too much

[arthurvv vart]

1) He is too much a child.

2) They are too much children.

3) He is more a child than his younger siblings.

4) Pete and Harry are more children that their younger siblings.

Which are grammatical?
Which are idiomatic?

Examples:
https://www.google.com/search?tbo=p&tbm=bks&q=%22was+too+much+a+child%22&num=10

https://tinyurl.com/2um6a4nu
-------------------------------------------------
https://www.google.com/search?tbo=p&tbm=bks&q=%22were+too+much+children%22&num=10

https://tinyurl.com/348k2cn7
(some of the examples don't have the same structure as my sentence
and some do)

I don't like my sentences. I think '1' and '2' were probably acceptable
in the past, but would not be today.
I think '3' and '4' have never been acceptable.

It seems that there is no way to pluralize
5) He is more of a child than his younger siblings.

Gratefully,
Navi

[Peter Moylan]

On 28/05/23 08:47, arthurvv vart wrote:

> 1) He is too much a child.
>
> 2) They are too much children.
>
> 3) He is more a child than his younger siblings.
>
> 4) Pete and Harry are more children that their younger siblings.
>
> Which are grammatical?
> Which are idiomatic?

The word you need is "childish".

--
Peter Moylan Newcastle, NSW http://www.pmoylan.org

[Hibou]

Le 28/05/2023 à 00:00, Peter Moylan a écrit :
> On 28/05/23 08:47, arthurvv vart wrote:
>>
>> 1) He is too much a child.
>>
>> 2) They are too much children.
>>
>> 3) He is more a child than his younger siblings.
>>
>> 4) Pete and Harry are more children that their younger siblings.
>>
>> Which are grammatical?
>> Which are idiomatic?
>
> The word you need is "childish".

Yes, 'childish' was my first thought, too - which answers Arthur's
question about idiom. Then, some minutes later, as is its wont, my
Unconscious piped up with 'childlike'.

In religious instruction at school, our teacher, a dog-collar-wearing
vicar, was repeatedly at pains to distinguish 'childlike' (simple and
unsullied) from 'childish' (immature). Apparently, Jesus wants us to
have childlike and not childish faith. I suppose this was a point that
worried the old chap, whence the repetition.

Still, the lesson in semantics has stuck, so our time wasn't wasted.

[Ken Blake]

On Sat, 27 May 2023 15:47:10 -0700 (PDT), arthurvv vart
<arthu...@gmail.com> wrote:

>1) He is too much a child.
>
>2) They are too much children.
>
>3) He is more a child than his younger siblings.
>
>4) Pete and Harry are more children that their younger siblings.
>
>Which are grammatical?

1 (barely) and 3

>Which are idiomatic?

None. Better would be

1) He is too childish.

2) They are too childish.

3) He is more childish than his younger siblings.

4) Pete and Harry are more childish than their younger siblings.