There are many quantifiers, but in this lesson, we will try to cover all of the most important ones and give some examples of how to use them.
Here is a list of some of the most important quantifiers that you should know. We cover most of these words in more detail in other lessons.
another | each | either | enough |
less | little | much | neither |
one | other | both | few |
many | others | several | all |
any | some | most | none |
plenty of | tons of | lots of | a couple of |
a number of | a majority of | a third of | half (of) |
no | a great deal of | bunches of | hundreds of |
a bit of | a little bit of | loads of | both |
Let's go over some important points together.
1. Some quantifiers can only be used with singular count nouns.
one | each | every |
- I have one dog.
- Each person has a job to do.
- Every country has its own laws.
2. Some quantifiers can only be used with plural count nouns.
a few (of) | many | a couple of | several |
a number of | a majority of | both |
- A few of my friends came to my house.
- I didn't see many people when I drove past the park.
- She had a couple of questions.
- There are a number of problems with the new product.
- A majority of the citizens do not like the new law.
- Both Mary and Bob like you.
- We will travel for several weeks.
Only the number "one" goes with singular count nouns. All other numbers including "zero" go with plural count nouns.
- She has one cookie.
- He has two cookies.
- I have 1,000 cookies.
- Bill has zero cookies.
a little | less | (not) much |
not as much | a great deal of | a bit of |
- I have a little free time today.
- Regular exercise leads to less stress.
- There is not much food in the house.
- I do not have as much money as she does.
- There is a great deal of interest in this issue.
- A bit of love can give a great deal of help to a person.
Here are some example sentences with count nouns.
- There were no people at the event.
- I have some cookies.
- She doesn't have any friends.
- They will fire a third of the employees.
- Plenty of businesses are hiring.
- Most kids love ice cream.
- I need more clothes.
- They have no love for each other.
- I have some time.
- She doesn't have any stress.
- They will spend a third of the money.
- You can get plenty of stress from not working.
- Most air pollution comes from factories.
- We generated more interest in our product.
- a lot of / lots of / tons of / heaps of / loads of
- a few / several / a couple of
- some / a number of / quite a few