🔢 Quantity Words – Much, Many, A Lot Of, A Few, A Little, No, Any, None
📦 Large Quantity
| Countable | Uncountable |
|---|---|
| a lot of many |
a lot of much |
Examples:
We have many books on the shelf.
She drinks a lot of water every day.
He doesn’t have much time left.
📦 Small Quantity
| Countable | Uncountable |
|---|---|
| a few | a little / a bit of |
Examples:
She has a few friends in the city.
Can I have a little milk in my tea?
🚫 Zero Quantity
| No + noun | Any (–/?) + noun | None (no noun) |
|---|---|---|
| no | any | none |
Examples:
There is no milk in the fridge.
We don’t have any chairs.
There are none.
❓ Quantity Questions
Use How many with countable nouns and How much with uncountable nouns:
- How many books do you have?
- How much coffee is left?
🔢 Much / Many, A Lot Of, A Few / A Little, No / Any / None
❌ Much / Many (–, ?)
Use many (countable) and much (uncountable) in negative sentences and questions. We rarely use them in affirmative sentences.
- There isn’t much coffee in the jar.
- Were there many people at the party?
❓ How Much / How Many
Use How many + plural countable nouns and How much + uncountable nouns to ask about quantity. Also used for price:
- How many books did you read last semester?
- How much coffee do you drink every day?
- “How much is it?” “It’s £43.”
- “How much are the trousers?” “They’re £58.”
➕ A Lot Of
Use a lot of before both countable plurals and uncountable nouns in positive sentences. You can also use quite a lot of for medium quantity. It can appear in negatives/questions without of at the end.
- She spends a lot of time watching TV.
- We had lots of good moments together.
- Do you eat a lot of sugar?
- I don’t read a lot of books.
- “How many beers did you have?” “I had a lot.”
🔹 A Few / A Little
Use a few (countable) and a little (uncountable) in all sentence types to talk about a small quantity.
- I have to do a few things this afternoon.
- I always put a little milk in my tea.
🚫 Not Many / Not Much
You can use not many (countable) and not much (uncountable) similarly.
- I don’t have to do many things this afternoon.
- I don’t put much milk in my tea.
🚫 Zero Quantity: No / Not Any / None
Use no + noun or not…any + noun to express zero quantity. In short answers, use none.
- I have no time today.
- I don’t have any time today.
- “How much time do you have?” “None.”