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.
