1a. Sita is so tall that she can’t get a date.
1b. Sita is tool tall that she can’t get a date.
2a. The soup was so hot to eat that I can’t drink it.
2b. The soup was too hot to eat that I can’t drink it.
3a. He is so proud that he will not ask for help.
3b. He is too proud that he will not ask for help.
4a. The problem is so complex that it cannot be solved easily.
4b. The problem is too complex that it cannot be solved easily.
5a. You’ve got to tell him that he’s getting so old to drive a car.
5b. You’ve got to tell him that he’s getting too old to drive a car.
Please correct and comment.
Thanks.
1a. Sita is so tall that she can’t get/have a date.
1b. Sita is too tall to get a date.
2a. The soup was so hot that I couldn’t drink it.
2b. The soup was too hot for me to drink.
3a. He is so proud as not to ask for help.
3b. He is too proud to ask for help.
4a. The problem is so complex that it cannot be solved easily.
4b. The problem is too complex to be solved easily.
5a. You’ve got to tell him that he’s getting so old that he will/may not be able to drive a car.
5b. You’ve got to tell him that he’s getting too old to drive a car.
(Why don’t you use a common modal like ‘should/must/have to/ought to’ rather than ‘have got to’?)
1a. It’s too cold to play outside.
1b. Outside is too cold to play.
2a. This is too big t-shirt for me.
2b. This t-shirt is too big for me.
3a. These are too small shoes for me.
3b. These shoes are too small for me.
Please correct the above.
If any of the sentence is wrong, please explain its nuance of the grammar?
Thanks.
1a & 1b. It’s too cold to play outside.
2a. This is too big a T-shirt for me.
2b. This T-shirt is too big for me.
3a & 3b. These shoes are too small for me.
(To me, the other versions are not standard)
Beeesneees/Anglophile,
X: She is too a fat woman. (wrong)
X: She is a too fat woman. (wrong)
X: They are too fat women. (wrong)
The women are too fat. (OK)
She is such a fat woman. (OK)
Please correct whether my observation on each sentence is correct or not?
I just follow the rule of ‘so’ for ‘too’.
Thanks.
Yes, but ‘She is such a fat woman’ is not complete. You need to say either 'She is so fat a woman as/that … ’ or ‘She is such a fat woman that … .’ (Add something like ‘she can hardly keep standing for a couple of minutes’ or ‘she cannot kneel down and pray’.) So is ‘The women are too fat’. (Edited)
“She is such a fat woman,” IS complete.
When used as a complete sentence it is exclamatory (regardless of whether or not it carries an exclamation mark).
Strictly grammatically, sentences like ‘She is such a fat woman’, ‘She is too fat a woman’, ‘She is so fat a woman’ etc ARE not complete in thought though they are easily understood and accepted as complete just because of the focus on ‘fat’ which normally matters. In order to treat them as exclamatory, we DO need an exclamation mark (not a full stop).
(I expect this view of mine to undergo a healthy, meaningful discussion with the participation of other users as well.)
It seems to me that these sentences are incomplete as you would expect a follow up. In that case you would need an exclamation mark to indicate the ‘incompleteness’.
LOL,
You mean you called for reinforcements.
Beeesneees, Anglophile,
- They are too fat(adj) women(n). (wrong)
- This food contains too much(adj) salt(n).
How do you say #1 sentence is wrong while #2 is correct?
Could you please explain the nuance of the grammar?
Thanks.
You mean you called for reinforcements? (This becomes a correct informal question. Don’t say now that it was only a statement in which case you should have said: I mean you called for reinforcements.)
Well, YES, it was for confirmation by the learned, no doubt. Wait and see without stifling their instinct to respond.
Please do not tell me what I mean to say and read things properly.
It wasn’t a question. It was a statement. It doesn’t require the change you indicate. In fact that change would make no sense at all.
It is correct as written.
I agree with Beeesneees:
And this also fits dictionary definitions:
From American Heritage Disctionary:
[i]adv.
- To so extreme a degree; so: such beautiful flowers; such a funny character.[/i]
From the Merriam-Webster Dictionary:
3: of so extreme a degree or quality
From the MacMillan Dictionary:
[i]2. used for emphasizing a quality in someone or something, or for saying that something is unusual
She’s such a nice person.
How can anyone live on such a small salary?
He has always had such compassion and such concern for others.
If it’s such a secret, why did you tell me?[/i]
[color=darkblue]__________________________________________________________
[size=75]“Animals are such agreeable friends - they ask no questions; they pass no criticisms.” - George Eliot[/size]
Beeesneees, Anglophile, Esl_Expert,
Please kindly answer my query.
- They are too fat(adj) women(n). (wrong)
- This food contains too much(adj) salt(n).
How do you say #1 sentence is wrong while #2 is correct?
Could you please explain the nuance of the grammar?
Thanks.
Hi Amy,
How do these extracts prove ‘completeness’?
- To so extreme a degree (as what?); so: such beautiful flowers (as what?); such a funny character (as what?)
From the Merriam-Webster Dictionary:
3: of so extreme a degree or quality (as what?) (as this before.) … .
She’s such a nice person. (that she will do anything for you)
How can anyone live on such a small salary? (as this)
He has always had such compassion and such concern for others (as you have witnessed now).
If it’s such a secret (that it will create insoluble problems), why did you tell me?
[color=green]“Animals are such agreeable friends -/(that) they ask no questions; they pass no criticisms.” - George Eliot. (Yes, Eliot has completed the idea here.)
(I hold that if the idea/thought is not expressed in full, it should be ‘guessable’ or ‘inferable’ from the real context. Or, the statement should imply it. Only then will the communication be complete.)
Oh good grief, you could argue that about almost any sentence.
No one is saying that the real context will not add clarity, but that apples to absolutely anything.