The position of enough
Enough goes after adjectives and adverbs:
* He didn’t get the job because he wasn’t experienced enough. (not ‘enough experienced’)
* You won’t pass the examination if you don’t work hard enough.
* She shouldn’t get married yet. She’s not old enough.
The opposite is too. (too hard/too old etc.):
* You never stop working. You work too hard. Enough normally goes before nouns:
* He didn’t get the job because he didn’t have enough experience. (not ‘experience enough’)
* I’d like to go away on holiday but I haven’t got enough money.
* Some of us had to sit on the floor because there weren’t enough chairs.
You can also use enough alone (without a noun):
* I’ll lend you some money if you haven’t got enough.
The opposite is too much…/too many …:
* We can’t go away on holiday. It costs too much (money).
* There are too many people and not enough chairs.
We say enough/too … for (somebody/something):
* I haven’t got enough money for a holiday.
* He wasn’t experienced enough for the job.
* This shirt is too big for me. I need a smaller size.
But we usually say enough/too … to do something (not ‘for doing’). So we say:
enough money to buy something, too young to do something etc. For example:
* I haven’t got enough money to go on holiday. (not ‘for going’)
* He wasn’t experienced enough to do the job.
* She’s not old enough to get married. or She’s too young to get married.
* Let’s get a taxi. It’s too far to walk home from here.
* There weren’t enough chairs for everyone to sit down.
* They spoke too quickly for us to understand.
We say:
The food was very hot. We couldn’t eat it.
and: The food was so hot that we couldn’t eat it.
but: The food was too hot to eat. (without ‘it’)
Some more examples like this:
* The wallet was too big to put in my pocket. (not ‘too big to put it’)
* These boxes are too heavy to carry. (not ‘too heavy to carry them’)
* The water wasn’t clean enough to swim in.
EXERCISES
102.1 Complete these sentences using enough with one of the following adjectives or nouns:
adjectives: big old warm well, nouns: cups milk money qualifications room time
1. She shouldn’t get married yet. She’s not _old enough._
2. I’d like to buy a car but I haven’t got —.
3. Have you got — in your tea or would you like some more?
4. Are you —? Or shall I switch on the heating?
5. It’s only a small car. There isn’t — for all of you.
6. Steve didn’t feel — to go to work this morning.
7. 1 didn’t answer all the questions in the exam. I didn’t have —.
8. Do you think I’ve got — to apply for the job?
9. Try this jacket on and see if it’s — for you.
10. There weren’t — for everybody to have coffee at the same time.
102.2 Complete the answers to the questions. Use too or enough with the word in brackets.
1. Is she going to get married?
(old) No, she’s not _old enough to get married._
2. I need to talk to you about something.
(busy) Well, I’m afraid I’m — to you now.
3. Let’s go to the cinema.
(late) No, it’s — to the cinema.
4. Why don’t we sit in the garden?
(warm) It’s not — in the garden.
5. Would you like to be a politician?
(nice) No, I’m — a politician.
6. Do you want to play tennis today?
(energy) No, I haven’t got — tennis today.
7. Did you hear what he was saying?
(far away) No, we were — what he was saying.
8. Can he read a newspaper in English?
(English) No, he doesn’t know — a newspaper.
102.3 Make one sentence from two. Complete the new sentence using too or enough.
1. We couldn’t cat the food. It was too hot. _The food was, too hot to eat._
2. I can’t drink this coffee. It’s too hot. This coffee is —.
3. Nobody could move the piano. It was too heavy.
The piano —.
4. I don’t wear this coat in winter. It isn’t warm enough.
This coat —
5. I can’t explain the situation. It is too complicated.
The situation —.
6. Three people can’t sit on this sofa. It isn’t wide enough.
This sofa —.
7. We couldn’t climb over the wall. It was too high.
The wall —.
8. You can’t see some things without a microscope, They are too small.
Some —.
102.1
2 enough money
3 enough milk
4 warm enough
5 enough room
6 well enough
7 enough time
8 enough qualifications
9 big enough
10 enough cups
102.2
2 too busy to talk
3 too late to go
4 warm enough to sit
5 too nice to be
6 enough energy to play
7 too far away to hear
8 enough English to read
102.3
2 This coffee is too hot to drink.
3 The piano was too heavy to move.
4 This coat isn’t warm enough to wear in winter.
5 The situation is too complicated to explain.
6 This sofa isn’t wide enough for three people to sit on.
7 The wall was too high to climb over.
8 Some things are too small to see without a microscope.
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Though it is a common mistake, the words «to» and «too» are very easy to differentiate. Once you know how to tell, you can teach others how to get it right too!
Usage Chart
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1
Focus on «too» first. «Too» is used less frequently than «to,» so if you know what «too» means, then you can use it just for those specific meanings. You can feel confident that when «too» is not appropriate, «to» is the right choice.[1]
- Try stressing (emphasizing) «too» when spoken, to help yourself assess whether it is the correct word. If the word is meant to be «to,» it will sound odd if stressed. «Too» can be emphasized without sounding unusual.
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2
Learn the meanings for «too». The first meaning is «also» or «besides»; the second meaning is «excessively» or «extra». In addition, some people use it to mean «very».[2]
Think of too as being relevant when there is an increase in something, such as temperature, difficulty, etc.; for example, «too hot», «too challenging», or «too soft». [3]
- Choose the word «too» when it can be substituted for the word «also.»
- For example: «She felt awful too (also)» or «I can see you too (also)».
- Use «too» to modify or emphasize a word.
- For example: «The weather is too (excessively) hot», «I’ve eaten too (excessively) much», or «The package is too (excessively/extra) big».
- «He wasn’t too (very) interested in my book.»
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- Choose the word «too» when it can be substituted for the word «also.»
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3
Learn the role of «to.» «To» is a preposition. Use «to» for expressing direction, place, or position.[4]
- «To» can be used when going towards something.»I am going to the store» or «Will you just go to bed please!»
- «To» can be used when you’re doing something in the direction of something or someone, such as: «I am speaking to your friend», or «I am looking to the right».
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4
Understand that «to» is also used when you’re using a verb in the infinitive.
- For example: «To go home», «to catch a mouse», or «to open the door.»
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5
Practice telling «to» and «too» apart. Here are a few examples to test yourself with (answers in «Tips» below):
- She’s coming [to/too] your party [to/too].
- I’m [to/too] hot [to/too] help you carry [to/too/two] suitcases [to/too] the bus station.
- We are hoping [to/too] be near the festival [to/too].
- It’s [to/too] early [to/too] be asking me questions about where I am headed [to/too].
- I hate [to/too] disturb your thoughts but are you ready [to/too] help us with our homework [to/too]?
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Question
Should I say like to or like too?
What is the context of your phrase? If you want to say ‘I like to swim’ you should use ‘to’. ‘Like too’ can be used too, but in a different meaning. For example: ‘I like too much wine’ (In this case ,you don’t like an action but you like too much of something).
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Question
Is saying «to cute» incorrect?
It depends on context. If someone went from ugly to cute, for example, then «to» is correct. However, if something is overly cute, it’s «too» cute.
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Question
Why can’t I use (to) in front of (home)?
The word «to» implies direction, the word «too» implies «also». For example, Take me to your home. I am going home, too. Without any other context to your question, this is the best response that can be made.
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Some claim that never-ending a sentence with a preposition is grammatically correct and that following this «logic» can prevent you from making a mistake with «to» and «too» because it’d mean you’d always avoid using the word «to» at the end of any sentence. However, this is based on a misunderstanding and modern grammarians claim that it is perfectly acceptable to place prepositions at the end of a sentence, and always has been.[5]
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Although a less (but still) common mistake, don’t forget about «two.» This is easy to distinguish because it means the number, 2.[6]
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Keep in mind some more examples:
- Do you think we’re arriving too soon?
- Here, you can stress «toooo», as in it’s much sooner than we should be arriving.
- It’s a cold day to be playing outside.
- Stressing here doesn’t add any emphasis or give more information.
- They are going to the beach with us.
- Stressing here doesn’t add emphasis or information because «to» is simply being used as a preposition.
- Do you think we’re arriving too soon?
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Article SummaryX
To use «too» and «to» correctly, use «too» when you want to say «also» or «excessively,» and use «to» as a preposition for expressing direction, place, or position. For example, you would use «too» in «I like cake too» or «I eat too much cake.» However, you would use «to» in «Let’s go to the cake shop» or «I want to get some cake.» An easy way to remember is that «too» is often stressed when it’s spoken and «to» is never stressed. To learn how to practice using «too» and «to» correctly, scroll down!
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Unit 103- Part A
Unit 103- Part B
Enough normally goes before nouns:
• I can’t run very far. I haven’t got enough energy. (not energy enough)
• Is Joe going to apply for the job? Does he have enough experience?
• We’ve got enough money. We don’t need any more.
• Some of us had to sit on the floor because there weren’t enough chairs.
Note that we say:
• We didn’t have enough time. (not the time wasn’t enough)
• There is enough money. (not the money is enough)
You can use enough alone (without a noun):
• We don’t need any more money. We’ve got enough.
Compare too much/many and enough:
• There’s too much furniture in this room. There’s not enough space.
• There were too many people and not enough chairs.
Unit 103- Part C
We say enough/too … for somebody/something:
• We haven’t got enough money for a holiday.
• Is Joe experienced enough for the job?
• This shirt is too big for me. I need a smaller size.
But we say enough/too … to do something (not for doing). For example:
• We haven’t got enough money to go on holiday. (not for going)
• Is Joe experienced enough to do the job?
• They’re too young to get married. / They’re not old enough to get married.
• Let’s get a taxi. It’s too far to walk home from here.
• The bridge is just wide enough for two cars to pass each other.
Unit 103- Part D
Exercises
{slide=1 Complete the sentences using enough + the following words.}
Complete the sentences using enough + the following words:
{tooltip}Key.{end-link}3 enough money
4 enough milk
5 warm enough
6 enough room
7 well enough
8 enough time
9 enough qualifications
10 big enough
11 enough cups{end-tooltip}
1 I can’t run very far. I’m not fit enouth .
2 Some of us had to sit on the floor because there weren’t enouth chairs .
3 I’d like to buy a car, but I haven’t got ____________ at the moment.
4 Have you got ____________ in your coffee or would you like some more?
5 Are you ____________? Or shall I switch on the hearing?
6 It’s only a small car. There isn’t ____________ for all of us.
7 Steve didn’t feel ____________ to go to work this morning.
8 I enjoyed my trip to Paris, but there wasn’t ____________ to do everything I wanted.
9 Do you think I’ve got ____________ to apply for the job?
10 Try this jacket on and see if it’s ____________ for you.
11 There weren’t ____________ for everybody to have coffee at the same time.
{/slide} {slide=2 Complete the answers to the questions.}
{/slide} {slide=3 Make one sentence from two.}Make one sentence from two. Complete the new sentence using too or enough.
{tooltip}Key.{end-link}2 This coffee is too hot to drink.
3 The piano was too heavy to move.
4 These apples aren’t / are not ripe enough to eat.
5 The situation is too complicated to explain.
6 The wall was too high to climb over.
7 This sofa isn’t / is not big enough for three people (to sit on).
8 Some things are too small to see without a microscope.{end-tooltip}
1 We couldn’t carry the boxes. They were too heavy.
The boxes were too heavy to carry.
2 I can’t drink this coffee. It’s too hot.
This coffee is _________________________________
3 Nobody could move the piano. It was too heavy.
The piano ____________________________________
4 Don’t eat these apples. They’re nor ripe enough.
These apples _________________________________
5 I can’t explain the situation. It is too complicated.
The situation _________________________________
6 We couldn’t climb over the wall. It was too high.
The wall ______________________________________
7 Three people can’t sit on this sofa. It isn’t big enough.
This sofa _____________________________________
8 You can’t see some things without a microscope. They are too small.
Some ________________________________________
{/slide}
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