A guide to using quantifiers in English .

Definition
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

1. Neutral quantifiers:
Some and any: several, a number of, enough

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 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?

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.

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.

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.

How to build correctly ordered sentences in English

WORD ORDER

in declarative statements

Word order is very important in English; but it is not complicated, and can be reduced to a
few basic rules or principles.
In the examples below, parts of the sentence are colour-coded: subjects in red, verbs in
blue, direct objects in brown, etc.

1.1 In a normal (declarative) sentence, the subject of a sentence comes directly in front of
the verb. The direct object (when there is one) comes directly after it:

Examples:
The man wrote a letter.
People who live in glasshouses shouldn't throw stones.
The president laughed.

1.2. Note that by the subject, we mean not just a single word, but the subject noun or
pronoun plus descriptive phrases that go with it. The rest of the sentence - i.e. the part that is
not the subject - is called the predicate.
Example:
People who live in glasshouses shouldn't throw stones.

1.3. If a sentence has any other parts to it - indirect objects, adverbs or adverb phrases
- these usually come in specific places:
1.3.1 The position of the indirect object

The indirect object follows the direct object when it is formed with the preposition to:
The indirect object comes in front of the direct object if to is omitted
Example:
The doctor gave some medicine to the child.
or: The doctor gave the child some medicine.

1.3.2. The position of adverbs or adverb phrases

These can come in three possible places:
a) Before the subject (Notably with common adverbs or adverb phrases)
Example:
Yesterday the man wrote a letter

b) After the object (Virtually any adverb or adverb phrase can be placed here)
Example:
The man wrote a letter on his computer in the train.

c) In the middle of the verb group. (Notably with short common adverbs)
Example:
The man has already written his letter

1.4 In standard English, nothing usually comes between the subject and the verb, or
between the verb and the object.

There are a few exceptions. The most important of these are adverbs of frequency and
indirect objects without to.
Example:
The man often wrote his mother a letter.
I sometimes give my dog a bone.

If you always apply these few simple rules, you will not make too many word order problems
in English. The examples above are deliberately simple - but the rules can be applied even to
complex sentences, with subordinate and coordinated clauses.
Example:
The director, [who often told his staf (to work harder),] never left
the office before [he had checked his e-mail.]
2 Exceptions
Of course, there are exceptions to many rules, and writers and speakers
sometimes use different or unusual word order for special effects. But if we
concentrate on the exceptions, we may forget the main principles, and the
question of word order may start to seem very complex! So here are just a few
examples: you should realise that they exist, but not try to use them unless
either they are essential in the context, or else you have fully mastered normal
word order patterns. (Don't try to run before you can walk!)

A few examples:

Never before had I seen such a magnificent exhibition.

(After never or never before, subject and verb can be - and usually are inverted. Do not invert when never follows the subject !).

Hardly had I left the house, than it started to rain.

(When a sentence starts with hardly, subject and verb must be
inverted.).

Had I known, I'd never have gone there.

(Inversion occurs in unfulfilled hypothetical conditional structures when
if is omitted.. See the page on conditional clauses for more details)

The book that you gave me I'd read already.

(The long object, The book that you gave me, is placed at the start of
the sentence for reasons of style: this unusual sentence structure is not
necessary, just stylistic).
How to build correctly ordered questions in English

WORD ORDER in QUESTIONS

1. Word order in English questions:
This really is so simple.... Almost all questions use the same structure.
All you need to do is to remember this simple and common English phrase:

How do you do?

The structure of almost every simple question in English is based on this same
model:
(Question word if there is one) - Auxiliary or modal - subject - main verb (plus the rest of the sentence):
Important: take care !
In the interrogative, as in the negative, English verbs are ALWAYS made up of at
least two elements, an auxiliary and the root verb.
In the interrogative there is only one exception to this rule, and that is certain
tenses of the verb to be.
For all other verbs - including to have - tenses that are formed with a single
verb in an affirmative statement (i.e. the present simple and the simple past) are
formed in the interrogative by the addition of the auxiliary do.

Examples
Where did Jane Austen live?
Did Arnold Schwarzenegger learn English quickly?
How quickly did Arnold Schwarzenegger learn English ?
Has the bank sent us an invoice yet?
How many books have you read this year ?
Is the new secretary being given her own laptop ?
Can the new secretary be given her own laptop ?
How quickly can the new secretary be given her own laptop ?
Is the new secretary nice ?
Comparison between statements and questions with single-word tenses :
He had a good time. > Did he have a good time? NOT Had he a good time?
He lives in new York. > Does he live in new York? NOT Lives he in New York?
Exceptions:
Certain adverbs, notably short adverbs of frequency or time, can and indeed
sometimes must be placed between the auxiliary and the root verb, as in
statements. In questions, these adverbs are placed between the subject and the
root verb.

Has that French company yet sent us their order ?

Can the new secretary soon be given a bigger desk ?
What sort of hats do the ladies usually wear?

Quantifiers Exercises English Grammar

Test
Try the exercise #1 Intermediate
Try the exercise #2 Upper Intermediate
Usage of quantifiers:
A few and few, a little and little
Graded Quantifiers
Some or Any?
Something, Anything, Someone, Anyone etc.
Enough
A few and few, a little and little
These expressions show the speakers 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:

Ive got a few friends (= maybe not many, but enough)

Ive got a little money (= Ive 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
With uncountable nouns:

most

much

more

DECREASE (100% to 0%)

With plural countable nouns:
few
fewer
With uncountable nouns:
little
less

most

fewest
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 arent 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
How much?
a little
a bit (of)
a great deal of
a large amount of
a large quantity of

With Both
How much? or How many?
no/none
not any
some (any)
a lot of
plenty of
lots 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?
Theres not much sugar in the cupboard.
There werent many people at the party.
They are also used with too, (not) so, and (not) as

With Countable Nouns

How many?
a few
a number (of)
several
a large number of
a great number of
a majority of

There were too many people at the party.

Its a problem when there are so many people.
Theres not so much work to do this week.
In positive statements, we use a lot of:
Ive got a lot of work this week.
There were a lot of people at the concert.

Quantifiers Some or Any, Something or

Anything
Some and Any
Go to Exercise #1
Something, Anything, Somewhere, Anywhere, Someone, Anyone etc.
Go to Exercise #2
Enough

Some In positive statements.

Any In negative statements.

I gave him some money. We bought some food.

She didnt have any money. I couldnt 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? (= Im 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 dont 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 didnt give me any tea.
I dont think weve got any tea left.
Try the Exercise #1
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? (= Im sure you are)
Have you lost something? (= Im sure you have)
Is there anything to eat? (a real question)
Did you go anywhere last night?

Negative statements:
She didnt go anywhere last night.
He doesnt know anybody here.
There is a difference in emphasis between nothing, nobody etc. and not anything, not
anybody:
I dont 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 dont mind who comes.
Try the Exercise #2

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 didnt have enough time to visit London Bridge.
Is there enough milk for breakfast?
She has enough talent to become an international singing star.