INDEX:
1. too
2. too much or too many
3. to do something too much
4. not needed because there is already enough
5. not too much
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1. too
▷ too /tuː/ [adverb]
more than is right or necessary, or more than you want :
▪ They didn’t give him the job. They said he was too old.
▪ Don’t work too hard!
▪ It’s too hot in here.
too big/small/tired etc to do something
▪ I was too tired to get up off the couch.
▪ She’s still too upset to talk about it.
far too small/way too big etc
▪ $200! That’s way too expensive.
▪ The temperature was well below zero - far too cold to spend more than a few minutes on deck.
too old/quick/big etc for
▪ My room’s too narrow for a king-size bed.
▪ Military officials believed that the harbor was too shallow for torpedo launches.
2. too much or too many
▷ too much /ˌtuː ˈmʌtʃ◂/ [quantifier]
use this about amounts or costs :
▪ Jim drinks too much.
▪ That kid talks too much.
▪ You spend too much time worrying about things.
far/way too much
▪ I’m sure my parents paid way too much for the land.
▪ The surveys took up far too much time, and they were difficult to understand.
too much for
▪ There was too much baggage for one person to carry.
▷ too many /ˌtuː ˈmeni◂/ [quantifier]
use this about number of people or things :
▪ I’ve brought some more chairs - I hope I didn’t bring too many.
▪ She can’t come - she says she has too many things to do.
far/way too many
▪ Far too many postgraduate students never finish their projects once begun.
too many for
▪ There were too many bags for one person to carry.
▷ an excess of /ən ɪkˈses ɒv/ [quantifier] formal
too much of something :
▪ an excess of alcohol
▪ An excess of fertilizer is harmful to trees and other garden plants.
▷ glut /glʌt/ [countable noun usually singular]
a situation in which there is too much of a product available at a particular time, which often results in the price of the product being cut :
glut of
▪ A glut of bonds on the market pushed prices down.
▪ When there is a glut of milk more products like yoghurt are made.
▷ too much of a good thing /tuː ˌmʌtʃ əv ə gʊd ˈθɪŋ/ [noun phrase]
if you say that something is too much of a good thing, you mean that it would be good in small amounts but you have too much of it :
▪ Many Koreans believe that the rush of foreign products may be too much of a good thing.
▪ Getting six boxes of chocolates for my birthday was really too much of a good thing.
▷ excessive /ɪkˈsesɪv/ [adjective]
use this about an amount, cost, or level which is much too high, especially when you think it is wrong or unfair that it is so high :
▪ The campaign is trying to stop the excessive use of chemicals in farming.
▪ $10 for two cups of coffee seems excessive.
▪ As usual, the opposition claims the government is guilty of excessive spending.
▷ inordinate /ɪˈnɔːʳd ə nɪt, ɪˈnɔːʳd ə nət/ [adjective only before noun] formal
much more than is reasonable, especially when this is unfair to other people or means that other things are not given enough attention :
▪ Scientists have been criticized for devoting an inordinate amount of time to research on animals.
▪ a man of inordinate ambition
▷ overkill /ˈəʊvəʳkɪl/ [uncountable noun]
a situation in which something is done so much that it is no longer interesting or effective :
▪ Of course, it’s a serious disaster, but some of these sensational newspaper reports are just overkill.
▪ Many felt that the money spent amounted to overkill, and that a cheaper, less glossy advertising campaign would have been just as effective.
3. to do something too much
▷ try/think/push etc too hard /ˌtraɪ tuː ˈhɑːʳd/
to do something with too much effort, so that you do not get the result you want :
▪ You’re hitting the ball too hard.
▪ I think you’ve been working too hard - you need a rest
▪ Many parents try too hard to engineer a safe environment for their child, with disastrous results.
▷ overdo it /ˌəʊvəʳ ˈduː ɪt/ especially spoken
to do or say something too much, especially to do too much work or exercise :
▪ You need more exercise, but be careful not to overdo it.
▪ The tour guide managed to be funny and informative, without overdoing it.
▷ overreact /ˌˈuʌəʳɪˈækt/ [intransitive verb]
to get too angry or too worried when something happens which is not in fact very serious :
▪ Don’t you think you’re overreacting a little? I’m only ten minutes late.
overreact to
▪ I think people have overreacted to the advertisement - we didn’t intend of offend anyone.
▷ go too far/take something too far /ˌgəʊ tuː ˈfɑːʳ, ˌteɪk something tuː ˈfɑːʳ/ [verb phrase]
to do something so much or to such a great degree that you offend, upset, or annoy people, especially because you do not know when it is reasonable to stop :
▪ Officials were worried that the Chairman’s criticisms had gone too far.
▪ John had taken the joke too far and now Betty was crying.
go too far/take sth too far in doing something
▪ We all agree there have to be some controls, but the government has gone too far in ordering all immigration to be stopped.
▷ go to extremes /ˌgəʊ tʊ ɪkˈstriːmz/ [verb phrase]
to do something so much, state something so strongly etc, that people consider your actions unacceptable and unreasonable :
▪ Hunt went to such extremes to get his promotion that everyone at the office hates him now.
▪ You don’t have to go to extremes to become healthier - a little exercise and slight changes to your diet can work wonders.
▷ to excess /tʊ ɪkˈses/ [adverb]
if you do something to excess, you do it so much that it is wrong or harmful :
▪ The government enthusiastically supports US foreign policy, sometimes to excess.
▪ He drank to excess, occasionally causing scenes in front of CIA officials.
▷ over the top /ˌəʊvəʳ ðə ˈtɒp ǁ -ˈtɑːp/ [adjective/adverb]
something you say or do that is over the top is extreme, so that it is either very funny and entertaining, or very annoying or offensive :
▪ Some of his remarks about women were really over the top.
▪ The show was supposed to be a kind of over-the-top satire - it wasn’t supposed to be taken seriously.
go over the top
▪ The movie’s drawn-out finale goes over the top in its attempt to keep the audience in suspense.
▷ overload /ˌəʊvəʳˈləʊd/ [transitive verb]
to give someone too much work to do or try to make a system handle too much work :
▪ We can’t take money from a school system that is already overloaded.
▪ They overloaded the computer system, and the whole thing just stopped.
▪ Projects should stretch people and make them work hard, but not overload them.
▷ overindulge/overindulge yourself /ˌəʊvərɪnˈdʌldʒ, ˌəʊvərɪnˈdʌldʒ jɔːʳself/ [intransitive/transitive verb]
use this humorously when you have eaten too much rich food or drunk too much alcohol :
▪ Schneider told quite a funny story about how he had overindulged one night.
▪ What’s the point of a vacation, after all, if not to overindulge yourself?
▷ flog something to death /ˌflɒg something tə ˈdeθ ǁ ˌflɑːg-/ [verb phrase] British informal
to talk too much about a subject or repeat a joke or story too often, so that no one is interested in it any more :
▪ It was a good story a month ago, but the newspapers have really flogged it to death.
4. not needed because there is already enough
▷ excess /ˈekses/ [adjective only before noun]
an additional amount that is not wanted or needed because there is already enough of something :
▪ Excess vitamin D can cause kidney damage in young children.
▪ Cut off the excess fat from the meat before cooking.
▪ The excess pounds had given him a double chin and a neck that made his shirt collar look too tight.
▷ surplus /ˈsɜːʳpləs/ [countable noun]
the additional amount of something, especially something that you produce or grow, which is more than you need and which can therefore be given or sold to other people :
▪ The Gulf States produce more oil than they need and sell the surplus to the rest of the world.
▪ Government subsidies have resulted in huge grain surpluses.
▪ The budget surplus could be used to hire and train more border guards.
surplus [adjective only before noun]
▪ The State raised $130 million by selling off surplus land.
5. not too much
▷ not too/very much /nɒt tuː, veri ˈmʌtʃ/ [adverb]
▪ Not too much pizza for me please, I’m on a diet.
▪ I won’t give you very much homework tonight, so you have time to finish your essay.
not eat/drink/talk etc too much
▪ Don’t talk too much now - you need to rest.
▷ not too/very many /nɒt tuː, veri ˈmeni/ [adverb]
▪ You can have a few chips, but not too many.
▪ Not very many people were interested in the project.
▷ not too big/hard/loud etc /nɒt tuː ˈbɪg/ [adverb]
▪ I wasn’t too upset when they told me I hadn’t got the job.
▪ It was a beautiful sunny day and not too cold.
▪ Don’t hit it too hard - just nudge it over the net.
▷ moderate /ˈmɒd ə rɪt, ˈmɒd ə rətǁˈmɑː-/ [adjective]
not too much - use this about eating, drinking, and other things that could be unhealthy if you did them too much :
▪ Moderate exercise, such as walking and swimming, can help to prevent heart disease.
▪ New studies show that moderate drinking is good for you.
▷ in moderation /ɪn ˌmɒdəˈreɪʃ ə n ǁ -ˌmɑː-/ [adverb]
if you eat or drink something in moderation, you do not eat or drink too much of it :
▪ He only drinks wine in moderation.
▪ Children should be taught not about ‘bad foods’ and ‘good foods,’ but rather to eat a wide variety of foods in moderation.
▷ keep something in proportion /ˌkiːp something ɪn prəˈpɔːʳʃ ə n/ [verb phrase]
to not allow yourself to become so excited, annoyed etc by an event or situation that you lose a sense of what is reasonable, sensible, or possible :
▪ My confidence was so low it was difficult to keep things in proportion -- the smallest problem seemed like a major tragedy.
▪ The Party’s recent successes in the polls are encouraging but they need to be kept in proportion.