Quantifiers

                            Quantifiers

Quantifiers are a type of determiner which denote imprecise quantity. They differ from numbers or numerals which indicate precise quantity.

The most common examples:
the most common quantifiers used in English are:

some / any ,  much, many, a lot, a few, several, enough.

There are three types of quantifier;

1. neutral quantifiers,
2. quantifiers of large quantity, and
3. quantifiers of small quantity

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1. Neutral quantifiers:

     Some and any: several, a number of,  etc.

Some and any are both quantifiers and articles. In many contexts, some is the plural indefinite article, the plural of "a" or "an"; but more often, some implies a limited quantity, and for this reason has the value of a quantifier.

Some is used in affirmative statements; it is replaced with any in negative and interrogative contexts. 

 Examples:

      I've got some apples in my basket and some water in my bottle.

     I haven't got any apples in my basket, nor any water in my bottle.

     Have you got any apples in your basket? Have you got any water in

     your   bottle?

     We had some visitors last weekend, but we didn't have any this

      Weekend

     Have you got any rooms free for the night of September 30th ?

     Several and a number of  imply "more than one, but less than a lot". They are not usually used in negative or interrogative structures, only in affirmative statements. For example

     There are several books / a number of books by J.Z.Plummerman in our library.
     Several people / A number of people said that they'd seen the missing child.

Enough 

Enough implies a sufficient quantity; it is used in affirmations, negations and questions.

We can get tickets for the concert, I've got enough money now.
Have you got enough money for the tickets?

NOTE:

 Do not confuse enough as a quantifier preceeding a noun, with enough as an intensifier following an adjective, as in:

    That's good enough for me.

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2. Large quantity quantifiers: 

     much, many, lots of, plenty of, numerous, a large number of, etc.

► Much and many: much is used with non count nouns (always in the singular); many is used with count nouns in the plural. (Click here for the difference between count nouns and non-count nouns).

     IMPORTANT NOTE: Much and many are not often used, in modern spoken English, in affirmative statements; but they are very commonly used in interrogative and negative contexts. 

 Examples:
I have many reasons for thinking that this man is innocent is acceptable, but rather formal; most English speakers would more naturally say:
   I have plenty of / a lot of / a large number of reasons for thinking .....
Much whisky is of very good quality. This sentence is technically acceptable, but not probable in modern English. Most people would say (and write):
   A lot of whisky / A good proportion of whisky / Plenty of whisky ......

Remember this principle: don't use much or many in affirmative statements. 

► Lots of, a lot of, plenty of, a large number of, numerous .
These expressions all mean  more or less exactly the same. In the list above, they are arranged in order of formality, going from the most informal (lots of) to the most formal (numerous). Informal language is more appropriate in dialogue, formal language in written documents.

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3. Small quantity quantifiers: 

 ►    few, a few, little, a little, not many, not much, a small number of, etc.

These quantifiers are normally only used in affirmative statements, to which they give a negative colouring.

► Little, a little, not much are used with non count nouns (always in the singular)
       Few, a few, not many are used with count nouns in the plural.

Examples:
Few people can speak more than three languages
A few (of the) paintings in this gallery are really good.
There's little point in trying to mend it. You'll never succeed!
I've got a little money left; let's go and have a drink.

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4 Recapitulation: table of usage for common English quantifiers

	Affirmative	Negative	Interrogative
Neutral	some, several, a number of, enough	any, enough	any, enough
Large quantity	numerous, plenty of, a lot of, lots of, too many	much, many, too many	much, many, too many
Small quantity	few / a few, Little / a little

5. Few or a few,  little or a little ?

The difference between the two expressions in each phrase is purely one of meaning, not of usage.
Without the article, few and little (used respectively with count nouns and non-count nouns) have the meaning of "not much/ not many, and possibly less than one might hope for or expect".  These expressions have a negative value to them.
   With the article, a few and a little have the meaning of  "at least some, perhaps more than one might expect" . These expressions have a positive value.

Examples:
Few of my friends were there, so I was disappointed.
A few of my friends were there, so I was quite happy.
Hurry up; there's little time left !
We have a little time to spare, so let's stop and have a cup of coffee.

What are quantifiers? 

A quantifier is a word or phrase which is used before a noun to indicate the amount or quantity:
'Some', 'many', 'a lot of' and 'a few' are examples of quantifiers.

Quantifiers can be used with both countable and uncountable nouns.

Examples:

There are some books on the desk
He's got only a few dollars.
How much money have you got?
There is a large quantity of fish in this river.
He's got more friends than his sister.

Examples of quantifiers

With Uncountable Nouns

·         much

·         a little/little/very little *

·         a bit (of)

·         a great deal of

·         a large amount of

·         a large quantity of

With Both

·         all

·         enough

·         more/most

·         less/least

·         no/none

·         not any

·         some

·         any

·         a lot of

·         lots of

·         plenty of

With Countable Nouns

·         many

·         a few/few/very few **

·         a number (of)

·         several

·         a large number of

·         a great number of

·         a majority of

* NOTE

few, very few mean that there is not enough of something.
a few means that there is not a lot of something, but there is enough.

** NOTE

little, very little mean that there is not enough of something.
a little means that there is not a lot of something, but there is enough.

A few and few, a little and little

These expressions show the speaker’s attitude towards the quantity he/she is referring to.

A few (for countable nouns) and a little (for uncountable nouns) describe the quantity in a positive way:

• “I’ve got a few friends” (= maybe not many, but enough)
• “I’ve got a little money” (= I’ve got enough to live on)

Few and little describe the quantity in a negative way:

• Few people visited him in hospital (= he had almost no visitors)
• He had little money (= almost no money)

Graded Quantifiers

They are like comparatives and hold a relative position on a scale of increase or decrease.

INCREASE (0% to 100%)
With plural countable nouns:
many	more	most
With uncountable nouns:
much	more	most
DECREASE (100% to 0%)
With plural countable nouns:
few	fewer	fewest
With uncountable nouns:
little	less	least

Examples:

· There are many people in Poland, more in India, but the most people live in China.

· Much time and money is spent on education, more on health services but the most is spent on national defense.

· Few rivers in Europe aren’t polluted.

· Fewer people die young now than in the nineteenth century.

· The country with the fewest people per square kilometre must be Australia.

· Scientists have little hope of finding a complete cure for cancer before 2010.

· She had less time to study than I did but had better results.

· Give that dog the least opportunity and it will bite you.

Quantifiers with countable and uncountable nouns

Some adjectives and adjectival phrases can only go with uncountable nouns (salt, rice, money, advice), and some can only go with countable nouns (friends, bags, people). The words in the middle column can be used with both countable and uncountable nouns.

With Uncountable Nouns	With Both	With Countable Nouns
How much?	How much? or How many?	How many?
a little	no/none	a few
a bit (of)	not any	a number (of)
	some (any)	several
a great deal of	a lot of	a large number of
a large amount of	plenty of	a great number of
a large quantity of	lots of	a majority of

Note: much and many are used in negative and question forms.

Example:

How much money have you got?

How many cigarettes have you smoked?

· There’s not much sugar in the cupboard.

· There weren’t many people at the party.

They are also used with too, (not) so, and (not) as

There were too many people at the party.

It’s a problem when there are so many people.

There’s not so much work to do this week.

 

In positive statements, we use a lot of:

· I’ve got a lot of work this week.

· There were a lot of people at the concert.

Some	In positive statements.	I gave him some money. We bought some food.
Any	In negative statements.	She didn’t have any money. I couldn’t find any books.

Some and any are used with countable and uncountable nouns, to describe an indefinite or incomplete amount.

Some is used in positive statements.
It is also used in questions where we are sure about the answer.

“Did he give you some tea?” (= I’m sure he did.)

“Is there some fruit juice in the fridge?” (= I think there is)

Some is used where the question is not a request for information, but a way of making a request, encouraging or giving an invitation.

“Could I have some books, please?”

“Why don’t you take some books home with you?”

“Would you like some books?”

Any is used in questions and with not in negative statements.

“Have you got any tea?”

“He didn’t give me any tea.”

“I don’t think we’ve got any tea left.”


Something, Anything, Someone, Anyone etc.

Compound nouns with some- and any- are used in the same way as some and any.

Positive statements:
 
“Someone is sleeping in my bed.”

“He saw something in the garden.”

“I left my glasses somewhere in the house.”

Questions:
“Are you looking for someone?” (= I’m sure you are)

“Have you lost something?” (= I’m sure you have)

“Is there anything to eat?” (a real question)

“Did you go anywhere last night?”



Negative statements: 

“She didn’t go anywhere last night.”

“He doesn’t know anybody here.”

There is a difference in emphasis between nothing, nobody etc. and not … anything, not … anybody: 

“I don’t know anything about it.” (= neutral, no emphasis)

“I know nothing about it.” (= more emphatic, maybe defensive)

“ Is there anybody who speaks English here?”

“There is nobody in the house at the moment.”

“Does anybody have the time?”

“When I arrived there was nobody to meet me.”

ANY can also be used in positive statements to mean ‘no matter which’, ‘no matter who’, ‘no matter what’:

“You can borrow any of my books.”

“They can choose anything from the menu.”

“You may invite anybody to dinner, I don’t mind who comes.”

Enough

Enough is placed before the noun, to indicate the quantity required or necessary:
“There is enough bread for lunch.”

“She has enough money.”


Enough is also used with adjectives and adverbs:

“We didn’t have enough time to visit London Bridge.”

“Is there enough milk for breakfast?”

“She has enough talent to become an international singing star.”

What are quantifiers?

Quantifiers are words that are used to state quantity or amount of something without stating the actually number. 

Quantifiers answer the questions "How many?" and "How much?"

Quantifiers can be used with plural countable nouns and uncountable nouns.

Quantifiers must agree with the noun. There are 3 main types of quantifiers.

 Quantifiers that are used with countable nouns, quantifiers that are used with uncountable nouns. and the 3rd type are quantifiers that are used with either countable nouns or uncountable nouns. 

	Countable Nouns	Uncountable Nouns	-
much		x	I don't have much money.
many	x	-	I don't have many apples.
few*	x	-	We know few people in the area. I would like to get to know more.
a few**	x	-	We know a few people in the area. I know enough people to keep me happy.
little*	-	x	I know little English. I am going to have a problem getting around England.
a little**	-	x	I know a little English, at least enough to get England.
enough	x	x	I have enough money.
plenty	x	x	I have plenty of money.

** a few/a little - means that there are not a lot of something, but there is enough.

• There are a few apples. There are enough apples.
• There are a people at the meeting. There are enough people to hold a meeting. There are not a lot people, at the meeting, but there are enough
• I know a little English. He know enough English to manage.
• I have a little money.

*few/little - means that is not enough of something.

• There are few apples. There are not enough apples.
• There are few people. There are not enough people at the meeting. We can't hold a meeting, because there are not enough people.
• There is little money. We can't buy a lot of expensive food.
• If things for the holiday. I don't have enough money, then we will stay home and have a great time.
• They know little English. They can't get around very well. They don't know enough English to manage.