太
too; extremely
tài
What does 太 mean?
太 (tài) is an intensifier meaning 'too' or 'extremely,' placed before an adjective or verb. In its most common HSK 1 pattern, it pairs with 了 at the end: 太好了! 'Awesome!' (literally 'too good!'), 太贵了 'too expensive,' 太累了 'so tired.' This 太…了 frame is what makes 太 sound natural — using 太 alone (我太累) without 了 feels incomplete in speech. Unlike English 'too,' which is mostly negative ('too expensive = can't afford'), Chinese 太 can be positive: 太棒了 means 'fantastic!' Context tells you which. The negative 不太 means 'not very' — 不太好 'not very good,' a softer way to say 'not great.' For neutral 'very,' use 很 (hěn); 太 is reserved for excessive or emphatic intensity.
Character breakdown
too; extremely; (also) great
Memory hook: 太 is 大 'big' with an extra dot — 'bigger than big' = too much / extremely.
Example sentences
太好了！
Tài hǎo le!
Awesome!
spoken
这个太贵了。
Zhège tài guì le.
This is too expensive.
spoken
今天太累了。
Jīntiān tài lèi le.
Today I'm so tired.
spoken
他不太喜欢吃辣。
Tā bú tài xǐhuan chī là.
He doesn't really like spicy food.
neutral
Common phrases with 太
Synonyms
很 is neutral 'very,' used by default in front of any adjective (我很忙 'I'm busy'). 太 is stronger and means 'too / excessively' — usually with 了 to make a complete expression. Don't substitute one for the other.
非常 = 'extremely / very much,' more formal/written than 太. 非常感谢 'thank you very much.' 太 carries more emotional emphasis and works best in spoken outbursts (太好了!).
Don't confuse 太 with
大 (without the dot) means 'big.' 太 (with the dot) means 'too / extremely.' One stroke difference — easy to misread or miswrite.
也 means 'also.' 太 means 'too' in the sense of 'excessive.' English 'too' covers both ('I'm tired too' vs 'too tired') but Chinese splits them — 我也累 vs 我太累了.