Collins Cobuild English Grammar (31 page)

Note that
either
can mean both of two things, especially when it is used with
end
and
side
.

They stood on
either
side of the bed.

each
and
every

1.243
  You use
each
and
every
when you are talking about all the members of a group of people or things. You use
each
when you are thinking about the members as individuals, and
every
when you are making a general statement about all of them.
Each
and
every
are followed by a singular countable noun.

Each seat
was covered with a white lace cover.
They would rush out to meet
each visitor
.
This new wealth can be seen in
every village
.
Every child
would have milk
every day
.
Each
applicant has five choices.
I agree with
every
word Peter says.

You can modify
every
but not
each
. You can say things such as
Almost every chair is broken
or
Not every chair is broken
but you cannot say
Almost each chair is broken
or
Not each chair is broken
. This is because
each
is slightly more precise and definite than
every
.

Note that
each
can be used when talking about two people or things, but
every
is only used for numbers larger than two.

little
and
much

1.244
  If you want to emphasize that there is only a small amount of something, you use
little
. You use
much
to emphasize a large amount.
Little
and
much
are used with uncountable nouns.

Little
is used only in affirmative statements. It is not used in questions or negatives.

There was
little
applause.
We’ve made
little
progress.
We have very
little
information.

Little
is quite formal. In less formal texts,
not much
is more common. For example, instead of saying
We’ve made little progress
, you can say
We haven’t made much progress
.

Much
is usually used in questions and negatives.

Do you watch
much
television?
He did not speak
much
English.

Very much
is used only in negative statements. For example,
I don’t have very much sugar
means
I have only a small quantity of sugar
.

I haven’t given
very much
attention to this problem.

Much
is used in affirmative statements when it is modified by an adverb such as
too
,
so
or
as
.

It would take
too much
time.
Provide
as much
information as you can about the property.

In more formal English,
much
can be used in affirmative statements without an adverb. This usage is most common with abstract nouns, particularly those relating to discussion, debate and research.

The subject of company annual accounts is generating
much debate
 among accountants and analysts.
The team’s findings have caused
much excitement
among medical experts.
After
much speculation
, intelligence agencies now believe that he survived.

Usually, though,
much
is not used in affirmative statements. Instead, people generally use
a lot of
and, in less formal texts,
lots of
. For example, people would not usually say
I have much work to do
; instead, they would say
I have a lot of work to do
. For more information on
a lot of
, see
2.176
.

certain
,
numerous
, and
various

1.245
  Some other words can be indefinite determiners, such as
certain
,
numerous
, and
various
. You use
certain
,
numerous
and
various
with a plural countable noun.

Certain
is used to refer to some members of a group, without specifying which ones.

We have
certain
ideas about what topics are suitable.

Numerous
, like
many
, indicates a large number in an imprecise way.

I have received
numerous
requests for information.

Various
is used to emphasize that you are referring to several different things or people.

We looked at schools in
various
European countries.

more
,
few
, and
less

1.246
  There are three comparatives that are determiners.
More
is used in front of plural and uncountable nouns, usually with
than
, to refer to a quantity or amount of something that is greater than another quantity or amount.

He does
more
hours than I do.
His visit might do
more
harm than good.

But
more
is also often used to refer to an additional quantity of something rather than in comparisons.

More
teachers need to be recruited.
We need
more
information.

Less
is used to refer to an amount of something that is smaller than another amount.
Fewer
is used to refer to a group of things that is smaller than another group.
Less
is usually used before uncountable nouns and
fewer
before plural nouns, but in informal English
less
is also used before plural nouns.

The poor have
less
access to education.
…machinery which uses
less
energy.
As a result, he found
less
time than he would have hoped for his hobbies.
There are
fewer
trees here.

For more information about
comparison
, see paragraphs
2.103
to
2.139
.

other expressions

1.247
  Some other expressions also behave like indefinite determiners:
a few
,
a little
,
a good many
,
a great many
. These have a slightly different meaning from the single word determiners
few
,
little
, and
many
.

If you are mentioning a small number of things, but without any emphasis, you can use
a few
with plural countable nouns.

They went to San Diego for
a few
days.
A few
years ago we set up a factory.
I usually do
a few
jobs for him in the house.

Similarly, if you are just mentioning a small amount of something without any emphasis, you can use
a little
with uncountable nouns.

He spread
a little
honey on a slice of bread.
I have to spend
a little
time in Oxford.
Charles is having
a little
trouble.

However,
a good many
and
a great many
are more emphatic forms of
many
.

I haven’t seen her for
a good many
years.
He wrote
a great many
novels.

modifying determiners:
four more rooms
,
too much time

1.248
  Some indefinite determiners can be modified by
very
,
too
, and
far
, or sometimes by another indefinite determiner.

You can modify
more
with numbers or with other indefinite determiners.

Downstairs there are
four more rooms
.
There had been
no more accidents
.
You will never have to do
any more work
.

You can use
too many
or
too much
to say that a quantity is more than is wanted or needed, and
too few
or
too little
if it is not enough.

There were
too many
competitors.
They gave
too much
power to the Treasury.
There’s
too little
literature involved.

You can use
very
before
few
,
little
,
many
, and
much
. You can also say
a very little
or
a very great many
.

Very many
women have made their mark on industry.
Very few
cars had reversing lights.
I had
very little
money left.

using
one

1.249
  You use
one
as a determiner when you have been talking or writing about a group of people or things and you want to say something about a particular member of the group.
One
is used instead of
a
or
an
and is slightly more emphatic.

We had
one
case that dragged on for a couple of years.
They criticise me all the time, wrote
one
woman.
I know
one
household where that happened, actually.

The use of
one
as a
number
is explained in paragraphs
2.214
to
2.215
.

1.250
  Many determiners are also
pronouns
; that is
,
they can be used without a following noun. For more information about these, see paragraphs
1.154
to
1.161
.

predeterminers:
all the people
,
quite a long time

1.251
  Normally, a determiner is the first word in a noun phrase. However, there is a class of words called
predeterminers
which can come in front of a determiner.

Here is a list of predeterminers:

all

both

double