Enough and Too Quiz
12 multiple-choice questions on 'enough' and 'too': too + adjective, adjective + enough, enough + noun and too much/many. A2–B1 level.
Enough and Too — FAQ
'Too' and 'enough' both talk about quantity or degree, but they pull in opposite directions. 'Too' means more than you want or need, so it usually has a negative feel, as in 'This coffee is too hot.' 'Enough' means as much as you want or need — the right amount or degree — as in 'This coffee is warm enough.' So 'too' signals an excess that causes a problem, while 'enough' signals sufficiency. They also sit in different places in the sentence, which is where many learners make mistakes.
'Too' goes immediately before the adjective or adverb it modifies: 'too hot', 'too expensive', 'too quickly', 'too slowly'. The pattern is too + adjective/adverb. You can extend it with 'to' plus an infinitive to show a result: 'It is too cold to go outside.' Note that before a noun you do not use 'too' alone; you use 'too much' or 'too many' instead, as in 'too much noise' or 'too many people'.
With adjectives and adverbs, 'enough' comes AFTER the word it modifies: 'old enough', 'warm enough', 'quickly enough', 'clearly enough'. The pattern is adjective/adverb + enough. This is the opposite of 'too', which comes before. So you say 'He is tall enough' (not 'enough tall'). You can add 'to' plus an infinitive to show what is possible: 'She is old enough to vote.'
With nouns, 'enough' comes BEFORE the noun: 'enough money', 'enough chairs', 'enough time', 'enough food'. The pattern here is enough + noun. This is different from how 'enough' behaves with adjectives and adverbs, where it comes after. So you say 'We have enough chairs' (enough before the noun) but 'The chairs are big enough' (enough after the adjective).
You use 'too much' with uncountable (mass) nouns and 'too many' with countable plural nouns. 'Too much' goes with things you cannot count one by one, such as 'too much salt', 'too much noise', 'too much time' or 'too much water'. 'Too many' goes with things you can count, such as 'too many people', 'too many cars' or 'too many mistakes'. Both express an excess — more than is wanted or needed.
No. 'Very' simply makes an adjective or adverb stronger and is neutral: 'It is very hot' just describes the heat. 'Too' adds the idea of excess — more than is acceptable or possible: 'It is too hot' suggests the heat is a problem, perhaps too hot to touch or to drink. So 'very tired' means extremely tired, but 'too tired' means so tired that you cannot do something. Choosing 'too' instead of 'very' changes the meaning, not just the strength.
'Enough' means a sufficient amount or degree — neither too little nor too much. Before a noun it means a sufficient quantity, as in 'We have enough money to buy the tickets.' After an adjective or adverb it means a sufficient degree, as in 'The water is warm enough to swim in.' In both cases 'enough' tells the listener that the amount or degree meets the requirement, so nothing more is needed.
Yes. 'Enough' can stand alone as a pronoun when the noun is already understood from the context: 'Do we have enough?' or 'That's enough, thank you.' It can also work as a determiner answering 'how much/how many', as in 'There isn't enough.' On its own, 'enough' still carries its core meaning of a sufficient amount — the right quantity — even when the noun is left out.
Both structures link a degree to a result using 'to' plus an infinitive. 'Too + adjective/adverb + to' shows that something is impossible because there is an excess: 'The box is too heavy to carry' means it cannot be carried. 'Adjective/adverb + enough + to' shows that something is possible because there is sufficiency: 'He is strong enough to lift it' means he can lift it. So 'too...to' usually gives a negative result, while 'enough...to' usually gives a positive one.
'Too' is negative because it describes an excess — a quantity or degree beyond what is wanted, needed or acceptable — which is usually a problem: 'too expensive', 'too late', 'too much salt'. 'Enough' is neutral because it describes sufficiency — exactly as much as is needed, no more and no less: 'enough money', 'old enough'. Because 'enough' simply confirms that a requirement is met, it carries no complaint, whereas 'too' nearly always signals that something has gone past the right limit.