ESEN
Blog
Quantifiers in English: Much, Many, A Lot Of, A Few, A Little
Much and a little go with uncountable nouns, many and a few go with countable nouns, a lot of works with both.
Written by Bryan López, Profesor de inglés · Updated
Quantifiers indicate amount. Much and many both mean "a lot," but much goes with uncountable nouns and many with plural countable nouns. A lot of works with both.
The most common quantifiers
Much/many in questions and negatives, a lot of in affirmatives
Much and many are mostly used in questions and negative sentences: "How much time do we have?" "I don't have many friends." In affirmative sentences, a lot of sounds more natural: "I have a lot of friends" instead of "I have many friends."
Publicidad
Practice quantifiers with real audio
Interactive exercises, real pronunciation, and the full lesson taught in English.
Few vs. a few, little vs. a little
"A few" and "a little" mean "some," a small but sufficient amount: "I have a few friends" (that's fine). "Few" and "little" without "a" mean almost none, an insufficient amount: "I have few friends" (barely any).
Common mistakes learners make
Using much/many in affirmative sentences where a lot of sounds more natural: "I have much money" sounds forced, the natural choice is "I have a lot of money." It's also common to miss the difference between "a few" and "few," since they can translate similarly in other languages.
Publicidad
Frequently asked questions
What's the difference between much and many?
Much is used with uncountable nouns (much water), many is used with plural countable nouns (many books).
When is a lot of used?
It works with both types of nouns and is more common in affirmative sentences: "I have a lot of books" / "I drank a lot of water."
What's the difference between a few and few?
"A few" means a small but sufficient amount (I have a few friends = I have some). "Few" means almost none, an insufficient amount (I have few friends).
What's the difference between a little and little?
Same as a few/few but with uncountable nouns: "a little money" (some, enough) vs. "little money" (barely any, not enough).
What are some examples of quantifiers?
"How much sugar do you need?" "How many eggs are there?" "I have a lot of work today."
Why do learners use much/many instead of a lot of in affirmatives?
Because in many languages the equivalent of "a lot" is used the same way in any type of sentence, so it's not intuitive that a lot of sounds more natural in affirmatives than much or many.
Practice quantifiers with real audio
Interactive exercises, real pronunciation, and the full lesson taught in English.