Quantifiers Flashcards
Many/much
Many for countable \ much for uncountable in (?) and (-)We use many before plural (countable) nouns and much before uncountable nouns \ We use them in negative sentences and questions \ We don’t often use them in affirmative sentences
There isn’t ___ coffee in the jar
There isn’t much coffee in the jar
Were there ___ people in the party?
Were there many people in the party?
Too much/too many \ so much/so many
Note that much/many are more common in negatives and questions than in affirmative sentences \ However \ we use too much and too many or so much and so many in affirmative sentences
There’s ___ salt in the soup
There’s too much salt in the soup
You eat ___ biscuits
You eat too many biscuits
There were ___ people that we had to leave
There were so many people that we had to leave
He ate ___ cake that it made him sick
He ate so much cake that it made him sick
How much/how many
We use how many and how much to ask about quantity
___ ___ concerts have you ever been to?
How many concerts have you ever been to?
___ ___ coffee have you had today?
How much coffee have you had today?
A lot of/lots of/plenty of
Before both countable and uncountable We use a lot of \ lots of (more informal) \ or plenty of before both plural (countable) and uncountable nouns \ We normally use them in positive sentences
She spends ___ ___ ___ time watching TV
She spends a lot of time watching TV
We had ___ ___ good moments together
We had lots of good moments together
We’ve got ___ ___ time
We’ve got plenty of time
Of before noun \ no of at the end of a sentence
We must always use a lot of or lots of including of at the end \ However \ we can use the expressions a lot or lots (without of) at the end of a sentence
How many beers did you have? I don’t know\ I had ___ /___ ___
How many beers did you have? I don’t know\ I had lots/a lot
I like her ___ ___
I like her a lot
I don’t want any more cake\thanks\I’ve had ___
I don’t want any more cake\thanks\I’ve had plenty
A) few/(a) little/a bit of
Few for countable\ little for uncountable We use (a) few before plural (countable) nouns and (a) little or a bit of (more informal) before uncountable nouns in affirmative\ negative and interrogative sentences
I have to do ___ ___ things this afternoon
I have to do a few things this afternoon
He always gets good results with very ___ effort
He always gets good results with very little effort
Can you put ___ ___ ___ sugar in the tea?
Can you put a bit of sugar in the tea?
Few or a few? Little or a little?
A few means ‘some but not many; enough’, and a little means ‘some but not much; enough’ .
Few means ‘almost none; not enough’.
Normally, the difference between a few/little (WITH a) and few/little (WITHOUT a) is that a few/little is positive in meaning, and few/little is negative. Compare:
There’s ___ milk in the fridge; we have to buy more. (=Not enough; we need more)
There’s little milk in the fridge; we have to buy more. (=Not enough; we need more)
Shall I buy some beers?’ ‘No, it’s OK, there are ___ ___ in the fridge.’ (=Enough; we don’t need more)
Shall I buy some beers?’ ‘No, it’s OK, there are a few in the fridge.’ (=Enough; we don’t need more)
Do you speak English?’ ‘No, I speak very ___ English.’ (=Negative)
Do you speak English?’ ‘No, I speak very little English.’ (=Negative)
Do you speak English?’ ‘Yes, I speak ___ English.’ (=Positive)
Do you speak English?’ ‘Yes, I speak a little English.’ (=Positive)
Some/any/no
Some in (+) and any in (?) and (-)
We use some in affirmative sentences and any in negative sentences and questions.
There isn’t ___ sugar in the cupboard
There isn’t any sugar in the cupboard
Have you got ___ new friends?
Have you got any new friends?
I have ___ questions to ask you
I have some questions to ask you
No in (+)
We use no in affirmative sentences.
There are ___ biscuits left.
There are no biscuits left.
I have ___ questions to ask.
I have no questions to ask.
With both countable (plural) and uncountable
Some, any and no can be used before countable and uncountable nouns. But if we use them before a countable noun, the noun must be plural.
Are there ___ students in the classroom?
Are there any students in the classroom?
Some for offers and requests
We use some (NOT any) in interrogative sentences when we are offering or requesting (=asking for) something.
Would you like ___ help?
Would you like some help?
Can I have ___ tea, please?
Can I have some tea, please?
None
None is a pronoun. It means ‘zero’. We use it in affirmative sentences as a pronoun to replace countable and uncountable nouns. This means that it’s not followed by a noun.
There were three bottles before we left, and now there is ___
There were three bottles before we left, and now there is none
How much cake did you have?’ ___
How much cake did you have?’ ‘None.’
None of
We can also use none of + noun (countable or uncountable).
___of the questions were answered.
None of the questions were answered.
