fewer vs less

fewer vs less
  Everyone gets this wrong - including native speakers. The general rule is to use fewer for things you can count (individually), and less for things you can only measure
  For example:
  There were fewer people in the class than usual. (People can be counted.)
  There were fewer days below freezing last winter. (Days can be counted.)
  I drink less coffee than she does. (Coffee cannot be counted individually it has to be measured).
  It looks bad when there's less information about your company on a site than there is for other companies.
  ♦ !Note - The lines between less and fewer are getting blurred, i.e. a sign in a shop might "10 items or less," because "10 items or fewer," seems pompous to many people. Or maybe it's because less takes fewer letters.
  To me "less" still has to do with how much. "Fewer" has to do with how many.
  More about fewer and less.
  See the grammar pages for more information on countable/uncountable nouns.

English dictionary of common mistakes and confusing words. 2014.

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  • fewer vs less —   Everyone gets this wrong including native speakers. The general rule is to use fewer for things you can count (individually), and less for things you can only measure   For example:   There were fewer people in the class than usual. (People can …   English dictionary of common mistakes and confusing 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 — 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

  • less*/*/*/ — [les] grammar word summary: Less can be: ■ a determiner: Schools put less emphasis on being creative. ■ a pronoun: Connie did less than anyone else. ♦ He seemed to spend less of his time with her. ■ an adverb: The red jacket is less expensive. 1) …   Dictionary for writing and speaking English

  • less — adj., adv., n., & prep. adj. 1 smaller in extent, degree, duration, number, etc. (of less importance; in a less degree). 2 of smaller quantity, not so much (opp. MORE) (find less difficulty; eat less meat). 3 disp. fewer (eat less biscuits). 4 of …   Useful english dictionary

  • 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

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