What is the difference between less and fewer?

What is the difference between less and fewer?

‘Fewer’ and ‘Less’ It goes like this: fewer is used to refer to number among things that are counted, as in “fewer choices” and “fewer problems”; less is used to refer to quantity or amount among things that are measured, as in “less time” and “less effort.”

What is the difference between fewer and less with examples?

Fewer means “not as many.” We use fewer with countable nouns like cookies. Cookie Monster was told to eat fewer cookies. Less means “not as much.” We use less with uncountable nouns like milk.

How do you remember the difference between less and fewer?

The Less or Fewer Rule of Thumb The basic rule to remember in less vs. fewer is: Less means a smaller amount or “not as much” and is used when describing singular or uncountable nouns. Fewer is defined as not as much and is used when describing plural or countable nouns.

Is fewer countable or uncountable?

Less is used with uncountable nouns, like money or work or travel, and fewer is used with countable plural nouns, like coins or jobs or trips. Less is the comparative form of little and fewer is the comparative form of few.

What does it mean fewer than?

: at least —used to suggest that a number or amount is surprisingly large No fewer than 1,000 people attended the meeting.No fewer than 80 percent of registered voters turned out for the primary.

Is less used for countable nouns?

According to usage rules, fewer is only to be used when discussing countable things, while less is used for singular mass nouns. For example, you can have fewer ingredients, dollars, people, or puppies, but less salt, money, honesty, or love. If you can count it, go for fewer. If you can’t, opt for less.

Why is it Fewer not less?

How can I use less?

Less: position

1. This model consumes less fuel. ( less + noun)
2. Give up this seat to someone less able to stand. ( less + adjective)
3. Second class post arrives less quickly than first class. ( less + adverb)
4. It costs less to go by bus than by train. ( verb + less)

What does less than mean in statistics?

Less than is one of the terms used to show the relationship between two values. It states that one value is lesser than the other. The sign for less than is < and with this metric, we can compare numbers, weights, heights, and values.

Does fewer than mean equal to?

‘Less than or equal to’, as the name suggests, means a variable is either less than or equal to another number, variable, or quantity. ‘Less than or equal to’ can also be expressed as at most, no more than, a maximum of, and not exceeding.

What is the difference between ‘fewer’ and ‘less’ for countable quantities?

Judging by the consensus over at this question, one should use “fewer” over “less” for countable quantities. What about in this situation? [Less or Fewer] than 10.7% of the people were happy. Here, a percentage is not countable (because it is a real number of arbitrary precision ), whereas the noun “people” is countable.

What is the difference between less and fewer with money?

“Less vs. Fewer” with Money Although we can count money, it is usual for us to think of money as a bulk quantity rather than an aggregate of currency units. Therefore, we use less rather than fewer. Rebecca has less than twenty dollars left in her checking account.

What is the difference between littleless and fewer?

Less is the comparative form of little. It is used especially before uncountable nouns. Fewer is the comparative of few. It is used before plural nouns. For example:

What is the conundrum of “less vs fewer”?

Luckily, the conundrum of less vs. fewer has a solution that is simple to remember. It involves deducing whether fewer or less will be working with a countable or uncountable noun in your intended sentence. In English, we use the same word, more, for a greater number and a greater amount/quantity. There is little doubt about when to use more.