Today I am going to share the Q&A quoted from my JLPT N2 course!

 

[Question]

「うれしさのあまり、泣いてしまった。」
I don’t get why this sentence is correct.
あまり is always used in negative sentences, but not in this sentence.
Can you please explain?

*泣(な)く cry

 

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[My Reply]

The word あまり in this sentence and あまり used in a negative sentence have different meanings.

Your sentence means:
うれしさのあまり、泣いてしまった。
I was so happy that I cried.

This あまり means “so much… that”, “too”, i.e., “〜すぎて”, “とても〜て.” It can be understood as “extremely” in this context.
うれしさのあまり
＝とてもうれしくて

 

On the other hand, あまり in a negative sentence means “(not) very” or “(not) much.”
e.g.
私(わたし)はあまり日本語が上手(じょうず)じゃありません。
My Japanese is not very good.

 

I hope my answer helps you.😊

 

 

In the JLPT course, you can ask me any questions as much as you want.
I will teach you until you get it!