(not) too + ADJECTIVE | ADVERB + to INFINITIVE – English Grammar Profiler

The degree adverb ‘TOO‘ before adjectives (and other adverbs) has a comparative meaning, in other words, meaning ‘MORE THAN‘

According to the English Vocabulary Profile, this is A1 grammar:

I don’t have enough information. 

I can’t tell you my prediction yet. 

It is too early.

*It is earlier than I want it to be.  TOO has a negative meaning.

The negative form ‘NOT TOO‘ can be used in the same position meaning ‘NOT VERY‘ as an example of A2 grammar:

I disagree, 

you should know by now 

because it is not too early.

*It is not very early. Maybe it is a little early.

We can also explain what is too early:

It is too early to tell.

listen

According to the English Grammar Profile, this comparative clause structure including an adjective is B1 grammar.  *It also may express modality = the attitude of the speaker (either negative or related to certainty.)

Furthermore, because there is no version of this structure that includes an adverb, we believe the structure is at least B2.  Here’s an advanced example with the adverb ‘slowly‘:

French authorities had been blind to the preparations for genocide 

and then reacted too slowly to appreciate the extent of the killings

 and to respond to them.

abcnews.go.com

Finally, because the EVP makes a difference for the negative form ‘NOT TOO’, we believe this is at least an example of C1 grammar.  For example:

In that case,

 it is not too soon to learn 

how to behave 

like the Duc de la Tremoille.

Vatel

Here’s a search for which adjectives and infinitives are most common in the iWeb corpus:

too _J to _VVI

1 TOO EARLY TO TELL 4736 2 TOO EARLY TO SAY 4112 3 TOO EARLY TO START 3206

4 TOO GOOD TO PASS 2967 (pass up = unlisted phrasal verb = refrain from taking up an opportunity.)

5 TOO BIG TO FAIL 2827

This is too big to fail.

listen

6 TOO LATE TO START 2586 7 TOO LATE TO GET 2399 8 TOO LONG TO GET 2093 9 TOO EASY TO GET 1848 10 TOO HARD TO GET 1801

11 TOO BIG TO FIT 1678

12 TOO LATE TO MAKE 1628 13 TOO HARD TO FIND 1603 14 TOO YOUNG TO REMEMBER 1520 15 TOO LATE TO CHANGE 1504

16 TOO LATE TO SAVE 1492

17 TOO LARGE TO FIT 1425

I hear folks saying,

 I had one activist say to me that 

the pain that he was feeling was too large to fit into his body. 

And without thinking about it, 

I said right back, “

That’s because it’s too large to fit into a lifetime.”

18 TOO EARLY TO KNOW 1322 19 TOO NUMEROUS TO MENTION 1231 20 TOO YOUNG TO UNDERSTAND 1102 21 TOO HARD TO MAKE 1060 22 TOO SMALL TO SEE 984 23 TOO LATE TO STOP 860

24 TOO NUMEROUS TO LIST 860

25 TOO YOUNG TO KNOW 825 26 TOO HOT TO TOUCH 807 27 TOO LATE TO LEARN 786 28 TOO GOOD TO MISS 779 29 TOO HOT TO HANDLE 751 30 TOO EARLY TO MAKE 730 31 TOO LAZY TO GO 718 32 TOO DIFFICULT TO GET 711 33 TOO LATE TO TAKE 693 34 TOO OLD TO LEARN 661

35 TOO EASY TO FORGET 646

36 TOO LONG TO MAKE 637 37 TOO SMALL TO MAKE 634 38 TOO EARLY TO GET 623 39 TOO LATE TO GO 614 40 TOO DIFFICULT TO FIND 591 41 TOO EARLY TO DETERMINE 579 42 TOO LONG TO LOAD 573 43 TOO SMALL TO READ 567 44 TOO LONG TO WAIT 564

45 TOO LAZY TO GET 560

46 TOO SMALL TO FIT 560 47 TOO DARK TO SEE 556 48 TOO EASY TO MAKE 542

49 TOO LATE TO TURN 517

50 TOO LAZY TO LOOK 512 51 TOO SCARED TO GO 512 52 TOO LATE TO HELP 501

53 TOO BUSY TO TAKE 500

54 TOO LATE TO JOIN 488 55 TOO EARLY TO TALK 487 56 TOO EARLY TO BEGIN 481

57 TOO HEAVY TO CARRY 480

58 TOO LATE TO PREVENT 478

59 TOO LAZY TO MAKE 441

60 TOO YOUNG TO GET 441 61 TOO OLD TO PLAY 440 62 TOO HARD TO FIGURE 438 63 TOO HARD TO SEE 438

64 TOO HARD TO KEEP 432

65 TOO NUMEROUS TO COUNT 431 66 TOO EARLY TO JUDGE 428 67 TOO CHEAP TO BUY 427 68 TOO SMALL TO ACCOMMODATE 427

69 TOO EARLY TO CALL 426

70 TOO DIFFICULT TO MAKE 421 71 TOO HAPPY TO HELP 414 72 TOO POOR TO AFFORD 412

73 TOO SMALL TO HOLD 409

74 TOO FAR TO WALK 397 75 TOO SHY TO ASK 397 76 TOO STUPID TO UNDERSTAND 391

77 TOO EASY TO FALL 386

78 TOO EMBARRASSED TO ASK 383 79 TOO BUSY TO GET 381 80 TOO TIRED TO GO 365 81 TOO EARLY TO SEE 359 82 TOO EARLY TO SPECULATE 359

83 TOO LATE TO TRY 351

84 TOO DIFFICULT TO USE 349 85 TOO GOOD TO IGNORE 349 86 TOO EXPENSIVE TO BUY 344 87 TOO LATE TO FIX 343 88 TOO HARD TO USE 336 89 TOO EASY TO FIND 335 90 TOO BIG TO IGNORE 334 91 TOO IMPATIENT TO WAIT 334 92 TOO LATE TO FIND 331

93 TOO AFRAID TO ASK 330

94 TOO HARD TO UNDERSTAND 328

95 TOO LONG TO COMPLETE 328

96 TOO STUPID TO KNOW 326 97 TOO OLD TO START 325

98 TOO EASY TO LOSE 324

99 TOO LAZY TO READ 322
100 TOO GREAT TO IGNORE 319

A2 Vocabulary:

afraid, busy, call, complete, fail, fall, far, fit, forget, heavy, hold, join, keep, large, lazy, list, lose, pass, save, try, turn

Here’s a search for which lexical verbs, adverbs and infinitives are most common in the iWeb corpus:

_VV too _R _TO _VVI

1 MOVED TOO SLOWLY TO CONTAIN 49 2 GOING TOO SLOWLY TO PREVENT 46

3 MOVED TOO SLOWLY TO RECALL 39

4 MOVING TOO QUICKLY TO REOPEN 27 5 MOVING TOO SLOWLY TO REOPEN 20

6 SPREADING TOO FAST TO LIFT 19

7 GOING TOO FAST TO STOP 16 8 MOVING TOO SLOWLY TO ADDRESS 16 9 ACTED TOO SLOWLY TO END 15

10 REACTED TOO SLOWLY TO APPRECIATE 15

11 RUSHES TOO FAST TO REOPEN 13
12 LOOK TOO CLOSELY TO SEE 12 13 MOVING TOO SLOWLY TO HELP 12 14 ACTING TOO SLOWLY TO STOP 10 15 MOVE TOO QUICKLY TO MEET 10 16 MOVED TOO QUICKLY TO CEMENT 10 17 MOVING TOO FAST TO REOPEN 10 18 MOVING TOO QUICKLY TO ALLOW 10 19 MOVING TOO SLOWLY TO GET 10

20 GOING TOO FAST TO MAKE 9

B2 vocabulary:

appreciate, closely, reacted, recall, rushes, spreading