General English Level 6 Version 2.1 © 2004 acl Pty Ltd GELEV6 Unit 01 Topic 03.doc Zahra says: A lot of spices! Um, a tablespoon of turmeric, cumin, paprika, and a teaspoon of coriander. Zahra talks about the quantity of spices needed for her recipe. Spices is a countable noun. She says "A lot of spices!" We use a lot (of) in positive and negative statements with plural countable nouns. We can also use a lot (of) with uncountable nouns. "Lots" is a less formal way to say a lot. Examples 1. I don't have a lot of books. 2. I spend a lot of time on the Internet. 3. Lots of people came to the party. 3. A few, a little Zahra says: When the meat starts to brown put the spices in and fry for a few more minutes. Zahra tells Alex how long to fry the spices for, "... fry for a few more minutes." Minutes is a countable noun. We use a few with countable nouns when we talk about a small quantity. When we want to talk about a small quantity of an uncountable noun we use a little. Examples I only have a few hours until my plane leaves. It is six o'clock and I have to leave at ten. I have a little time before my plane leaves. It is six o'clock and I have to leave at ten. I've got a few dollars. Do you want to borrow some? I've a little money. Do you want to borrow some? Information We use little and few without a, to express negative ideas. They mean the same as not much and not many. I have little patience with children. I don't think I would be a good parent. It's a very quiet place because few people go there. We often use adverbs of degree with general determiners to modify or change their strength. Alex says: I love cooking but I don't know very many recipes. Alex does not feel confident about his cooking skills. He says, "I don't know very many recipes." He uses very to add emphasis to many. Very is an adverb of degree which strengthens the meaning of many. Some other adverbs we can use this way are: too, more, quite, rather, so. We don't use adverbs of degree with some or any. 28