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Talking About Quantity in English – A FEW, A LITTLE, FEW, LITTLE
In this practical speaking and grammar lesson, I teach how to use some very common English expressions that are related to quantity. What is the difference between “a little” and “a few”? Or even the difference between “a little” and “little”? Watch this free English lesson to find out, then take the quiz to test your understanding.
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Quiz
Test your understanding of this English lesson
Test your understanding of the English lesson by answering these questions. You will get the answers and your score at the end of the quiz.
Comments
94 Comments on “Talking About Quantity in English – A FEW, A LITTLE, FEW, LITTLE”
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Murat
Very useful lesson. Thank you so much for these free lessons. God bless you. Murat from Turkey.
reallly god bless u…tnx
ebi
Thanks, this lesson was very helpful.
Charles
fromThailand
Thank you so much for lesson.Your explanation made me got more clearly…..
maia ghersi
hi alex!!!
than you very much for your videos! they really helped me a lot with my english grammar :D
Ana V.
good lesson!!
marta
thank you for your explanation, is very clear, and to the point.
chino89
dear Alex, I like your lessons you’re a good teacher, why you said I have a little money why isn’t I have a few money, because you can said I have one dollar, two dollars
I said this because money is actually a non-count noun. You can count dollars and cents, but you can’t count the noun money.
For example, you can say “one dollar,” two dollars,” but you can’t say “one money,” “two monies.”
Because you can’t say “two monies,” you can use “few” or “a few,” because they are only used with count nouns.
AlexESLvid
Chris
You said:
Because you can’t say “two monies,” you can use “few” or “a few,” because they are only used with count nouns.
- I assume you meant to say: you cannot use ‘few’ or ‘a few’…!
helen
Dear Alex,thahks a lot for such a nice and at the same time very clear explanation of this grammar rule.Now it is clear as a bell.
alex_sfr
Dear Alex.
How about lot of and a lot of these are same like few and a few?
Jessie2009
what’s the diffirence betweent “few” and “a few”
raul
Thanks Alex. Your explanation was so clear and very useful. Thanks again
aleem
Thanks Alex.i wright your lesson on few pages and listen again.
Shaker
Hello,
That mean I can use (a few) and (a lettle) with positive sence.
And (few) , (lettle) with negative sence.
Thanks a lot.
narendra
very good
alrooh
very good
Ayesha
Sir, You are the best. Thanks a lot for excellent explanation.
hwsoo1
Thank you for your explanation about the their differeneces.
phanhetphon
php
Dear, Mr Alex
Thank you very much for you teaching me and always watch your video lesson . I hope so you will have the new lesson.
Thank you.
php
karam yasser
man u r great … :)
the best teacher at this site
heoxinh
he is so handsome :x :x
Aberash
I like to learn English Speaking in greatly.
So pleas help me and teach,you and me contact with my email adders.
dorkad
thanks
sahzad
thanx
thaiquochung
hi!alex ! it`s the first time i get it and… thank you for your lesson ! i appreciate that!
sebastiangregori
Ok, now understand it, thanks
liza
hello alex!!
Thanks for this wonderful lesson. I had few confusions to use the words FEW,A FEW, LITTLE, A LITTLE. U clear them out. But anyway , Would u like to correct my upper sentence which i have write down with word FEW… :) Please RSVP. :)
This is Liza Here.
letinho
Very good lesson
kurt
thanks very interesting to follow this lesson
Monique
useful lesson, I liked it a lot.
akın
thank you so much alex.your explains was simply but ditactic for me.again thanks
ketsada
Please tell me how to download video please
aresha
Thank you so much for this highly informative lecture. But i want to ask you one question and that is you said in the lecture that we cannot count money but when we say that we have one Rupee, two rupee and so on aren’t we counting the money? plz sir reply to my question bcoz it is very confusing. thak you.
Money is actually a non-count noun. You can count dollars and cents, but you can’t count the noun money.
For example, you can say “one dollar,” two dollars,” but you can’t say “one money,” “two monies.”
You can have “little” or “a little” money, but you can’t have “few” or “a few” monies. On the other hand, you can have “few” or “a few” dollars, but you can’t have “little” or “a little” dollars, because dollar is a count noun.
I hope this helps!
AlexESLvid
Gimmi
Dear Alex, thank you for making so easy to understand the diference betwen “few” and “a few”, also “little” and “a little”.
I know that you do not make the rule but for me, and for “aresha” too, the money are the most count-able thing in this world.
Do you have any money, do you have some money let me know how many or how much? At this point it is confused for me.
The teacher is saying money is general and cannot be counted. But money is made up of dollars and cents. So, a person does not count one money, two monies. But you can count 1 dollar and 2 dollars.
I have a little money. I only have a few dollars and a few cents.
I drank a little water. I drank a few drops of water. I drank a few ounces. I drank a few sips.
When the general term like water can be broken down into small units of measurement, then one can count.
Hope this helps.
moneyface
Judith
The explanation is GREAT!!! thank you !
eunahhwang
wow! thank your for your useful lesson!! i appreciate it.
i have a quesetion for you..
i took 5 questions after your lesson
but i got a wrong answer.
“She has few ideas.” is this noun” ideas” a count noun?
thank you:)
Ideas is a count noun. You can have one idea, two ideas, three ideas, etc.
I hope this helps!
AlexESLvid
aganda
Is idea countable or uncountable noun? How about CD? why few ideas and not a few CD? thank you
You can say “a few CDs,” because “few” and “a few” means more than one. You must use a plural count noun to use “few” and “a few.” CD is a count noun. You can have one CD, two CDs, three CDs, etc.
AlexESLvid
Mashka
Thank you!!!Its very interesting and useful lesson.
KIRTI MITTAL
Thanks Alex, For wonderful lessons . I am just wondering ,Is there any school where I can learn engvid lessons ? I am living in Toronto .
Please let me know I would like to join your class.
luis romero
Hi alex, in what moment can I use “VERY FEW/LITTLE” thankks in advance for you answer.
baansuankhanunengvid
Very good,I enjoyed doing it.
lara
Thanks Alex
i am really lucky , because i have got a chance to be one of your students
Hi Lara! I’m glad you’re enjoying these lessons too.
AlexESLvid
ebi
really tnx,…i dont knw how to say thank you
miss.pink
thank you mr.Alex
u r great ..
ur lessons r interesting
eman
great lessons from great person
thanks for u
mhelaman
Thank you very much. I’ve learned a lot from your lesson.
romsko
Simply and clearly
Thank you
ahmedadd
its very good website i am not good english but when i enter your web sit wil good in english please make more
Enzo
very usefull lesson, thanks! (from brazil)
ali kashif
Thanks alex for such a wonderful lecture.it really helped a lot.
fati7
Its very good website I want to learn english and to be the best Thank you to our teacher Alex explaining the lesson so that we can understand easily.
owen
Such a good tutorial! Thank you Alex.
Tauseef
thank you Sir , its really helpful !
Raulo
Good lesson alex ! I have had a mistake too, because I thougt that idea is uncountable word. Now, I must think twice, before tick the correct answer !
Thank a lot !
jojo
I got 5 out of 5. Thanks for lesson
Himatyar
thanks teacher for the lessons I really enjoy it.
phunganhdung
thank you so much,Alex . now I can recognize them
Musa
I don’t even believe that you are English Teachers…….
uyquan
thanks so much
Manar
thank you so so so much
Guedes
All the explanation has been very important to me, I am really very happy after to find this site to take some doubt that I usually had before, I have just to say Thanks, Thanks, Thanks for at All.
hAnZa_AniS
hi Alex..
thank you for the lesson…
i want to learn English i hope u can help me..
I’m not good in English actually,so i want to learn English greatly
i hope u can teach me,we can contact with my email..
choursam
Thank you for the lesson.
It’s very good explination and I’m all ears with you on the video.
kurt
I got 4/ 5 question.. but it is little bit confuse, until i have to read again and again… I want to ask how to use it without confuse in speaking, I don’t have a partner for talking about. Thanks.
Herman
Hi, Alex!
Can we apply rule about positive and negative sentence(with and without “a”) for 1th and 2th examples:
I read a few pages(fact without emotion)
I read few pages(i want read more and more, I regret, but I must go to work) or
I drank little water(i want drink one more glass)
It’s right or folly?
^Thank you^
kirtimittal
Hi Alex,
I love all of your lesson its always good to clear concept.I would like to learn all this in the class. Can you plz let me know is it possible to join your classes in Toronto??
thanks and regards
Alessandro
Thanks Alex!
Such a good lesson! :)
karem
thanks Alex
i respect you so much
charco
thanks Alex I am learnig a lot from your lessons bye.
Daniele
I love your explanation! Very clear. I’ve learned alot with you. Even the most basic things that I considered to know, but after watching your videos I reinforced and improved my knowledge! Thank you
demir
thanks… god bless you
Kira
Hi Alex,
What would you put her- a few or few:
We have been to Turkey …. times now, and we always enjoy it.
Would appreciate your help,
Kira
Roman
Thank you for lesson!!!
Asghar Khan
Thanks a lot i like ur classes because i can understand u than other. ur way of teaching is very good and i understand the usage of few little once again thank u
raj
Thanks Mr.Alex… your explanation and presentation skill is really awesome…
i am expecting a lot from you..
once again thank for your good work….
keep it up…
trivs
THANKS SIR,very good lesson……i have a query about the use of ‘the little’ and ‘the few’ too…are their usages similar??
doodi
thank you very very much sir
riwizlane
thank s you have good explain lesson.we need more ;the verbs and verb sentens.good luck
Valldecy
Hi, Alex I´m from Brazil and I really appraciate your lessons. Please add me on my msn: val-decy2008@hotmail.com
skype: waldecy.jose.rodrigues
Thanks for all the lessons you have posted.
ali
thanks, Sir Alex, you are a good teacher personally i like you and your teaching way.
william
Thank you, it is a good lesson
Chris
One comment about the ‘few/a few’ and ‘little/a little’ topic:
Consider these two sentences:
1. There is little merit in your argument
2. Few people would challenge the giant
Can these two statements include nothing/zero in the implied meanings? That is, can ‘little merit’ include ‘no merit’? Same for few.
manar
The lesson was very clear.Many thanks
Emil Ibragimov
Hi Alex!Nice to see you again:)i’ve one more question about using “a little”and “little”.For exampla,I’ve seen a nice t-shirt,and i want to buy it,but i havn’t enough maney,and i say:”I’ve LITTLE maney”but if i had enough maney i would say”i’ve A LITTLE maney”-is it correct?
tam minh truong
I have had a litle knowledge of a few, a little, few, little but I very confuse when using them. Now my mind is clear about them after your lesson. Thank you very much.
naser
THank you for this quiz
Phyo Phyo
Hi Alex, I would like to explain about when to use Can, Could, Shall, Should, Will, Would, May, Might and must. Please …