Noun Quantifier and Containers

More Quantifiers

Quantifiers are words that go before nouns. Quantifiers show how much or how many of a noun is being talked about. Which quantifier is used depends on whether the noun is countable or uncountable.

A countable noun is a noun that can be counted, meaning it becomes plural.

Examples of countable nouns: cars, buildings, boys, girls, purse, wallet, woman, men, child, etc.

An uncountable noun is a noun that cannot be counted and is in singular form, but is composed of more than one individual person or item.

Examples of uncountable nouns: air, water, juice, crowd, class, team, blood, traffic etc.

Quantifiers usually go after the main verb in the sentence and always go before the noun. Notice that the noun becomes plural when a quantifier is used before it (countable only).

Quantifiers Used With Only Uncountable Nouns

Definitions:

Not much = a small amount of

A little = a small amount of

Little = a small amount of

A bit of = a small amount, a little

A good deal of = plenty, a medium number of

A great deal of = a lot of, a large number of, more than a good deal of

No = none, zero

Example sentences:

There isn't much milk.

I have a little water in my glass.

There is little water left.

I ate a bit of meat with my meal.

He has a good deal of money.

I drank a great deal of wine last night.

There was no dancing at the party.

Note: There is a difference between a few and few. For instance, "Charlie owns a few books on Latin American literature." means that he has some books - not a lot of books, but probably enough for our purposes. On the contrary, "Charlie owns few books on Latin American literature." means he doesn't have enough for our purposes and we'd better go to the library.

There is a similar difference between little and a little. For example, "Yoshi has a little experience in management." means that although Yoshi is no great expert he does have some experience and that experience might be enough. On the other hand, "Yoshi has little experience in management." means that he doesn't have enough experience.

Quantifiers Used With Nouns

Definitions:

All of the = every bit of, all

Some = not all, a little bit

Most of the = not all, but a large of

Enough = perfect or right amount (not enough = not the right amount)

A lot of = a large number of

Lots of = a large number of

Plenty of = enough of, a good amount

A bunch of = many, a lot, a group of (a bunch of grapes or bananas)

Example sentences using both countable and uncountable nouns:

All of the cows are white. All of the milk is gone.

Some of the people are happy. Some of the class is Korean.

Most of the teachers are American. Most of the beef is in the freezer.

There are enough apples. There's enough beer for him.

A lot of cars are from Germany. A lot of the water was dirty.

Lots of children love Soccer. Lots of fruit comes from Asia.

There are plenty of pens in my bag. There is plenty of food left.

There are a bunch of flowers. There was a bunch of beer.

Containers

Containers are things that are used to carry, transport or hold other nouns. They range in size and shape and help to tell the location of other nouns. Containers are all countable.

Examples of containers:

a box, a bottle, a carton, a bag, a basket, a jug, a bowl, a plate, a cart

Example sentences:

The boxes have some cereal in them.

The water is in the bottle.

I bought two cartons of milk.

She has a bag of groceries.

They have a basket of flowers.

I was so thirsty, I drank a jug of juice.

For desert I had a bowl of fruit.

Dinner was served on three plates.

There is a baby in the cart.

Note: Generally, when talking about what the container is holding use the preposition of. As in, "It is a box of cereal." In this sentence the container is the main subject. When talking about the location of something and the focus is not on the container, but on the contents, use in (or on, for plates). As in, "The water is in the bottle." Here, "water" is the main subject.

Quantifiers That Are Used With Only Countable Nouns

Definitions:

Many = a lot, a high number of

A few = not many, a low number of

Few = a low number of

Several = a high number of

A couple of = not many, around two

None of = zero

Example sentences:

There are many dogs in Mexico City.

I have a few friends from Japan.

There are few Americans living in Hanoi.

She has several cats.

He has a couple of sisters.

None of the trees are blue.

Questions Using Quantifiers

When asking a question to find out the availability or number of something use how much or how many. Use questions starting with 'How many...' only when asking about countable nouns. Use questions starting with 'How much...' when asking about uncountable nouns.

Example questions and answers:

How much money do you have? (money is uncountable)

I don't have much money.

How many apples do you have? (apples are countable)

I have a couple apples.