Faculty of Humanities and Social Science > English

Common Mistakes and Confusing Words

<< < (7/13) > >>

Bhowmik:
Shamsi Apu,


Thank you for your suggestion. I will explain them soon.

Bhowmik:
some - any - a little - a few - much - many

 
   
       'Some' 'any' 'a little' 'a few' are used to express quantity, to say or ask
       if you have a quantity of something or not.

       Some is used in affirmative sentences, and also when asking for or offering something.
Any is used in negative and interrogative sentences.

         A few is used with countable nouns :        a few apples.
      A little is used with uncountable nouns :   a little cheese.
 
Affirmative
some
There are some apples. 
(We don't know how many,
 but the bowl is not empty)

a few
There are a few apples,
not many, a small number.

a little
There is a little cheese.    

Negative
any
There aren't any apples.
(The bowl is empty)

many
There aren't many apples

much
There isn't much cheese

Interrogative
any   
Are there any apples?
(We want to know if
the bowl contains apples)     

many   
We can also say :
Are there many apples?

much
Is there much cheese?

Bhowmik:
few vs a few
before Countable Noun

Few, when used without a preceding a, means "very few" or "none at all".
On the other hand, a few is used to indicate "not a large number". The difference is subtle, yet there are instances where the two can mean completely opposite things.

I have a few objections to the students' proposal. It implies that I am not on board with the students' proposal. I have some objections, but not so many as to say "I have several objections...". Nevertheless, I have objections that need to be addressed.

I have few objections to the students' proposal. It is a more positive statement that implies I am more or less on board with the proposal. It is not a whole-hearted endorsement, but I barely have any objections at all.

In a nutshell:

few = not enough
e.g. This machine is hard to use. There are few suggestions about how to use it.

a few = small number
e.g. This machine is easy to use. There are a few suggestions about how to use it.

Bhowmik:
A Little - A Few / Little - Few

A little and little refer to non-count nouns/ uncountable nouns, and is used with the singular form:

Examples:

There's little wine left in the bottle.
I've put a little sugar into your coffee.

As A few and few refer to count nouns/ countable nouns, and are used with the plural form (Look at the explanation given in the earlier post.):

Examples:

There are a few students in that classroom.
He says few applicants have presented themselves.

A little and a few convey a positive meaning.

Examples:

I've got a little wine left, would you like some?
They've got a few positions open.

Little and few convey a negative meaning.

Examples:

He's got little money left.
I have few friends in Chicago

shamsi:
Thanks Swapan for your quick reply and detail discussion.

I wish you all the best.

Shamsi

Navigation

[0] Message Index

[#] Next page

[*] Previous page