“Muy” or “mucho”
CEFR A2 · part 2
edumaterial's parts within the level. The European framework does not subdivide them.
“Vosotros” or “ustedes”: two systems, both rightRecognising and producing both plural-you systems: “vosotros” with its own verb forms…“He comido” or “comí”: today's pastChoosing the tense for something finished but still inside today, this week or this…“Me levanto”: verbs with a pronoun attachedUsing reflexive verbs for daily routine, and the pairs where adding the pronoun changes…“Nadar es sano”: where English says “-ing” and Spanish does notUsing the infinitive where English uses “-ing”: as a subject (“nadar es sano”), after a…“Llevo dos años aquí”: how long you have been doing itSaying how long something has been going on: “vivo aquí desde hace dos años”, “llevo dos…“Ser” or “estar”: two verbs for one “to be”Choosing between “ser” and “estar” in everyday sentences: who you are and what you are…The rule, in three lines
Muy only ever goes with an adjective or an adverb, and it never changes: muy alto, muy bien, muy despacio. Mucho goes with a verb or a noun, and with a noun it agrees: trabajo mucho, mucho ruido, mucha gente, muchos libros.
The usual slip. Saying muy where a verb needs mucho —trabajo muy— or mucho cansado in front of an adjective.
Why it catches you out. English splits “very” and “a lot” along a line you never had to think about, and “very much” muddies it further. In Spanish the test is purely mechanical: look at the word NEXT to it. Adjective or adverb, “muy”. Verb or noun, “mucho”.