Bobby has a stomachache because he ate ___ ice cream.

Bobby has a stomachache because he ate ___ ice cream.

• A. Too much
• B. Much too
• C. Too little
• D. Much

Answer: (A)

The phrase needed describes an excessive amount of a noncount noun. Ice cream is a mass noun, so we use “much” to talk about quantity, and adding “too” shows it’s more than what’s appropriate. “Too much ice cream” means he ate more than he should have, which explains the stomachache. The other options don’t fit because: “much too” is used before adjectives or adverbs (not before a noun in this context), “too little” means not enough and wouldn’t cause a stomachache, and “much” alone isn’t the natural way to modify a noun here.

The phrase needed describes an excessive amount of a noncount noun. Ice cream is a mass noun, so we use “much” to talk about quantity, and adding “too” shows it’s more than what’s appropriate. “Too much ice cream” means he ate more than he should have, which explains the stomachache. The other options don’t fit because: “much too” is used before adjectives or adverbs (not before a noun in this context), “too little” means not enough and wouldn’t cause a stomachache, and “much” alone isn’t the natural way to modify a noun here.