buy it.