I've had a teacher flatly tell me that とっても is incorrect, but I do see it written here and there and I'm pretty sure I hear it as well. Is it just so informal relative to とても that I should never use it in a classroom or on schoolwork?
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とっても is a spoken variant of とても, just like すんごい is a spoken variant of すごい and あんまり is a spoken variant of あまり. If you're writing a paper or speaking in a formal setting, it's better to use とても. |
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とっても is just a strong form of とても according to 大辞泉, so both are correct. It has similar pronunciation (may be a bit different intonation) with 取っても, so may be it could confuse some. But usage of とっても can be found since 昭和３０年（1955) (at least) from this song called
So, I believe you can use it most of the time but if the place you are going to use demand too formal, you may need to use non-strong one とても. But I doubt most people would not care or even notice it unless they are tracking you like in your case. |
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It's like the difference between really and reeeeally. とっても is not incorrect, but it might be a little colloquial to use in a classroom, depending on the teacher. It's even in my dictionary with a couple of examples. In the dictionary it says 「とても」を強めていう語, it makes とても stronger.
Bonus Here's an episode from an anime called とっても！タッキーマン on YouTube |
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Generally, とっても gives a stronger emphasis to what you're describing, but it can be "too strong" in certain situations, such as formal and semi-formal situations(even with new friends) and real writing. On the other hand, it's generally A-OK to use とても in any situation, though for more formal situations, you might want to substitute the word out with 大変（たいへん）. |
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