¡Descarga Quantifiers en inglés y más Apuntes en PDF de Inglés solo en Docsity!
Quantifiers
Level: beginner We use quantifiers when we want to give someone information about the number of something: how much or how many. Sometimes we use a quantifier in the place of a determiner : Most children start school at the age of five. We ate some bread and butter. We saw lots of birds.
Quantifiers with count and uncount nouns
We can use these quantifiers with both count and uncount nouns: all some more a lot of enough no any most lots of less We have lots of time. Joe has lots of friends. I can't go out. I've got no money. There was a lot of food but no drinks.
These more colloquial forms are also used with both count and uncount nouns: plenty of heaps of a load of loads of tons of We have loads of time. Joe has plenty of friends. There was heaps of food.
some and any
We do not normally use the quantifier some in negative and interrogative sentences. We normally use any : Do you have any children? Did you see any friends? We don't have any children. I didn't see any friends. We saw some lions at the zoo, but we didn't see any tigers. but we can use some for offers and requests: Would you like some tea? I want some apples, please.
Members of groups
We put a noun directly after a quantifier when we are talking about members of a group in general : Few snakes are dangerous. Most children like chocolate. I never have enough money. but if we are talking about members of a specific group , we use of the as well: Few of the snakes in this zoo are dangerous. Most of the boys at my school play football. He’s spent all (of) the money that we gave him. Both (of) the chairs in my office are broken. Note: with all and both, we don’t need to use of. We can say all the … and both the ….
both , either and neither
If we are talking about two people or things , we use the quantifiers both , either and neither : One supermarket Two supermarkets More than two supermarkets The Both the supermarkets All the supermarkets
supermarket was closed. were closed. were closed. The supermarket wasn’t open. Neither of the supermarkets was open. None of the supermarkets were open. I don’t think the supermarket was open. I don’t think either of the supermarkets was open. I don’t think any of the supermarkets were open. Note that nouns with both have a plural verb but nouns with either and neither have a singular verb.
every and each
We use the quantifiers every and each with singular nouns to mean all : There was a party in every street. (= There were parties in all the streets.) Every shop was decorated with flowers. (= All the shops were decorated with flowers.) Each child was given a prize. (= All the children were given a prize.) There was a prize in each competition. (= There were prizes in all the competitions.) We often use every to talk about times like days , weeks and years : When we were children, we had holidays at our grandmother's every year. When we stayed at my grandmother's house, we went to the beach every day. We visit our daughter every Christmas. We do not use a determiner with every and each :
Many : Used with countable nouns, mainly in negative sentences and questions. Example: "There aren’t many options." / "How many books do you have?" A lot of / Lots of : Used with both countable and uncountable nouns in affirmative sentences. Example: "I have a lot of friends." / "There is lots of food." Few / A few : Used with countable nouns. "Few" indicates a small number, while "a few" indicates a small but positive number. Example: "I have few ideas." (not many) / "I have a few ideas." (some) Little / A little : Used with uncountable nouns. "Little" indicates a small amount, while "a little" indicates a small but positive amount. Example: "There is little hope." (not much) / "There is a little hope." (some) Important Notes Countable vs. Uncountable Nouns : Understanding the difference between countable (e.g., apples, cars) and uncountable nouns (e.g., water, information) is crucial for using quantifiers correctly.
Context Matters : The choice of quantifier can change the meaning of a sentence, so it’s important to use them appropriately based on the context. Examples "I saw some birds in the park." (affirmative) "Do you have any questions?" (interrogative) "I don’t have much time left." (negative) "There are many students in the class." (interrogative) By understanding and using quantifiers correctly, you can enhance your communication skills in English and express quantities more effectively. For further practice, consider engaging with exercises that focus on quantifiers. 1 For more detailed information, you can refer to resources like the British Council's guide on quantifiers. 1
some, any enough Cuantificadores con la preposición of Ejercicios – Cuantificadores Sweden is practically a cash-free society. Most people do not carry any coins or cash. Most Swedes say that there are few disadvantages to being cashless. However, some people say that credit cards and contactless payment don’t offer enough security. A few people say that they are unhappy because there are too few possibilities to use cash. There are not many Swedish businesses that still use cash, because most of them believe it has little benefit. Most Swedish people say that they have a lot of flexibility thanks to this new system, and they think that lots of other countries will follow this trend. ¿Cómo se usan los cuantificadores en inglés? La elección entre un cuantificador u otro depende de si acompaña a un sustantivo contable o incontable. Además, hay que tener en cuenta si el
sustantivo va acompañado de un artículo (the) o un determinante (these, those, yours etc.). lots of, a lot of Los cuantificadores lots of y a lot of son los más versátiles que hay en inglés y por ello lo más usados. Se pueden emplear en oraciones afirmativas, oraciones negativas y oraciones interrogativas así como con todo tipo de sustantivos y antes de artículos y determinantes. Son en buena medida intercambiables, aunque a lot of se usa de forma más frecuente. Ejemplo: They have a lot of/lots of flexibility. oración afirmativa, sustantivo incontable I don’t have a lot of/lots of coins in my wallet. oración negativa, sustantivo contable Are there a lot of/lots of possibilities to pay by card in your country? oración interrogativa, sustantivo contable En inglés hay otras muchas expresiones que significan una cantidad abundante de algo: plenty of, a great deal of, loads of, etc. much, many Los cuantificadores much y many expresan ambos una gran cantidad de algo pero much acompaña a sustantivos incontables y many a sustantivos contables. Ejemplo: Swedes don’t carry much cash. There are not many places that still accept cash. Por norma general, se usa much y many sobre todo en oraciones negativas e interrogativas. El uso de much y many en oraciones afirmativas se reserva para el registro formal. Con el mismo sentido, en el habla corriente se prefieren los cuantificadores a lot of y lots of. Ejemplo: There are many issues with the system. → There are a lot of/lots of issues with the system.
→ Consulta además en el capítulo de palabras confundibles en inglés las diferencias que hay entre few y little. some, any Los cuantificadores some y any se pueden usar ambos con sustantivos contables e incontables. Some se utiliza en oraciones afirmativas e interrogativas y any se utiliza en oraciones negativas e interrogativas. Ejemplo: Some people say that credit cards are unsafe. Most people do not carry any cash. Do you have any change? Some y any en oraciones interrogativas Tanto some como any se pueden usar en oraciones interrogativas. La diferencia radica en que some solo se usa en preguntas que expresan una sugerencia u ofrecimiento para la que se espera que la respuesta sea «sí». Compara: I haven’t looked at the menu yet, do you have any vegan options? El orador no sabe cuál será la respuesta. The menu looks great, could I have some tap water please?
Aunque el orador no ha mirado el menú, es muy probable que el restaurante le sirva agua del grifo, es decir, que espera que la respuesta sea afirmativa. Compara: I’m new to the area, are there any cash machines nearby? El orador no conoce la zona, así que no sabe cuál será la respuesta. Those bags look heavy – would you like some help? El orador ofrece su ayuda y espera que sea aceptada. enough El cuantificador enough se emplea en oraciones afirmativas, negativas e interrogativas para expresar que hay una cantidad suficiente de algo. Ejemplo: Credit cards and contactless payment don’t offer enough security. Cuantificadores con la preposición of Los cuantificadores much/many, (a) few/(a) little, some/any y enough se combinan con la preposición of para introducir un sustantivo precedido de un artículo (the), determinante (their, these, your etc.) o pronombre personal (them, us, etc.). Ejemplo: Some of the Swedes still prefer cash. no: Some the Swedes still prefer cash. A few of them are unhappy with the cashless system. Many of their issues are related to security. A lot of y lots of se pueden usar tanto con sustantivos contables como incontables y acompañar a artículos y determinantes.
