All German word comparisons · Back to the topic overview
Meaning, sentence patterns and examples
| Word | Core meaning | Typical context | Grammar |
|---|---|---|---|
| sehr | very; intensely; greatly | degree of a quality or feeling | uninflected degree adverb |
| viel | much; a lot; many in inflected forms | quantity, extent or repetition | viel Wasser; viele Bücher; viel besser |
sehr
Meaning and usage: Sehr intensifies adjectives and adverbs: sehr kalt, sehr schnell. It can also intensify certain verbs or reactions, as in jemanden sehr mögen or sich sehr freuen. It does not supply the amount of a noun directly. Sehr viel combines intensity with the quantity word viel.
Grammar: Uninflected: sehr does not gain adjective endings. Usually before the expression intensified: sehr nett, sehr gut. With verbs, scope comes from the sentence: Das gefällt mir sehr. It is not a direct substitute for viel before comparatives.
Ich freue mich sehr, dass du zum Kurs kommst.
I am very pleased that you are coming to the course.
viel
Meaning and usage: Viel describes amount or extent. Viel Zeit and viel Wasser concern quantities; viele Fragen concerns a number of countable items. With activities, viel may describe how often or how much time you spend doing them. It also strengthens comparatives such as viel leichter.
Grammar: Use viel with ordinary bare mass nouns: viel Geld. Countable plural nouns commonly use viele: viele Bücher. Inflected quantity forms depend on case and construction. Adverbial viel remains uninflected: viel lesen, viel besser.
Ich lese viel, und die Texte werden für mich viel leichter.
I read a lot, and the texts are becoming much easier for me.
Overlap and context
Ich mag dich sehr describes intensity of liking; ich sehe dich viel describes frequent or extensive contact. Sehr viel Zeit is grammatical: sehr intensifies viel, which describes the amount of time. Sehr gutes Deutsch concerns the quality of the German; viel Deutsch concerns quantity in a suitable context. The combination viel besser compares two states and says the improvement is substantial. These examples show why a rule based only on the word class following sehr or viel is insufficient.
Common mistakes
- Avoid sehr Wasser. Use viel Wasser or sehr viel Wasser.
- For a comparative, avoid sehr besser as your standard expression. Use viel besser.
- Do not put viele before a singular mass noun by analogy with plural countable nouns.
Memory aid: Sehr turns up intensity; viel adds amount or extent. In sehr viel, both jobs appear together.
Try it
Complete: Heute verstehe ich den Text ___ besser als gestern.
Show the answer
viel
Viel intensifies the comparative besser.