“Sobra” normally means “over” or “in excess”. “Grabe” means “grave” or “very serious”. Sobra ang binigay mo sa aking pera. = The money you gave me is too much. Grabe ang problema ni John. = John’s problem is very serious. However, we often use them to mean “excessiveness” in general. In such cases, they may often be used interchangeably or even together, although “grabe” may suggest a stronger meaning than “sobra”. “Grabe!” can also be used as an expression by itself. That is not usually the case with “sobra!” unless it is used to emphasize the excessiveness of something mentioned prior to it. Yung nabasa kong libro, sobrang/sobra ang ganda. = The book I read was very nice. Yung nabasa kong libro, grabeng/grabe ang ganda. = The book I read was extremely nice. Grabe! Sobrang ganda nung librong nabasa ko! = Jeez! The book I read was so good! (We don’t say, “Sobra! Grabeng ganda nung...”) Grabe! = Terrible! Ang yaman ni Bill Gates! Sobra! = Bill Gates is very rich! Super (rich)! Ang yaman ni Bill Gates! Grabe! = Bill Gates is very rich! Awesome!

Puwede ba?mrsjones.^^ idagdagan ko lang sa page na ito. Gusto kong tanoog ko na naman isa pa lang. napaka-,sobra,masyado,labis,lubha,grabe.^^

Both mean the same thing although grabe is used more colloquially.