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few, a few, little, a little - Coggle Diagram
few, a few, little, a little
used with countable or uncountable nouns?
(A) few (of)
(a) few
NP; used with plural countable nouns
Few politicians are really honest
(a) few of
DetP/Pron
Few people always tell the truth.
Few of the people questioned told the truth.
Few of them told the truth.
(A) little (of)
(a) little
NP; used with uncountable nouns
I have little interest in politics
(a) little of
DetP/Pron
Could I have a little butter?
Could I have a little of that butter?
Could I have a little of that?
used with affirmative/negative or interrogative verbs?
Affirmative
(a) few/little
common
Few politicians are really honest
I have little interest in politics
We've got a few potatoes and some steak
I need a little water before I’m ready to go.
Negative
(a) few/little
many/much
There aren't many apples.
There isn't much cheese.
Interrogative
(a) few/little
Have you gave him a few seeds for his garden?
Would you like a little soup?
difference in meaning few vs. a few
The Scale
no/none/any < little/few < a little/few < (quite a little/few) < some
Few/Little
the
meaning is negative
,
close to none
,
but clearly not enough
His ideas are difficult, and few people understand them.
Cactuses need little water,
A few/little
the
meaning is more positive
,
not plenty
,
but enough
His ideas are difficult, but a few people understand them.
Give the roses a little water every day
Formal or informal context
formal
(very) little/few
He's got very little patience and very few friends.
informal
not much/many
;
only a little/few
Come on! We haven’t got much time!
Only a few people remembered my birthday.
quite a few
=
informal, meaning is more positive
We’ve got quite a few friends in the village.