5.12 Too Much/Too Many vs. A Lot Of

EXAMPLES My friend left the reservation because there was too much unemployment. If we invite too many people to dinner, we won’t have enough food. A lot of Navajo Indians live in the Southwest. Too much and too many show an excessive quantity. A problem with the quantity is presented or implied.

A lot of shows a large quantity. No problem is presented.

I feel sick. I ate too much.

EXPLANATION

We can put too much at the end of a verb phrase. Note that the noun food is omitted. It is understood by the context.

Note: Sometimes we use a lot of in place of too much/too many.

If we invite a lot of people to dinner, we won’t have enough food.

EXERCISE 16 Fill in the blanks with a lot of, too much, or too many. In some cases, more than one answer is possible.

1. You put too much pepper in the potatoes, and they taste terrible.

2. On Thanksgiving Day, most people eat and don’t feel well afterwards.

3. I’m so busy before Thanksgiving. I have no time to rest. I have things to do.

4. I love garlic. This recipe calls for garlic, so it’s going to be delicious.

5. She’s going to bake a cherry pie for Thanksgiving. She needs cherries.

6. I think I ate pieces of pie. Now I feel sick.

7. We had

8. There are

9. The Navajo code talkers gave

10. The code talkers sent food at the Thanksgiving dinner. We had to throw away a lot.

American Indian languages.

help during World War II.

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