Much, many, a lot of, lots of: quantifiers

Much, many, a lot of, lots of: quantifiers

Definition: We use the quantifiers much, many, a lot of, lots of to talk about quantities, amounts and degree. We can use them with a noun (as a determiner) or without a noun (as a pronoun).

Much, many with a noun

We use much with singular uncountable nouns and many with plural nouns:

Ex: I haven’t got much change. I’ve only got a ten euro note.

Ex. Are there many campsites near you?

Questions and negatives

We usually use much and many with questions (?) and negatives (−):

Ex. Is there much unemployment in that area?

Ex. How many eggs are in this cake?

Ex. Do you think many people will come?

Ex. It was pouring with rain but there wasn’t much wind.

Ex. There aren’t many women priests.

Affirmatives

In affirmative clauses we sometimes use much and many in more formal styles:

Ex. There is much concern about drug addiction in  the US.

Ex. He  heard many stories about Yanto and he knew

      he was trouble.

In informal styles, we prefer to use lots of or a lot of:

Ex. I went shopping and spent a lot of money.

      Not: I went shopping and spent much money.

Much of, many of

When we use much or many before articles (a/an, the), demonstratives (this, that), possessives (my, your) or pronouns (him, them), we need to use of:

Ex. How much of this book is fact and how much is fiction?

Ex. Unfortunately, not many of the photographers were there.

Ex. How many of them can dance, sing and act?

This much, that much

Spoken English:

When we are talking to someone face-to-face, we can use this much and that much with a hand gesture to indicate quantity:

[the speaker indicates a small amount with his fingers]

Ex. I only had that much cake.

A lot of, lots of with a noun

We use a lot of and lots of in informal styles. Lots of is more informal than a lot of. A lot of and lots of can both be used with plural countable nouns and with singular uncountable nouns for affirmatives, negatives, and questions:

Ex. We’ve got lots of things to do.

Ex. That’s a lot of money.

Ex. There weren’t a lot of choices.

Ex. Can you hurry up? I don’t have a lot of time.

Ex. Are there a lot of good players at your tennis club?

Ex. Have you eaten lots of chocolate?

Much, many, a lot of, lots of: negative questions

When we use much and many in negative questions, we are usually expecting that a large quantity of something isn’t there. When we use a lot of and lots of in negative questions, we are usually expecting a large quantity of something.

Compare

Haven’t they sold many tickets?	(No, they haven’t.) The speaker expects that they have sold a small quantity of tickets.
Haven’t they sold a lot of tickets? (or lots of)	(Yes, they have.) The speaker expects that they have sold a large quantity of tickets.
Isn’t there much food left?	(No, there isn’t.) The speaker expects that there is a small quantity of food left.
Isn’t there a lot of food left? (or lots of)	(Yes, there is.) The speaker expects that there is a large quantity of food left.

Much, many, a lot, lots: without a noun

We usually leave out the noun after much, many and a lot, lots when the noun is obvious:

A: Would you like some cheese?