Not Just "Very"
すぎる means too much — past the point of being good. It is not a stronger とても; it carries a complaint.
- 高いです。(It's expensive.)
- 高すぎます。(It's too expensive — I can't buy it.)
Three Ways to Attach It
| Word type | Rule | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Verb | ます stem | 食べる → 食べすぎる |
| い-adjective | drop い | 高い → 高すぎる |
| な-adjective | attach directly | 静か → 静かすぎる |
It Conjugates as a る-Verb
すぎる is itself a verb, so the whole thing behaves like one — not like the adjective it may have started as:
| Form | |
|---|---|
| Polite | 高すぎます |
| Past | 高すぎた |
| Negative | 高すぎない |
| て form | 高すぎて |
高すぎて買えない — "it's too expensive to buy" — is the pattern you will use most.
いい and ない Are Irregular
- いい → よすぎる
- ない → なさすぎる
Beware the Compliment Trap
Because すぎる is negative, it can flip praise into criticism:
- 親切すぎる — too kind (suspiciously so)
- 優しすぎる — too soft on people
To praise, use とても or なる instead.
In casual speech, though, young speakers use すぎ as pure emphasis — かわいすぎる！ means "way too cute," and it is a compliment.