Too or So?

Hi. James from www.engvid.com. I'm just looking at the lesson I'm going to teach you today.

Some of you will find it so hard and so difficult, and others too hard and too difficult. So

what I'm going to do is I'm going to start off with something basic, and then we'll begin

the lesson. Right, Mr. E? He's back too. "To" and "so". Two words in English that are so

simple and so basic, yet so misunderstood, much like my love for puppies. Anyway, okay.

When we talk about "to" and "so", there's the idea of something being more. There's

something extra, and this is right. When you say "so", you usually mean -- we usually -- you'll

hear most people say it for about size, so big, so tall, so small, and they want to talk

about the size of the thing and really make it strong to you, give you -- tell you it's

not normal, it's more than you think. And when they usually use "to", it's the same

idea, but they usually use it in more of a negative way of thinking. So if you really

want to think of it, think of "so" with a smile, and it's positive. So when you want

to say something and you really like it so much, so much, so much, see? Use "s" for smile,

smiley face, and use "to". And think of "to" because this "to" has two "o's" on it. Think

"to". That's too many "o's". I only need one. I only need one. That was the wrong finger.

I only need one "o". And because I only need one "o", there's too many things, so it's

more than I want. That help? Okay. Now, I'm going to warn you. That's the basic understanding.

So if you're following and you got that, that's good. If not, go back, watch this part of

the video again, listen to what I said, and then the rest of this is going to make a lot

of sense. Now, for the rest of you, it's party time, okay? So let's go.

"To". Let's start off with "to". Notice "to" is in red. Why is "to" in red? Well, it's

in red because red is usually blood, which is usually negative. In saying that, I want

you to understand that "to" in this case is more than you want, need, or is allowable.

I use some big words there. Allowable. You are able to do something. But more than you

need, more than you want or desire. Excessive. That's what this word means. Excessive means

more, too much. Notice the water coming into the cup. It's coming out. Well, there's too

much. Cool? All right. More than. So that's what we mean here.

Give you two examples. "James usually talks too fast, so I don't understand him." That's

true. That means I speak so fast that most of the information you want, you can't get.

It's too fast. It's gone by, and you can't get it back. What's another thing that's excessive?

Well, in Saudi Arabia, it's too hot for me. Excessive. It's 50 degrees, man. It's like

cooking yourself. You don't go to get a tan there. You go to cook yourself, okay? It's

excessive, more than you want. But every once in a while, small once in a while -- I can

only even think of two examples to give you. That's the truth. "To" can be positive. Remember

I said it's usually negative in the red? It can be positive. I'll give you an example.

"You're too kind. You come and see me every time I put a video out. Oh, I love you." And

what I mean by that is you're very kind. It's very nice of you to do this. I'm not saying

it's too much. It's not. It's very nice of you. And sometimes, if you're on a subway

and you come visit Canada or you see a British person, and they say, "Would you like my chair?"

You can say, "You're too generous." I almost want to say no because your generosity is

too much. Much. But in this case, once again, it's very positive. Smiley face. Not like

this guy. Sad mouth. Smiley. Okay? Before we forget, don't forget "to" is an adverb

because it can modify adverbs, other adverbs, and other adjectives and verbs. Cool? All

right.

Now, finally, this is the interesting one. "To" -- notice I said there's one "to", two

"o"s. It's because "to" is enough, but then we add on another "o", and it's "to" because

we mean in addition. "Addition" comes from the base "add". It means you add something

to something else. Example, "Mr. E likes cake, and I like it, too." One plus one. More than

one. All right? Now, we can use this with an object, "cake", or a verb. "He went, and

I went, too." Notice how "to" follows "went" because I'm saying additionally, adding on.

You like that? Good.

We've covered "to" and "excessive", and it's usually -- let's quickly go over it. Well,

not too quickly. I'm using it again. See, I said not too quickly, not excessively. "To"

means excessive, and "excessive", as we know, is more than you need or want. "To" can be

positive. Very few cases, right? Very kind, very generous are the ones that come to my

mind right away.

And finally, "to" is as well because we have one "o" plus two. Just like the number two

has one plus one, it means in addition, or additionally. And look, we also have "to",

an object or a verb it can be used for. Easy to remember, right? Good.

Now, I told you "to" and "so" get confused. I'm going to tell you how they're similar,

and that's why this diagram has this funny part where it's red and blue. But we're going

to work specifically on "so" now. Are you ready? So let's go. All right.

All right. "So". What does "so" mean? "So la ti do". Well, we're not singing. But what

we're trying to get at is "extent". "Extent". And because it's an adverb and we use it,

we use it with things like "quickly" or "shortly", right? So -- I'm using it again. "So, so,

so". It's got to be an important word, right? For instance, I can say, "He speaks so quickly,

it's hard to understand him." Notice how it differs. I said "to" was excessive. "Excessive"

meant too much. The water was coming out. "So" means, to an extent, how much, how fast.

And it means, like, very in its own way. You like that one? Okay.

What about another one? "So quietly". Well, "She moved so quietly, nobody noticed." It's

not "too quietly". It's "so quietly". And we're saying very -- how much, how quietly.

You like that? Good. So we have two examples now. "Too quickly" -- sorry. "So quickly"

and "so quietly". And they mean to what extent and how much. "Extent" is like a measurement.

It's a measurement. And that's what this means, like the maximum or the minimum of something.

"Extent". To what extent did they do this? All right.

Now I have to explain something to you. When we said "so" and "to" are similar -- "similar"

is a special word because it means "same", but there is a difference. And now I have

to teach you what that difference is, right? In this case, they're the same because -- and

this is where the diagram meets. "Extremely" and "excessive" are usually very far end -- the

very far end of something. So when something is extremely hot, it's meaning there's hot,

and then there's hot. It's so hot. When it's too hot, it means here's the limit, and you

go past it. Okay? Do you remember this? "Too", "excessive", "too much". "So" is the measurement.

And when we say it this way for "extremely", which means "emphasis", we usually mean on

the maximum part, the furthest part. I'll give you an example.

The soup was so hot, I had to leave it and eat it an hour later. It's not that it was

too hot, I could never eat it. It was just so hot, I've got to wait. I wait 10 minutes.

It's okay now. It's so hot. But you know what? The soup was so good, I asked for a second

bowl. Emphasis. It was so good, I loved it. All right? And my girlfriend is so hot, you

want to go see her. Yeah, that's right. I know. Some of you asked if I'm married, I've

got a girlfriend. I've got a cat. That's right, a cat. It was so annoying, I want to get a

woman. But that's another issue, see? Emphasis. Okay? Emphasis is "extremely" in this case.

Now, we talked about where they're the same, and I told you about "excessive" and "extremely",

and that's how they share this strange area here. But once again, they have separate circles

for a reason. "So" is positive, smiley face, but "so" also has a meaning that "to" doesn't

have, and that's "conjunction". "Conjunction". "Conjunction" means to put things together.

And you know what this is because of the special word "and". "And" is a conjunction or "but".

It's a big, fancy word for saying "putting two ideas together", right? That's how we

make complex sentences. So in this case, "conjunction", and when we use it, we actually mean "thus"

or "therefore". You hear these in these big books, you know? The books with usually 500

pages, they charge you $100, they have to put words. "Therefore, he said to the people,

'Thus we shall walk'". Yeah, if you know -- recognize that voice, it's from the Batman movie. The

last installment. Great. So great. Emphasis mine. You've got to see it. "To". That one.

All right. "Conjunction". "I wasn't feeling well, so I went to the doctor." It's not extremely

extant. It's saying, "I wasn't feeling well, so I had to go to the doctor." I bring the

two ideas together, okay? How about this one? "It was cold out, so I got my jacket." I got

my jacket because it was cold. I want to bring these ideas together. I don't have to say

"and", which is the normal conjunction. I can say "so". All right?

And finally, "I think this video is over." "I think so." No, not quite. But here's the

example of truth. A lot of times, you're going to hear Canadians say, "I think so" or "I

thought so". And what they're telling you is not conjunction, not extant, not extremely.

They're actually trying to tell you, "I thought it was true." "Was it raining yesterday?"

"I thought so." "Did he bring the book?" "I think so." "I believe" or "I think it's true."

Okay? You like that? I do.

Mr. E and I would like you to learn some more, so -- okay, conjunction -- come to this special

place, www.engvid.com, where you can learn about this lesson on "so" and "to". And you

know what? There's another one that you can study, too. It's on, like, "either/or". So

go see. You'll see it for yourself, okay? Good.

Listen, I hope you learned some stuff so we can teach you some more. And I'd like you

to come back. Bring a friend, too. See? I used it. All right? Have a good one.