Grammar Info

N4 Lesson 8: 4/18

そんなに

So (much), That much, Like that

Structure

そんなに + Verb
そんなに + [い]Adjective
そんなに + [な]Adjective

Details

  • Register

    Standard

  • 使用域

    一般

About そんなに

そんなに, like そんな, is one of the most common ways to express that one thing is 'like' something else in casual conversation. The addition of the particle just highlights そんな as being the 'destination' of the 'like' amount. This construction is regularly translated as 'so much', 'that much', or simply 'like that'.
As a word, そんなに is used adverbially. This means that it may come before any verb, い-Adjective, or な-Adjective.
  • そんなに()たら(なか)(こわ)
    If you eat that much, you are going to break your stomach. (Natural Japanese for 'stomach ache')
  • そんなに(あつ)(おも)ならエアコンつければいい
    If you think it's that hot, you should turn on the air conditioner.
  • そんなに(きら)なら無理(むり)()なくてもいい
    If you dislike it that much, you don't have to force yourself to eat it.
Almost any そんなに based sentence can be translated literally as 'to an extent like (A)', where (A) is the word that comes after そんなに, and indicates 'to'.
As そんなに is another example of こそあど言葉(ことば) (words like これ, それ, あれ, and どれ), it means that こんなに, あんなに, and どんなに may also be used.
  • こんなにもらてもいいんです
    Is it okay to receive this much? (Are you really giving me all of this?)
  • あんなに()のにまだ(なか)(すい)ている
    You are still hungry, even after eating that much?
  • どんなに頑張(がんば)ても(わたし)先輩(せんぱい)みたいない(おも)
    No matter how hard I try, I don't think that I can become like my senpai.
Despite this, そんなに is almost considered a set phrase, and is therefore the most common out of all of the possibilities (except for どんなに, which is often used when explaining/giving reasons for something).

Examples

  • このケーキそんなに(あま)んです

    Is this cake really that sweet?

  • そんなに(いた)なら病院(びょういん)()ったほうがいいんじゃないです

    If it hurts that much, shouldn't you go to the hospital?

  • そんなに頑張(がんば)ても(かれ)みたいに出来(でき)ない

    Even if I tried that hard, I couldn't do it like he can.

  • そんなに日本(にほん)()きたいなら()って()たら

    If you want to go to Japan that much, why don't you?

    たら

  • そんなに水泳(すいえい)(きら)なら(およ)がなくていいじゃない

    If you hate swimming so much, why don't you just not swim?

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そんなに – Grammar Discussion

Most Recent Replies (7 in total)

  • Pushindawood

    Pushindawood

    @deltacat3 Hey! You have every right to be confused. This is actually the contracted たらどう from Lesson 9 (a later lesson). たらどう means “why don’t you…?” and is used for giving advice or suggesting something. We will get that sentence rewritten. I apologize for the confusion. Cheers!

  • deltacat3

    deltacat3

    Thanks a bunch for clearing this up <3

  • mrnoone

    mrnoone

    Hey

    We have added information about this contraction in the たらどう grammar point, thank you for asking this question!

    Cheers,

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