that much + adjective ==> in what context?

English as a Second Language English Vocabulary, Grammar and Idioms
1

Hello,
I have searched for it in the forum and have looked at the similar threads but they didn’t help me much.

as you know these are incorrect:

  1. Don’t be that much mean.
  2. I’m not that much bad.
  3. She is not that much smart.

I wonder that in what context ‘that much + adjective’ can be used. Would you please be kind enough to help me
with that by an example or guiding?

Thanks in advance

2

I cannot think of one.

3

[quote=“Sb70012”]

I wonder that in what context ‘that much + adjective’ can be used. [color=blue]Omit the underlined “that”.

Eating that much salty food would make me very thirsty.

4

Hi Canadian,

I believe St was speaking about ‘that much’ plus an adjective with no noun following the adjective, as in his incorrect sentences.
I can’t think fo an example. Can you?

5

Hello again,
Everybody, thank you so much for clarification.
I have another question. What if I use a comparative adjective?
Some say I can use a comparative adjective:

that much + comparative adjective
Like: I’m not that much worse.

Would you please have look at this example and tell me if it’s correct?

Suppose that a teacher praises me in the class in front of the students. Then I tell him:

  1. I’m not that much smarter.

Does it work?

This is my second question:
Once one of a non-native English speakers in one of the forums told me:
“Interestingly, there is one (non-gradable) adjective which is naturally used with ‘not that much’: different. Which is not surprising, because, like the comparative adjectives, it is used to compare things.”

Do you agree with him? If you agree with him, then these are these correct?

  1. This color is not that much different.

Thank you

6

[quote=“Sb70012”]
Hello again,

  1. [color=blue]The sentences are correct.

  2. You can use both of the below.

'…that much adjective
'…that much adjective noun

7

Beeesneees,

  1. Eating that much salty food would make me very thirsty.
  2. Eating too much salty food would make me very thirsty.
    Which one is more preferred?
    Thanks.
8

Both are fine.
that much - the amount indicated elsewhere in the conversation.
too much - an unspecified amount.

9
10

Thank you. I have another question. Can we use [that much + comparative adjective] or [that much + adjective + noun] without [not]?
Do you have any examples or any contexts in your mind where we can say [that much …] instead of [not that much…]?
In my opinoin it’s impossible because it will not make sense if we don’t use [not] within the construction. But what’s your opinion?

11
12

Thank you.

13

‘Tea’ cannot be placed in that sentence, in a way that the brackets might seem to indicate.

Even if it (tea) were that much more expensive, he would still buy it.
Even if tea were that much more expensive, he would still buy it.

  • the brackets only show what the pronoun refers to as the sentence has been removed from the context. They don’t show an optional phrase which can be inserted at the point where Canadian has placed the brackets in his sentence. It would not fluently be:
    Even if it were that much more expensive tea, he still would buy it.
14

‘Tea’ cannot be placed in that sentence, in a way that the brackets might seem to indicate. [color=blue]You didn’t understand what I was doing.
The brackets are there to indicate that the dependent clause could end with the noun or could just end with the adjective!

15

I understood what you were doing but think that ending that sentence with the noun would be most odd.
Even if tea were that much more expensive,…

16
17

Well, exactly!
That’s what so strange about your example.

18
19

LOL.
Your attitude is as weird as some of your ideas.

20

[color=blue]I am quite sure that you are too full of yourself to realize that I could say the same about you.
At least, I try to help the students by actually writing sentences for them. You say things like ‘I cannot think of one’ and then do your best to criticize me. How pathetic!