Much, many, little, few, a lot, plenty

We use much and little with uncountable nouns:

       much time          much luck          little energy           little money

We use many and few with plural nouns:

       many friends          many people          few cars          few countries

We use a lot of / lots of / plenty of with both uncountable and plural nouns:

        a lot of luck               lots of time               plenty of money

        a lot of friends           lots of people           plenty of ideas

Plenty = more than enough:

O There's no need to hurry. We've gat plenty of time.

Much is unusual in positive sentences (especially in spoken English). Compare:

O We didn't spend much money.

but We sp ent a lot of money. (not We sp ent much money)
O Do you see David much?

but l see David a lot. (not l see David much)

We use many and a lot of in all kinds of sentences:

        O Many people drive too fast.                  or A lot of people drive too fast.

        O Do you know many people?                 or Do you know a lot of people?

O There aren't many tourists here. or There aren't a lot of tourists here.

Note that we say many years / many weeks / many days (not a lot of ... ):

O We've lived here for many years. (not a lot of years)

Little and few (without a) are negative ideas (= not much / not many):

O Gary is very busy with his job. He has little time for other things. (= not much time, less
time than he would like)

O Vicky doesn't like living in London. She has few friends there. (= not many, not as many
,!S she would like)

You can say very little and very few:

O Gary has very little time for other things.

        O Vicky has very few friends in London.                                     C

)

A little and a few have a more positive meaning.
A little = some, a small' amount:

tJ Leťs go and have a coffee. We have a little time before the train leaves.
(a little time = some time, enough time to have a coffee)

O 'Do you speak English?' 'A little.' (so we can talk a bit)

A few = some, a small number:

O l enjoy my life here. l have a few friends and we meet quite of ten.
(a few friends = not many but enough to have a good time)

O 'When was the last time you saw Clare?' 'A few days ago.' (= some days ago)

Compare:                                                                                                        <;

O He spoke little English, so it was difficult to communicate with him.

He spoke a little English, so we were able to communicate with him.

O She's lucky. She has few problems. ~\= nm many problems)

Things are not going so well for her. She has a few problems. (= some problems)

You can say only a little and only a few:

O Hurry! We only have a little time. (not only little time)