AULA VIRTUAL DE INGLÉS I.E.S.

“DUQUE DE RIVAS”
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Grammar 5.- Quantity

Few / a few Little / a little: Use

We use few with plural nouns and little with uncountable nouns:

Few chairs few people little money little interest

There is a difference between few and a few and between little and a

little. Few and little are negative ideas:

She was not popular at school. She had few friends. (=not many, not

enough friends)

It´s about quarter to ten! I´ve got little time. (=not much, not enough

time)

We also use very few and very little:

She had very few friends

I´ve got very little time

A few and a little are more positive ideas: A few / a little = some, a

small amount or a small number:

She enjoys her life in Brighton. She has a few friends. (= not many, but

enough to have a good time)

Let´s have a coffee. I´ve got a little time before the bus leaves. (= some

Time, enough time to have a coffee)

Few and little (without a) are rather formal. In conversation we prefer not

many, not much, only a few or only a little.

Grammar 5.- Quantity

Exercises:

I) Complete these sentences using few / a few, little / a little:

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 AULA VIRTUAL DE INGLÉS I.E.S. “DUQUE DE RIVAS”
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1- She doesn´t speak much German. Only _________________ words.

2- Would you like some more tea? Yes, please, but only __________________

3- The theatre was almost empty. There were very _________________ people

inside.

4- I´m making a cake. Can you pass me __________________ milk, please?

5- She didn´t have enough money, but her boyfriend had _________________

6- We saw Freddy _________________ days ago.

7- Are you hungry? I´ll make ___________________ sandwiches.

8- I´m exhausted today. I have ___________________ energy.

9- There´s not much to see in this town, so _________________ tourists come

here.

10- We need __________________ tomatoes and __________________oil for

the salad.

II) Complete these sentences with a, an, some and any:

1- I´m going to make ___________ pizza, but there isn´t ____________cheese.

2- Laura saw ____________ beautiful painting in the museum yesterday.

3- I´m thirsty! Can I have _____________ orange juice?

4- Do you speak ______________ French?

5- We need _____________ oranges and _____________ chocolate for the

cake.

6- He didn´t see ____________ cookery books in the school library.

7- Is there _____________ cinema near here? I want to see _____________

Interesting film.

8- Have they got _____________ children? No, they haven´t got ____________

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 AULA VIRTUAL DE INGLÉS I.E.S. “DUQUE DE RIVAS”
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9- Mary showed us ______________ beautiful photos of landscapes last

weekend.

III) Complete the sentences with a lot of, much, many, too much, too many,

enough:

1- People in England don´t drink ________________ coffee. They prefer tea.

2- Layla wants to buy a tablet, but she hasn´t got ________________ money.

3- They didn´t see ________________ bands at the concert because they

were late.

4- There were ________________ people at the disco last night. We had a

great time!

5- I can´t hear you. There´s _______________ noise in this bar.

6- The traffic is terrible in New Delhi. There are __________________ cars.

7- The woman was badly injured in the accident. She lost _________________

blood.

8- I have to get fit because I don´t feel strong________________.

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 AULA VIRTUAL DE INGLÉS I.E.S. “DUQUE DE RIVAS”
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Grammar 5.- Quantity

Exercises: Answer key

I)

1- She doesn´t speak much German. Only a few words.

2- Would you like some more tea? Yes, please, but only a little.

3- The theatre was almost empty. There were very few people inside.

4- I´m making a cake. Can you pass me a little milk, please?

5- She didn´t have enough money, but her boyfriend had a little.

6- We saw Freddy a few days ago.

7- Are you hungry? I´ll make a few sandwiches.

8- I´m exhausted today. I have little energy.

9- There´s not much to see in this town, so few tourists come here.

10- We need a few tomatoes and a little oil for the salad.

II)

1- I´m going to make a pizza, but there isn´t any cheese.

2- Laura saw a beautiful painting in the museum yesterday.

3- I´m thirsty! Can I have some orange juice?

4- Do you speak any French?

5- We need some oranges and some chocolate for the cake.

6- He didn´t see any cookery books in the school library.

7- Is there a cinema near here? I want to see an interesting film.

8- Have they got any children? No, they haven´t got any.

9- Mary showed us some beautiful photos of landscapes last weekend.

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 AULA VIRTUAL DE INGLÉS I.E.S. “DUQUE DE RIVAS”
______________________________________________________________________

III)

1- People in England don´t drink much coffee. They prefer tea.

2- Layla wants to buy a tablet, but she hasn´t got enough money.

3- They didn´t see many bands at the concert because they were late.

4- There were a lot of people at the disco last night. We had a

great time!

5- I can´t hear you. There´s too much noise in this bar.

6- The traffic is terrible in New Delhi. There are too many cars.

7- The woman was badly injured in the accident. She lost a lot of blood.

8- I have to get fit because I don´t feel strong enough.

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