Hello students! Congratulations on completing Years 1 and 2 of American English. Now that you are better prepared and that your American English is stronger, during years 3, 4, and 5 of your American English studies with Maestro Sersea, you will receive a different English grammar lesson each week.
You are encouraged to do your best to learn from each English grammar lesson as well as do further research via the Google search engine below if you need to learn more about each grammar topic. Type the topic you’re searching for in the “Enhanced by Google” box below so you can search for more information.
Lesson 3.52.3: Year 3
Everyday Grammar: ” Little vs A little, Few vs A few”
The word little means a bit of or hardly any amount, the little means some or a small quantity.
Little (not much).
1: The little boy was unconscious.
2: I have little interest doing math’s homework.
3: The kitchen is very little.
4: My uncle has got little ranch in Texas
A little (A small amount)
We use, a little with singular uncountable nouns.
1: A little milk is left in the fridge.
2: Ali’s mother spread a little jam on his bread.
3: I need a little piece of cake.
4: With a little effort he located the shop.
Both the term, few and a few technically refer to more than one. Few means not, ‘a lot of’ and, a few means, ‘Some’
Few (Not many)
1: I have few good friends.
2: Few people went to the concert.
3: There are few honest politicians.
A few (A small amount)
1: I have a few days off next month.
2: He is a painter and has won a few awards on his painting.