Sehr or viel?
Sehr is often used with an adjective, or verbs such as mögen (to like), interessieren (to be interested in), lieben (to love), leidtun (to be sorry), etc., to express intensity.
Sie sind sehr intelligent.
They are very intelligent.
Wir mögen den Film sehr.
We like the film very much.
Wir mussten sehr lachen.
We couldn't help but laugh a lot.
Viel is generally used with a noun, a comparative adjective, zu (too) + adjective, or a verb, to express a quantity.
Sigi hat viel Zeit.
Sigi has a lot of time.
Die Schweiz ist viel kleiner als Deutschland.
Switzerland is much smaller than Germany.
Das Kleid ist viel zu teuer.
The dress is way too expensive.
Wir singen viel.
We sing a lot.
Notes:
- Viel can take an ending Adjektivdeklination 3
Im Park sind viele Menschen. (die Menschen)
There are many people in the park.
Sie sind mit vielem einverstanden.
They agree with a lot of it.
- We use sehr to reinforce viel.
Magda hat sehr viel zu tun.
Magda has a great deal to do.
Im Hotel gibt es sehr viele Kunden.
There are a whole lot of customers in the hotel.
Still facing difficulties with 'Sehr or viel?'? Learn and enhance your German grammar through our online German course. Start with a free test and improve today!
What our users say:
Improve your German further and test Wunderbla, online German lessons.
