OT: Less vs. fewer

[Get a Job]

I know I will get a lot of hate for this, but, given the extent to which this mistake is made on the 'Yard, I felt the need to educate the masses.

"Less" is used when the subject has a magnitude, as in "less scoring". "Fewer" is required when the subject has a quantity, like "fewer three point baskets".

Feel free to ignore me, but it needed to be said.

 

[mussels]

Press more and they score fewer
Press less and your D goes in the sewer

 

[Conndog]

What drives me crazy is when people end a sentence with "at", such as "Do you know where it's at?" What's wrong with asking "Do you know where it is?"

 

[Get a Job]

What drives me crazy is when people end a sentence with "at", such as "Do you know where it's at?" What's wrong with asking "Do you know where it is?"

I am also bothered by ending sentences in prepositions, but my sister, who is a writer, convinced me it's not something I should be concerned about.

 

[Travelman6]

Less and fewer are both adjectives. Less modifies singular nouns, fewer modifies plural nouns.

It also depends on if the noun is countable.
Less = Nouns you can not count, such as milk.
Fewer is the opposite.

Hint: Uncountable nouns are always singular so you would use less.

 

[mussels]

What drives me crazy is when people end a sentence with "at", such as "Do you know where it's at?" What's wrong with asking "Do you know where it is?"

Not sure what you're getting at.

 

[Hans Sprungfeld]

I know I will get a lot of hate for this, but, given the extent to which this mistake is made on the 'Yard, I felt the need to educate the masses.

"Less" is used when the subject has a magnitude, as in "less scoring". "Fewer" is required when the subject has a quantity, like "fewer three point baskets".

Feel free to ignore me, but it needed to be said.

There are those who refer to "an amount of people" rather than "a number of people."
It brings to mind a volume measurement of people, as though they've been dumped into a mass grave.

And there are those who say "people that" rather than "people who," which is becoming ever more popular.

 

[superjohn]

There are those who refer to "an amount of people" rather than "a number of people."
It brings to mind a volume measurement of people, as though they've been dumped into a mass grave.

And there are those who say "people that" rather than "people who," which is becoming ever more popular.

I had a teacher who would mark your paper if you ever used "that." He said it was a useless word, very is also useless.

 

[Hans Sprungfeld]

I had a teacher who would mark your paper if you ever used "that." He said it was a useless word, very is also useless.

 

[Get a Job]

Less and fewer are both adjectives. Less modifies singular nouns, fewer modifies plural nouns.

It also depends on if the noun is countable.
Less = Nouns you can not count, such as milk.
Fewer is the opposite.

Hint: Uncountable nouns are always singular so you would use less.

Never thought about the singular/plural distinction, but it seems to pass muster. Good call. I always thought of it as magnitude/quantity, which is the same as uncountable/countable.

 

[Travelman6]

I had a teacher who would mark your paper if you ever used "that." He said it was a useless word, very is also useless.

I agree with very.

That has its functions for grammatical purposes.

 

[superjohn]

I agree with very.

That has its functions for grammatical purposes.

I think his point was there's almost always a better option.

 

[Chin Diesel]

I had a teacher who would mark your paper if you ever used "that." He said it was a useless word, very is also useless.

That's a stupid move by the teacher.

 

[lne001]

I believe that 'less' has officially become acceptable in lieu of 'fewer', although I still shudder when I hear it used thus.

 

[uconnfan68]

I thought we outlawed grammar nazis here?

 

[Dream Jobbed 2.0]

Had a fine arts professor who wouldn’t let us use “is” in papers.

 

[Dream Jobbed 2.0]

That's a stupid move by the teacher.

A very stupid move.

 

[imno1]

I had a teacher who would mark your paper if you ever used "that." He said that it was a useless word, very is also useless.

fify

 

[Johnny Mac]

My mother always said, "Fewer in number, less in kind" She was taught by the nuns so...

Which reminds me of a recent exchange I had with a clerk at the Price Chopper in Storrs. The sign says, "Fifteen Items or Fewer"

Me: Wow...I suppose its only right that the grocery store closest to a major university use proper grammar on sign like that. You wouldn't believe how many other stores get that wrong.

Clerk: You wouldn't believe how many people, every day, tell me it IS wrong.

Next week we'll discuss affect/effect.

 

[Husky25]

Simon Wilder : Which door do I leave from?

Proffesor Pitkannan : At [UConn] we don't end our sentences with prepositions.

Simon Wilder : Okay. Which door do I leave from, a5$hole?

 

[Rico444]

I know I will get a lot of hate for this, but, given the extent to which this mistake is made on the 'Yard, I felt the need to educate the masses.

"Less" is used when the subject has a magnitude, as in "less scoring". "Fewer" is required when the subject has a quantity, like "fewer three point baskets".

Feel free to ignore me, but it needed to be said.

It would be less annoying if you made fewer posts like this.

How did I do?

 

[Austin316]

This guy must hate Yoda.

 

[borninansonia]

I am also bothered by ending sentences in prepositions, but my sister, who is a writer, convinced me it's not something I should be concerned about.

That's something up with which I will not put.

 

[superjohn]

What do you guys say when talking about age? Do you say you're 40 years old or you're 40 years of age. It's funny, my dad always said years of age and he got it from his mom.

After my grandma passed away her children were saying it was sad she just missed making it to her 70th birthday, her best friend turned to them and said she just missed her 73rd birthday. She was so vain and weird about her age she shaved off three years of her age when she was younger, I think the only ones who knew were her husband and best friend.

 

[Rocktheworld]

Definite object: fewer
Indefinite object: less than