French word

trop

Pronunciation

IPA/tʁo/

Meaning

  • adverbvery

Example

Ce gâteau est trop bon.

This cake is very good.

Illustration for trop (very)

More examples

Il a parlé trop vite et je n'ai pas compris.

He spoke too fast and I did not understand.

Core concept

A gauge needle pushed past its safe mark, making intensity feel excessive even when the result sounds positive.

Common phrases

  • trop vite

    too fast

  • trop difficile

    too difficult

  • trop de travail

    too much work

Similar words

très: To a particularly high degree.
tellement: With exceptionally great intensity.
beaucoup: In a great quantity or to a great extent.
vraiment: Used to strongly affirm a fact or emotion.

Definition in French

Marque un degré très élevé ou un excès; il sert d'intensificateur dans la langue parlée et introduit «trop de» devant un nom.

Word origin

French trop comes through Old French from Latin tropus, borrowed from Greek tropos, and its meaning developed from a rhetorical turn to excess.

Usage tips

  • In spoken French, trop bon can mean very good but may retain an excessive or enthusiastic nuance, while très bon is usually more neutral.

Other meanings

  • tooadverb

Opposites

Word lists with this word