087 : much, many, little, few, a lot, plenty

   A   

We use much and little with uncountable nouns:

     much time      much luck      little energy      little money

 

We use many and few with plural nouns:

     many friends      many people      few cars      few countries

 

We use a lot of / lots of / plenty of with both uncountable and plural nouns:

     a lot of luck           lots of time          plenty of money

     a lot of friends      lots of people      plenty of ideas

 

Plenty = more than enough:

• There's no need to hurry. We've got plenty of time.

 

 

   B   

Much is unusual in positive sentences (especially in spoken English). Compare:

• We didn't spend much money.
  but  We spent a lot of money. (not We spent much money)
• Do you see David much?
  but  I see David a lot. (not I see David much)

 

We use many and a lot of in all kinds of sentences:

• Many people drive too fast. or A lot of people drive too fast.
• Do you know many people? or Do you know a lot of people?
• There aren't many tourists here. or There aren't a lot of tourists here.

 

Note that we say many years / many weeks / many days (not a lot of ... ):

• We've lived here for many years. (not a lot of years)

 

 

   C   

Little = not much, few = not many:

• Gary is very busy with his job. He has little time for other things. (= not much time, less time than he would like)
• Vicky doesn't like living in London. She has few friends there. (= not many, not as many as she would like)

 

You can say very little and very few:

• Gary has very little time for other things.
• Vicky has very few friends in London.

 

 

   D   

A little = some, a small amount:

• Let's go and have a coffee. We have a little time before the train leaves.
  (a little time = some time, enough time to have a coffee)
• 'Do you speak English?'  'A little.' (so we can talk a bit)

 

A few = some, a small number:

• I enjoy my life here. I have a few friends and we meet quite often.
  (a few friends = not many but enough to have a good time)
• 'When was the last time you saw Clare?'  'A few days ago.' (= some days ago)

 

Compare little and a little, few and a few:

• He spoke little English, so it was difficult to communicate with him.
  He spoke a little English, so we were able to communicate with him.
• She's lucky. She has few problems. (= not many problems)
  Things are not going so well for her. She has a few problems. (= some problems)

 

You can say only a little and only a few:

• Hurry! We only have a little time. (not only little time)
• The village was very small. There were only a few houses. (not only few houses)