Very Much, A Lot: Use at the End of a Phrase

The meaning of a lot and very much is basically the same: a big amount. a lot is quantitative - this means that a lot could also be replaced with a number or a frequency. Look at these sentences: She eats a lot. She talks a lot. He smokes a lot. He complains a lot. You could replace a lot with: she eats four meals a day, she talks all the time, he smokes 50 cigarettes a day, he complains every time he has a problem.

very much is qualitative and cannot be used when a quantity or frequency is implicitly involved. You can use very much generally with regard to describing your feelings about something or someone, typically with love and miss, and generally also with like.

You can put very much between the subject and verb: I very much like red wine = I like red wine very much. You cannot put a lot before an infinitive or the object of the sentence: I want a lot to go. I miss a lot him.

There is no difference between a lot and very much in negative sentences. So you can say She doesn’t talk a lot or She doesn’t talk very much with really no difference in meaning.