Learn English: LESS, FEWER, FEW, LITTLE, A FEW, A LITTLE, MORE

This lesson clarifies the usage of ‘few’, ‘little’, ‘a few’, ‘a little’, ‘fewer’, ‘less’, and ‘more’ with countable and uncountable nouns, highlighting common errors, particularly the misuse of ‘less’ with countable nouns. The lesson demonstrates how these words impact the sentence's tone and meaning, emphasizing the importance of using ‘fewer’ with plural nouns and ‘less’ with singular nouns.

Countable vs. Uncountable Nouns

• 00:00:05 Countable nouns have plural forms (e.g., 'book'/'books'), while uncountable nouns are used only in the singular (e.g., 'wine', 'sugar'). The correct usage of ‘few’, ‘little’, ‘fewer’, ‘less’ and ‘more’ depends on whether the noun is countable or uncountable. It's crucial to understand this difference for accurate English communication.

Few vs. A Few and Little vs. A Little

• 00:03:43 'Few' and 'little' indicate a small quantity or amount and often convey a negative tone (e.g., 'few books left', 'little wine left'). 'A few' and 'a little', however, suggest a small but still positive quantity, implying that there's still some available (e.g., 'a few books left', 'a little wine left').

Fewer vs. Less

• 00:05:46 'Fewer' is used with countable nouns in their plural form, whereas ‘less’ is used with uncountable nouns (e.g., 'fewer books', 'less wine'). This distinction is frequently misunderstood, even by native English speakers, making it a crucial point to grasp.

More with Countable and Uncountable Nouns

• 00:08:10 'More' is the only word in the group that functions with both countable and uncountable nouns (e.g., 'more books', 'more wine'). This means it can be used in a wider range of contexts to indicate a larger quantity or amount.