Episode 227 Are you getting confused between SO and TOO when you speak English? Let me help.
This week we're looking at a little known grammar point called 'intensifiers'. These words are used to intensify adjectives and adverbs. I have covered this subject before in a little more detail in Episode 90, so feel free to head back to that episode for more. In this episode we're focusing on just two intensifiers: So and Too.These two words are very common in English, and I think more so now because we are often emphasising things, and this is what these words are for...its all in the name😉So, what's the problem? The most common problem I hear my students make is using Too, when they should be using So. This might seem simple, but since they are often used close together, it's not always clear what the difference is. So, what's the difference? So is used to notice something, it is neutral. Too is often used to complain about something, it tends to be negative.Examples from our episode:I saw too many electric cars - complainingI saw so many electric cars - noticingShakespeare is too hard, it's so old. - complaint about difficulty, commenting on the reasonShakespeare is so hard it's too old. - commenting on the difficulty, complaining about the ageRemember we can (and often do) emphasise both of these words! So that's not the thing to help you decide which to use. Try to notice when you're using them first. After doing this for a while it will be easier to notice when you make a mistake and start fixing it. #emmaseslenglish #english #englishgrammar #englishspeaking #englishlearning