- less, fewer
- The simplest rule is to use less with singular nouns (less money, less sugar) and fewer with plural ones (fewer houses, fewer cars).
Bryson’s dictionary for writers and editors. 2013.
less, fewer
Look at other dictionaries:
less — 1. pronoun the fare is less than $1 Syn: a smaller amount than, not so/as much as, under, below Ant: more 2. adjective there was less noise now Syn: not so much, smaller, slighter, shorter, reduced; fewer … Thesaurus of popular words
Fewer/less — In traditional prescriptive grammar less is the comparative used when speaking of a continuous quantity that is not numerically quantifiable (that is, with mass nouns). Fewer , on the other hand, is used of discrete quantity and numerically… … Wikipedia
less — fewer, less As a general guide, fewer is used with plural nouns (fewer books, fewer people) and indicates number, whereas less is used with singular nouns and indicates amount (less money / less happiness). However, there is an extensive no man s … Modern English usage
fewer — fewer, less As a general guide, fewer is used with plural nouns (fewer books, fewer people) and indicates number, whereas less is used with singular nouns and indicates amount (less money / less happiness). However, there is an extensive no man s … Modern English usage
less — adj Less, Lesser, smaller, fewer are comparable terms that approach each other in meaning but are not synonyms and are rarely interchangeable. Less means not as much, especially in degree, value, or amount, and its opposite is usually more. It… … New Dictionary of Synonyms
fewer / less — Fewer should be used when talking about things that can be counted: Lureen has fewer ideas than you; also a few keys, few clouds, few values, few diseases. Less is used when talking about things that can t be counted: Lureen shows less… … Confused words
fewer / less — Fewer should be used when talking about things that can be counted: Lureen has fewer ideas than you; also a few keys, few clouds, few values, few diseases. Less is used when talking about things that can t be counted: Lureen shows less… … Confused words
less — [les] adj. [ME les < OE læs, adv. læssa, adj. (used as compar. of lytel, LITTLE), akin to OFris les < IE * leis < base * lei , to diminish, meager, > LITTLE] 1. alt. compar. of LITTLE 2. not so much; smaller in size or amount [to… … English World dictionary
less — [ les ] function word *** Less is the comparative form of the function word little and can be used in the following ways: as a determiner (before a noun): Eat less fat. Schools put less emphasis on being creative. as a pronoun: Connie did less… … Usage of the words and phrases in modern English
less — ► DETERMINER & PRONOUN 1) a smaller amount of; not as much. 2) fewer in number. ► ADVERB ▪ to a smaller extent; not so much. ► PREPOSITION ▪ minus. USAGE On the difference in use between less and … English terms dictionary
