Quantifiers

In this lesson, we will be learning about quantifiers. What do Quantifiers refer to? Quantifiers come from the word “quantity”, which basically helps in describing a particular amount. We will be learning about how to use:

• “Many” vs “much”
• A few/ few
• A little/ little

Let us understand all of these in detail below.

“Many” vs “much”

"Many" is used for countable nouns, whereas "much" is used for uncountable nouns. Let's look at the examples below to gain a better understanding.

Practice Question

Question:

How _____________ dollars do you want? You see, I don’t care how ______________ it costs; I will pay for it.

1. many ... many

2. much ... much

3. many ... much

4. much ... many

Answer:

3) many ... much

Explanation:

As in the sentence, the dollars can be countable, so the correct answer will be "many". Now that we know the first answer is "many", we can eliminate the options (2) and (4). The correct answer to the second question is "much". We can't say "how many it costs". So, the correct answer to this question is option (3) - many ... much.

A few/ few

Here are a few things to take note of:

1. A small amount

2. Countable (obvious if you think about it)

3. Grey areas

For example, “Could you give me a few pointers for baking, please?” Samuel asked Ms Baker.

A few vs few

Practice Questions

Question:

“Be patient, I will only take _______________ minutes.”

“Impossible! Knowing how slow you are, you’ll definitely take ______________ longer than that!”

1. much ... much

2. a few ... a few

3. much ... a few

4. a few ... much

Answer:

4) a few ... much

Explanation:

The correct answer to this question is option (4) - “a few ... much”. The hints in this question are “only” and “how slow you are”. “Only” indicates that the individual will be ready quickly - in a few minutes. And the second sentence is a contradictory statement as it is mentioned that the individual is slow and thus will take much longer than a few minutes.

A little vs little

A little and little are similar but different.

1. A little: a small amount

2. Little: emphasis on how little

Let us look at some examples to understand these better.

Practice Questions

Question:

“I have _______________ patience for such rude behaviour,” the Duke growled, his eyes ablaze and jaw tense with anger.

1. little

2. a little

3. Few

4. a few

Answer:

1) little

Explanation:

The correct answer to this question is option (1) - “little”. The emphasis is on little. In other words, the emphasis is on little patience for rude behaviour.

Test Your Concepts

Answer the following questions based on the concepts we’ve covered in this article. If you get stuck, revisit the relevant section to revise the concepts.

Question 1:

I only have _______________ Magic Crystals in my possession. Then again, _____________ can claim to have even one!

1. few ... few

2. a few ... a few

3. few ... a few

4. a few ... few

Question 2:

“That was ___________ rude, but I’ll forgive you this time,” the Duke said, his eyes narrowed.

1. little

2. a little

3. few

4. a few

Question 3:

_______________ Singaporeans know what a “Merlion” is.

1. a few
2. little
3. a little
4. many