Expressing "not very" with "bu tai"

You may be familiar with using 太 (tài) to express "too" in the sense of "too expensive." There's a similar pattern in the negative, which just means "not very" or "not so" (literally "not too"). Note that this pattern does not normally use 了 (le).

Structure

Subject + 不 + 太 + Adjective

Note:

Examples

Some examples:

Negative 太 ... 了 sentences

Subject	不	太	Adjective
我	不	太	高兴	。
他	不	太	好看	。
老师	不	太	友好	。
我	不	太	喜欢	。
她	不	太	想	去 。

Note: This pattern can be used with modal verbs (e.g. 会, 能) as well as psychological verbs (e.g. 喜欢, 崇拜), as in the last two examples.