MEETING 14

NOUNS (PART 2)

A. LEARNING OBJECTIVE
In this meeting, the students will learn about NOUNS (PART 2). By the end of the course,
the students are expected to be able to:
1.1.Understand expressions of quantity.
1.2.Use A FEW and FEW; A LITTLE and LITTLE.
1.3.Use OF in expressions of quantity.

B. MATERIAL DESCRIPTION
1.1.Understand expressions of quantity
An expression of quantity may precede a noun. Some expressions of quantity are used
only with count nouns.
Examples:
Expressions of Quantity Used with Count Nouns Used with Non count
Nouns

one One apple Ø

each Each apple Ø

every Every apple Ø

two Two books Ø

both Both apples Ø

several Several apples Ø

many Many apples Ø

a number of A number of apples Ø

 Some expressions of quantity are used only with non-count nouns.
Examples:
Expressions of Quantity Used with Count Nouns Used with Non count
Nouns

A little Ø A little rice

Much Ø Much rice

A great deal of Ø A great deal of rice

Some expressions of quantity are used with both count and non-count nouns.
Examples:
Expressions of Quantity Used with Count Nouns Used with Non count
Nouns

No No apples No rice

Some/any Some/any apples Some/any rice

A lot of/lots of A lot of/lots of apples A lot of/lots of rice

Plenty of Plenty of apples Plenty of rice

Most Most apples Most rice

All All apples All rice

1.2.Using A FEW and FEW; A LITTLE and LITTLE

A FEW and FEW are used with plural count nouns while A LITTLE and LITTLE are
used with non-count nouns.
a. A FEW and A LITTLE
A FEW and A LITTLE give a positive idea and they indicate something exists or
something is present.
Examples:
 She has been here only two weeks, but she has already made a few friends.
(Positive idea: she has made some friends)
  I am very pleased. I have been able to save a little money this month.
(Positive idea: I have saved some money instead of spending all of it)

b. FEW and LITTLE

FEW and LITTLE (without a) give negative idea and they indicate something
largely absent.
Examples:
 I feel sorry for her. She has (very) few friends.
(Negative idea: She does not have many friends; she has almost no friends)

 I have (very) little money. I don’t even have enough money to buy food for
dinner.
(Negative idea: I don’t have much money; I have almost no money.)

You may use VERY to make the negative idea stronger or the number/amount
smaller.

1.3. Using OF in expressions of quantity

a. Some of expressions of quantity always contains OF and here is the list:
GROUP 1: EXPRESSIONS OF QUANTITY THAT ALWAYS CONTAIN
“OF”
A lot of A number of A majority of

Lot of A great deal of Plenty of

Examples:
 A lot of books are paperbacks.
 A lot of my books are paperbacks.
b. Some of expressions of quantity sometimes contain OF and sometimes NOT and
here is the list.
GROUP 2: EXPRESSIONS OF QUANTITY THAT SOMETIMES
CONTAIN “OF” AND SOMETIMES NOT
All (of) Many (of) A little (of) Both (of)

Most (of) Much (of) One (of) Several (of)

Almost al (of) A few (of) Two (of) Some/Any (of)

RULES:
(1) OF is used with the expressions of quantity in GROUP 2 when the noun is
specific. A noun is specific when it is preceded by:
 Any possession (e.g., my, your, etc)
 This, that, these, or those
 The
Examples:
 Many of my books are in English.
 Many of those books are in English.
 Many of the books on that shelf are in English.

(2) OF is NOT used with the expressions of quantity in GROUP 2 if the noun it
modifies is nonspecific.
Example:
 Many books are in English.
In the example above, the speaker is not referring to specific books but to books
in general.
C. EXERCISE
1.1.Exercise 1: Using A FEW and FEW; A LITTLE and LITTLE
Instructions: Complete the sentences with a few, few, a little, or little.
1. Do you have ...................... minutes? I’d like to ask you ...................... questions. I
need ...................... more information.
2. Diana’s previous employer gave her a good recommendation because she makes
...................... mistakes in her work.
3. After Steve tasted the soup, he added ...................... salt to it.
4. I don’t like a lot of salt on my food. I add ...................... salt to my food.
5. I like music. I like to listen to ...................... music after dinner before I begin
studying.
6. I was hungry, so I ate ...................... nuts.
7. Because the family is very poor, the children have ...................... toys.
8. I am not finished yet. I need ...................... more minutes.
9. I am not finished yet. I need ...................... more time.
10. We got to the stadium quickly because there was ...................... traffic.

1.2.Exercise 2: Using OF in expressions of quantity

Instructions: Add OF if necessary. Write Ø if OF is not necessary.
1. I know several ........... Jack’s friends.
2. I have made several ........... friends lately.
3. I bought a few ........... books yesterday.
4. I have read a few ........... those books.
5. Both ........... those books are mine.
6. I bought two books. Both ........... books were expensive.
7. Some ........... students are lazy.
8. Some ........... students in Mrs. Gray’s class are a little lazy.
9. All ........... the students in my class are studying English.
10. Not all ........... people are friendly, but most ........... people have kind hearts.