What's the Grammar Form at Work Here and How to Use it? 「あまり難しく考えるなよ」

Question

Looking at the Japanese lines of a game, and I came across this line...:

あまり難しく考えるなよ。

...which I believe translates to "Don't think about it too much" or the like. However, I don't understand what's going on here exactly, grouping the く-form of an い-adjective and a verb like that. The only other place I've seen something like this so far is with the く-form of an い-adjective + なる, but I'm still curious how it's being used above.

So, in short, how does this work and can it be used accordingly with other adjectives and verbs?

Answer 1

Yes, 難しく and 考える are grouped here. The ku-form is a form used to modify a verb, in other words, it works like an adverb. See this article, too.

• 速く走る to run fast
• よく考える to think hard
• 弱く叩く to hit/tap lightly
• 格好良く踊る to dance in a cool manner

Likewise, 難しく考える means "to think in a difficult/complicated way".