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Quantifiers 'Few', 'A Few', 'Little' and 'A Bit Of' LearnEnglish

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Quantifiers 'Few', 'A Few', 'Little' and 'A Bit Of' LearnEnglish

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Ines Bnyt
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© © All Rights Reserved
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> Quantifiers: 'few', 'a few', 'little' and 'a bit of'

Quantifiers: 'few', 'a few',


'little' and 'a bit of'

Do you know how to use a few, few, very little


and a bit of? Test what you know with
interactive exercises and read the explanation
to help you.

Look at these examples to see how these


quantifiers are used with countable and
uncountable nouns.

I have a few friends, so I'm not lonely.


She has few friends, so she's quite
lonely.
We've got a bit of time before our train.
Shall we get a coffee?
We've got very little time before our
train. Hurry up!

Try this exercise to test your grammar.

Grammar test 1

Read the explanation to learn more.

Grammar explanation
A few and a bit of or a little mean some. Often
we feel this amount is enough or more than we
expected. We use a few with plural nouns and a
bit of or a little with uncountable nouns.

I have a few ideas.


I've brought a few friends.
There's a bit of milk left.
It needs a little more work.

We use few and very little to show that we are


talking about a small amount. Often we feel this
amount is not enough or less than we expected.
Few is for countable nouns and very little is for
uncountable nouns.

Few people came to the meeting.


There are few places where you can still
see these birds.
We have very little time.
I have very little money.

Note that you can use little without very, but it is


less common and sounds quite formal.

She had little water.

Do this exercise to test your grammar again.

Grammar test 2

Try another grammar lesson

Language level

A1 Elementary A2 Pre-intermediate

Average: 4.2 (48 votes)

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Submitted by Eline Maro on Wed,


10/01/2024 - 13:45
Permalink

I would like to appreciate to every one


who contributed on this topic. I have
leant a lot

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Submitted by Long Khanh on Sat,


09/09/2023 - 04:10
Permalink

Dear The LearnEnglish Team,


May I know the difference of "a few"
and "some".
Thank you.

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Submitted by Peter M. on Sat,


09/09/2023 - 06:58
Permalink

Hello Long Khanh,

In terms of grammar, 'a lot of' can


be used with both countable and
uncountable nouns, while 'a few'
can only be used with countable; 'a
little' is the equivalent for
uncountable nouns.

In terms of meaning, I think they are


very close and any differences
would be context dependent. 'A few'
usually suggests that the amount is
satisfactory or sufficient for some
purpose. For example, if I said 'I
have a few hours free today' it
would imply that I can do something
(go for a coffee with you, finish a
task etc). 'Some' is a little more
neutral, I would suggest. However,
as I said, these are context-
dependent nuances.

Peter

The LearnEnglish Team

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Submitted by Long Khanh on


Sat, 09/09/2023 - 10:42
Permalink

Thank you for your prompt reply.


Is it true that “a few” generally
indicates a number or a figure of
five or less. On the other hand,
“some” indicates a larger quantity
that ranges between five and ten?

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Submitted by Peter M. on
Sun, 10/09/2023 - 06:30
Permalink

Hello again Long Khanh,

I don't think there is any fixed


rule about this. The choice of
quantifiers like this is really a
question of how the speaker
sees the situation rather than a
particular number of items. For
example, both 'some' and 'a few'
could be used in this kind of
situation:

Customer: I need a
dozen boxes of paper for
photocopying, please.

Shop owner: A dozen,


huh? Well, I've got some
some / a few in the
storeroom but we'll have
to check if we have
enough.

Peter

The LearnEnglish Team

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Submitted by marjikjikjik on Sun,


30/04/2023 - 10:02
Permalink

Hi
Why in this sentence a few is correct?
no few
The doctors told me to rest for a few
days
Thsnks

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Submitted by Jonathan R on Sun,


30/04/2023 - 13:57
Permalink

Hi marjikjikjik,

"A few" and "few" have different


meanings. "A few" has a generally
positive meaning, and "few" has a
generally negative meaning. For
example:

"I have a few friends" -


this means I have enough
friends, or I have some friends.
"I have few friends" - this means
I have not many friends, or not
enough friends.

In the example you mentioned, it


should be "a few days" because the
meaning is "some days" or "enough
days".

I hope that helps to understand it.

Jonathan

LearnEnglish team

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Submitted by amlan1234 on Fri,


01/09/2023 - 15:09
Permalink

Sir , what few means . Exactly


1,2,3,4. And a few means 5,6,7
number

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Submitted by Jonathan R on
Sat, 02/09/2023 - 08:25
Permalink

Hi amlan1234,

"Few" means a small number.


It's often understood to mean 2
or 3. But it depends on the
situation. For example, if I
say There were a few people in
the square, it may mean that the
square was a little bit full of
people (e.g. 10 or 20 people), or
if I say I have a few coins in my
pocket, it could mean four or
five coins. The point is that "few"
means a small number, relative
to the situation. It does not refer
to an exact number.

As explained above, "few" has a


negative meaning and "a few"
has a positive meaning. It's a bit
like describing a glass of water
as half empty (negative
meaning) or half full (positive
meaning) - the quantity of water
is the same, but the point of
view is different. For example:

I have few coins in my


pocket. (negative meaning =
I don't have enough)
I have a few coins in my
pocket. (positive meaning = I
have enough).

I hope that helps to clarify the


meaning.

Jonathan

LearnEnglish team

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Submitted by David mweze


kasavubu on Mon, 23/09/2024 -
14:19
Permalink

Hi Jonathan,

Here you provided two examples:


-"I have a few friends" - and "I
have few friends" I think the first
one is correct than the second.
Because as the structure says we
use a few with plural nouns and
few, with uncountable nouns.
Would like to give me some
clarification about it?

Log in or register to post comments

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