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Speaker 1: It was very cool this morning, like around eleven degrees celsius.

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When I took Max for a walk, I was actually

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surprised it was so cool, like there's a nip in

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the air. Kind of cool. Boy. I'm hoping this coming

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winter isn't too cold. Let's see how it goes.

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Speaker 2: Welcome to another Happy English podcast, coming to you from

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New York City. And here's your English teacher, Michael.

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Speaker 1: All right, thank you John, and thanks everyone. It's Michael

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here from Happy English and I help people speak English better.

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And this miss Happy English Podcast, Episode eight ninety three.

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Two very and so what's the difference? Hey, thanks for

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tuning in, and welcome back to the Happy English Podcast.

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These three little words two, very, and so all come

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before adjectives, and they all talk about how much of

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something there is, like how hot, how tall, how tired?

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But the feeling and intention behind each word is a

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little different. So today we're going to break it all

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down with real examples, and I'll show you exactly how

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to use them naturally. Let's get into it. First. Up

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is very. This one is probably the most neutral and straightforward.

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Very means a lot and it simply emphasizes the adjective.

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If I say it's very hot today, I just mean

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it's hotter than usual. It's not just hot, it's very hot.

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Or she's very smart. I'm just saying she's more intelligent

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than average. Very just gives emphasis. It's not too emotional.

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Very is kind of a measurement, like this exam is

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very difficult, or the hotel was very expensive, and my

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sister is very good at math. You'll hear native speakers

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use very well. We want to show a strong, but

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neutral degree of something. So yeah, very is safe, simple

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and correct. Next, let's look at two. You know too.

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Two is totally different from very. Not only isn't it neutral,

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it's packed with emotion. Two usually has a negative feeling,

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like more than necessary or more than good. If I

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say it's too hot today, it means I'm uncomfortable. It's

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hotter than I want it to be. Or this bag

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is too heavy that means I can't carry it, so

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it's a problem. Or that restaurant is too expensive for me.

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I don't want to eat there. The price is a problem.

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So two often means so much that it's a bad thing.

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Here are a few more examples. I'm too tired, to

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go out tonight. That movie we saw the other day

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was too long. I got kind of bored. And what's

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the deal with Josh? He talks too much in meetings?

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And when I heard the other day that perfume is

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too strong, it gave me a headache. Again, two means

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more than good, more than acceptable. It causes a problem.

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That's what makes two different from very. All right, let's

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move on to sow now. SO is interesting because it

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shows strong emotion or strong intensity. It's kind of in

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between very and two, but more expressive. For example, that

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movie was so good, or Jenny was so funny at

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the party last night. I couldn't stop laughing. Here, SO

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shows excitement, it has energy, It's emotional, even in negative sentences.

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SO adds feeling like I was so tired I fell

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asleep on the train, or it was so hot yesterday

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I stayed inside the whole day. And you'll often hear

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so used with a second sentence that shows the result.

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Lenny was so late we had to start without him.

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Or that green curry we had for lunch was so

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spicy my eyes were watering, or I was so embarrassed

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when I dropped my drink. I turned bright red. So yeah,

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so is a storyteller. It gives you the cause and effect.

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It's like the word that says it just wasn't intense,

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it had consequences. Now, let's look at these three together.

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It's very cold today. That's neutral, just giving you a fact.

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It's too cold today, that's negative. Maybe I don't want

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to go outside it's so cold today. That's emotional. Maybe

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I'm shocked by the temperature. All the same adjective, but

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different feelings depending on the word you use before it. Now,

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one more quick point. In casual conversational English these days,

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we do often use two with a positive adjective to

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mean something is really or super good, fun, delicious, and

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so on. So even though traditionally to imply something excessive

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or negative, like too spicy or too expensive, in modern

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slang and informal speech, we flip that like that chocolate

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cake is too yummy, or she's too funny, I can't

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stop laughing, and that puppy is too hute. Just remember

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this is slangy and playful and works best in spoken English,

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text messages or casual writing. You wouldn't want to use

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this version of two in formal writing, but in everyday conversation.

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These days, it's totally natural, all right, let's recap. Very

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is neutral and adds intensity. It's very cold, so is

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emotional or dramatic. It's so cold I can't feel my fingers.

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Two is negative. It's a problem, it's too cold to

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go outside. Two is also used in slang in casual

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conversation with a positive meaning like really, he's cat is

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too cute? All right, So here's your challenge. Try using

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very too. And so this week when you talk about

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your day, was the meeting very long? Was the food

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too salty? Was your day so busy you forgot to

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eat lunch? Is your new coworker too nice? Try it

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out and feel the difference. And Hey, if you want

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to practice English from this and all of my podcasts

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with me and a group of other awesome English learners,

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come check out my podcast Learner's Study Group. We meet

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once a week and go over the language from these

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podcasts lessons together. It's a great way to build confidence

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and improve your speaking. Just check the link where you

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are listening to this podcast right now, or visit Myhappy

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English dot com and choose podcast episode eight ninety three

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for more info. Hey, Thanks for listening, and remember, learning

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another language is not easy, but it's not impossible, and

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I'm here to help you on your journey.

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Speaker 2: This podcast is brought to you by Happy English. Please

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visit myhappy english dot com. Show your support for Happy

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English by leaving us a review. Get English, get happy

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Happy English.