Determiners and pronouns - (a) little / (a) few

Question 1

• (a) little + UNcountable noun:
  (a) little water
  (a) little time
  (a) little money
  (a) little soup
  → a little = some BUT not much
• (a) few + PLURAL noun:
  (a) few bookS
  (a) few questionS
  (a) few people
  (a) few dayS
  → a few = some BUT not many

Answer 1

…She didn’t eat anything, but she drank A little water.
…I speak A little Spanish. (= some Spanish but not much)
…A: Can you speak Spanish?
B: A little

...Excuse me, I have to make A few phone calls.
...We’re going away for A few days.
...I speak A few words of Spanish.
...A:  Are there any shops near here?
   B:  Yes, A few

Question 2

• little (WITHOUT “a”) = nearly NO or nearly NOTHING

* few (WITHOUT “a”) = nearly NO

Answer 2

…There was little food in the fridge. It was nearly empty.
# You can say VERY little:
…Dan is very thin because he eats very little. (= nearly nothing)

…There were few people in the theatre. It was nearly empty.
# You can say very few:
…Your English is VERY good. You make very few mistakes.

Question 3

• Compare little and A little:

* Compare few and A few:

Answer 3

…They have a little money, so they’re not poor. (= they have some money)
…They have little money. They are very poor. (= nearly no money)

…I have a few friends, so I’m not lonely. (= I have some friends)
…I’m sad and I’m lonely. I have few friends. (= nearly no friends)