支付(zhī fù) - to pay, to disburse in Mandarin

支付 (zhī fù) is the formal, financial verb for payment: costs, wages, rent, fees, an invoice. It is also the word baked into modern Chinese life through 支付宝 and 移动支付, so a learner meets it on every checkout screen.

Its object is usually a sum or a category of expense rather than a shop assistant, and it often appears without any object at all: 用手机支付.

The trap is using it over the counter. Paying for your noodles is 付钱 or simply 付, and asking to settle up is 买单 or 结账. 支付 in a small restaurant sounds like you have brought a finance department with you.