Quantifiers are words or phrases used with a noun to indicate quantity. It often gives information about the noun on how many or how much it is.
Form
Quantifiers can be found before countable and uncountable nouns.
quantifier + countable/uncountable noun
Quantifiers + countable noun
Here is a list of some quantifiers that are used with countable nouns.
A number of
Many
A few/few/very few
Several
A large number of
A majority of
Quantifiers + uncountable noun
Here is a list of some quantifiers that we use with uncountable nouns.
much
a little/little/very little *
a bit (of)
a great deal of
a large amount of
a large quantity of
Quantifier + Both Countable and Uncountable
Here is a list of some quantifiers that we use with both countable and uncountable nouns.
Some
Any
A lot of
Lots of
Plenty of
All
Enough
More/Most
Less/Least
No/None
Not Any
- A lot of is often used instead of much in some situations.
She spent a lot of money on shoes.
X: She spent much money on shoes.
- Little and few without the article a mean not much or not many. They imply a negative idea.
He has little patience.
Jack has few choices.
- Little and few with the article a imply a positive meaning. They could mean some, a small amount, or a small number.
I will take a nap. I have a little time before my next meeting.
Quantifiers Exercise
Answer this exercise on quantifiers.
1. In my opinion, ___ practice is good for you.
a. all
b. enough
c. any
2. I’m sorry, but there’s ___ sugar for your coffee. Is it alright with you?
a. no
b. any
c. enough
3. I can eat ___ things, but I’m allergic to shellfish.
a. any
b. most
c. more
4. If you want to sleep early, maybe you should have ___ screen time.
a. any
b. less
c. enough
5. If you want to help the community, you can donate ___ money.
a. any
b. some
c. a few
6. We don’t have ___ players.
a. enough
b. some
c. much
7. Can we have three ___ teas, please?
a. more
b. less
c. enough
8. When she was a child, she used to drink ___ milk.
a. most
b. much
c. lots of
9. Generally, I don’t like vegetables but I eat ___ potatoes.
a. a lot of
b. much
c. a number of
10. We have _____ time.
a. several
b. a number of
c. plenty of
Find answers for this exercise here.
See also: All/All of – Most/Most of – No/None of and Much, Many, Little, Few, A Lot, Plenty
For additional information on this topic, check out this British Council lesson.
For other English grammar lessons, go to this page.