Whether you’re writing a poem or a business letter, you need to make sure you use the right grammar. Grammarly is a site that will help you make sure your sentences are correct. With its easy-to-use tools, you’ll be able to choose the right words and punctuation, so you can avoid common mistakes.
Plural vs. plural rule work in most situations
Whether you’re writing a book or a newspaper article, you’ll need to know the difference between singular and plural nouns. The rule of grammar says that nouns should be singular when meant as singular, and plural when meant as plural. Depending on the context, you might also need to use the plural forms of verbs. But how do you know when to use a plural form?
There are some nouns that look like plural nouns but are actually singular. For example, the word children looks like a singular noun. But in the English language, children are plural because they refer to more than one child.
In other words, if you’re writing an article about a tango dance contest, you might need to use singular nouns to describe the event. But if you’re writing a newspaper article about a winning team, you’ll probably want to use plural nouns.
There are also nouns that regularly take plural verbs, but don’t necessarily have a plural form. These include a collective noun, such as a class, which agrees with a plural verb in certain situations.
Meaning of “fewer”
Several words referred to as fewer, including the Scrabble word ‘fewer’, have multiple meanings. In particular, fewer is an adverb that refers to individual things, while less refers to a quantity.
Fewer is one of those words that can confuse the mind. This is especially true if the phrase is used with a plural noun. This is one reason that fewer and less are used interchangeably.
The fewer adverb is a good example of the ol’ fashioned count noun. Count nouns are used as amounts, and can be close to the truth. However, in the context of a singular noun, fewer is a redundant term.
The lesser-known less adverb is more useful than its cousin. In addition to count nouns, less refers to quantity, volume, or time. It is also used to modify singular nouns. This is especially useful in formal writing. It is also a useful and easy to remember way to refer to something that is smaller in size.
Examples of “fewer” in a sentence
Using fewer in a sentence is one of the most common ways to make a statement. This is because it can express thought more completely and in fewer words than a direct statement. It is also important to understand that fewer can refer to a smaller amount of something.
For example, you can use fewer when you refer to a smaller amount of money. You can also use it to refer to something that is countable. For instance, you can say that there are fewer people in a town. You can say that there are less sugary foods in a particular area. You can also say that there are less restaurants in a certain city.
Other examples of fewer in a sentence include when you are referring to a smaller amount of something that is not countable. For instance, you can say there are fewer tourists in a particular place or that there are fewer tourists in a particular season.
More common uses of “fewer”
Despite the common belief that the usage of “fewer” and “less” is interchangeable, this isn’t the case. Unlike fewer, less can be used with count nouns and uncountable nouns. It can also be used with weight, time, money, statistics, and measurements.
The usage of less and fewer is rooted in the Old English language, which was spoken during the reign of Alfred the Great. Strict grammarians insist on using less before noncount nouns. While this isn’t a very practical rule, it does work in most situations. It’s also not uncommon to see express lane signs that read ten items or fewer.
The distinction between fewer and less is one of the more difficult aspects of navigating countable and uncountable nouns. Because many count nouns can also be used as noncount nouns, the line between the two can be blurred. In fact, less and fewer can be used with money, music, time, and other countable and noncount nouns.