1. ‘Too’ + adjective

‘Too’ + adjective means so much of that adjective that it is a problem.

Too + adj.	Problem	Example sentence
Too bright	So bright it is a problem	The light was too bright, so nobody could see clearly.
Too cold	So cold it is a problem	It is too cold out here. I’m going back inside.
Too good	So good it is a problem	I don’t want to play chess with Mustaf. He is too good.

Note: In some languages, such as Chinese, ‘too’ = ‘very’, and can be a good thing. For example, 太好 (‘too good’) in Chinese is equal to ‘very good’. However, in English ‘too’ is a problem.

2. ‘Too’ + quantity of a noun

‘Too’ can also be used to describe a quantity.

If the quantity of something is so big that it is a problem, you can use ‘too many’ or ‘too much’.
If the quantity of something is so small that it is a problem, you can use ‘too few’ or ‘too little’.

Example sentence	Problem
I have too much homework to do, so I cannot go to your party.	The quantity of homework is too big
This city has too many cars: the traffic is terrible.	The quantity of cars is too big
The company has too much money and too much power. It is ruining the industry.	The quantity of money and power is too big
There are too few nurses in the health service.	The quantity of nurses is too small
Because they were talking instead of working, the students have too little time to finish their project.	The quantity of time is too small

3. The difference between ‘too many’ and ‘too much’

‘Too many’ is used for countable nouns. This means things you can count.
Things you can count include apples, sandwiches, cars, and people.

‘Too much’ is used for uncountable nouns. This means things you can’t count.
Things you cannot count include water, air, anger, and time.

Noun	Countable	Too many or too much	Example sentence
apple	yes (1 apple, 2 apples, 100 apples)	too many	I bought too many apples.
person	yes (1 person, 2 people, 100 people)	too many	There are too many people in this train.
problem	yes (1 problem, 2 problems, 100 problems)	too many	I think this project will have too many problems to be a success.
air	no (some air)	too much	Don’t put too much air in the tyre.
time	no (some time)	too much	I took too much time on question 1, so couldn’t complete question 2.
money	no (some money)	too much	The team spent too much money on this player. What a waste.

4. The difference between ‘too few’ and ‘too little’

‘Too few’ is used for countable nouns.
‘Too little’ is used for uncountable nouns.

Noun	Countable	Too few or too little	Example sentence
book	yes (1 book, 2 books, 100 books)	too few	The teacher had too few books to give all the students a copy.
police officer	yes (1 police officer, 2 police officers, 100 police officers)	too few	There are too few police officers working in a city this size, so crime is out of control.
tree	yes (1 tree, 2 trees, 100 trees)	too few	Because of deforestation, there are now too few trees to soak up the heavy rains and the valley gets flooded.
water	no (some water)	too little	The cook added too little water to the rice, and so it burnt.
heat	no (some heat)	too little	This radiator provides too little heat for a room this size. We need a bigger one.
teaching	no (some teaching)	too little	The education minister said students receive too many exams and too little teaching.

5. ‘Not enough’

Although people can use ‘too few’ and ‘too little’, it is more common to use ‘not enough’.
‘Not enough’ can be used for countable and uncountable nouns.

Too …	Not enough
There are too few people wanting to do the job.	There are not enough people wanting to do the job.
Too few visitors came to the park last year for it to make a profit.	Not enough visitors came to the park last year for it to make a profit.
There is too little light in this office.	There is not enough light in this office.
The film had too little action to keep the children entertained.	The film had not enough action to keep the children entertained.

6. ‘Not enough’ + non-‘be’ verbs

If the main verb in a sentence is ‘be’, ‘not enough’ can easily be used to describe a quantity that is too small.

However, if the verb is not ‘be’, it is more common to put ‘not enough’ around the verb.
Note: ‘do’ or ‘will’ must be added to make the tense work.

‘Not enough’ after verb	‘Not enough’ around verb
Janelle brought not enough chocolates for the children’s party.	Janelle did not bring enough chocolates for the children’s party.
Jiang Wu will have not enough pencils for the drawing class.	Jiang Wu will not have enough pencils for the drawing class.
Sue has not enough time for her hobbies.	Sue does not have enough time for her hobbies.
Elisa took not enough money.	Elisa did not take enough money.

7. Examples

Countable nouns	Uncountable nouns
You have invited too many people.	You have bought too much food.
This city has too many cars.	This city has too much traffic.
You smoke too many cigarettes.	You smoke too much.
Stephen added too few raisins to the bread.	Stephen added too little flour to the dough.
The girls answered too few questions to pass the exam.	The girls did too little revision to pass the exam.
If you don’t have enough bags, tell me.	If you have not enough money, tell me.
Henry doesn’t have enough projects to do, so is bored.	Henry doesn’t have enough work to do.

8. Exercises

Describe the problems/bad things about:
(i) the city in which you live
(ii) yourself
(iii) the past