Quantifiers and Measure Words in English

Quantifiers are words or phrases used to express quantity. Like adjectives, they appear before the noun they modify and do not usually take plural endings.

The pair of quantifiers that most learners are familiar with are ‘much’ and ‘many.’ These are used to indicate an unspecified large number. ‘Much’ is used with countable nouns, ‘many’ with uncountable ones.

[1] Much creativity is required to work in advertising.

[2] Many children attend preschool these days.

‘Few’ and ‘little’ are used similarly to refer to an unspecified small number, ‘few’ for countable nouns; ‘little’ for uncountable ones.

[3] There is little evidence that the earth is flat.

[4] Few children read books nowadays.

When preceded by the indefinite article ‘a’, ‘little’ and ‘fewer’ convey a more positive sense than ‘little’ or ‘fewer’ without the ‘a’.

[5] The situation is bad, but I still have a little hope.

[6] There aren’t many vegetables left, but there are still a few carrots.

‘Some’ is used to refer to an indeterminate number, large or small.

[7] Some people were waiting for her at the airport.

‘Several’ can be used to indicate a number that is not large but also not insignificant. It also subtly suggests that the group is somewhat diverse.

[8] She was not expecting a big reception, but several people were, nevertheless, waiting for her at the airport: her brother, her grandfather, her stepmother, and an old friend from school.

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‘Much’ and ‘many’ are not, however, the most common quantifiers. ‘A lot of’ is much more common.

[9] A lot of people binge-watch TV series these days.

‘Lots of’ is a more colloquial version.

[10] You need to invest lots of money to start up a business.

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‘A lot of’ is not the only quantifier that takes this form.

‘A bit of,’ for instance, is commonly used to refer to a small quantity:

[11] Can I have a bit of cake, please?

It can also be used (especially when preceded by ‘quite’) to refer ironically or euphemistically or understatedly to a large quantity:

[12] It takes quite a bit of time to qualify to be a doctor.

More colloquially, it is common to hear people using ‘a bunch of’ to refer to an indeterminate quite large number.

[13] A bunch of people were waiting at the airport.

Such terms operate in some ways like the ‘counters’ or ‘measure words’ present in languages such as Chinese and Japanese and their use is sometimes restricted to certain kinds of things.

‘A bunch of’ for example was originally restricted to a group of similar things attached to a stem or something similar (normally some kind of fruit or plant). Hence, a bunch of grapes, a bunch of flowers, a bunch of coconuts, a bunch of keys. Etymologically, this word is related to the word ‘bundle’.

As these examples show, this measure word has now extended beyond its restricted use but retains some of its original sense. It does not feel right, for example, to use ‘a bunch of’ for a very large number or a great diversity, although this may be changing, as the term grows in popularity.

Likewise, ‘a handful of’ can be used (more formally) to refer to a small group of things. The emphasis here is on the number being manageable. 

[14] I am working on a handful of cases at the moment.

The word ‘handful’ can also be used nominally to refer to someone (usually a child or a situation) whose behavior is difficult to manage.

[15] Looking after twins can be a handful.

In fact, it is common to add the quantifier ‘a bit of’ in an ironic sense to imply that a person or a situation is extremely difficult to manage.

[16] Adolescent boys can be a bit of a handful.

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Here, finally, is a list of some other quantifiers that can be used in English, with some indication of how they tend to be used:

Plenty of – ‘many’ but not that many—in the sense of sufficient (especially supplies, food, equipment and so forth)

[17] ‘We have plenty of onions. So, we could make a soup.’

‘A good/great deal of’ – ‘many’ suggesting effort or excess

[18] ‘A great deal of work goes into making a movie.’

A pack of – used specifically with ‘cards’ or ‘wolves’ but also with ‘lies’.

[19] ‘The children told the teacher a pack of lies.’

‘A load of’ / ‘loads of’ – still very colloquial and often used in a negative sense

[20] ‘The Prime Minister is talking a load of rubbish’.

 ‘A drop of’ – for liquids

[21] ‘Can I have a drop of milk?’

‘A pinch of’ – for powders and small grains

[22] ‘Put a pinch of salt in the soup to make it taste better.’

‘A heap of’ / ‘heaps of’ – colloquial and maybe a little old-fashioned; used for a great abundance

[23] ‘You can earn heaps of money working for a bank’ 

‘A ton of’ / ‘tons of’ – colloquial, hyperbole, somewhat immature

[24] ‘I got tons of presents for my birthday!”

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