a few
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Determiner
- A small number of (a set of countable items); more than one but not very many; especially, more than two but not very many (explained in usage note at several).
- Synonyms: a couple of, several
- Antonyms: one; zero, no; a lot of, many, numerous; countless
- Hypernyms: multiple, various
- Coordinate terms: a handful of; (mass counterpart) a little
- She loves to sing karaoke, but there are a few songs that she refuses to cover.
- After a dismal few months my life at long last changed for the better.
- 1909, Archibald Marshall [pseudonym; Arthur Hammond Marshall], chapter II, in The Squire’s Daughter, New York, N.Y.: Dodd, Mead and Company, published 1919, →OCLC:
- "I don't want to spoil any comparison you are going to make," said Jim, "but I was at Winchester and New College." ¶ "That will do," said Mackenzie. "I was dragged up at the workhouse school till I was twelve. Then I ran away and sold papers in the streets, and anything else that I could pick up a few coppers by—except steal. […]"
Translations
a small number of
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Pronoun
- A small number of things.
- Regrets, I've had a few, but then again too few to mention.
- Did everyone go home? ―No, a few (of them) are still chatting.
Usage notes
A few and few without a differ in emphasis. Few emphasizes that the number is not as large as expected, while a few emphasizes the fact that the number, while small, is not zero but more than two.
Compare:
- I was expecting lots of people at the party, but few turned up.
- I wasn't expecting any young people at the party, but a few turned up.
Note that when a few is preceded by another determiner, a is dropped. The few and every few mean “the group of a few” and “every group of a few” respectively.
Derived terms
Translations
a small number of things
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Anagrams
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