We use quantifiers when we want to give someone information about the number of something to answer the questions: how much and how many.
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| All or none | Use |
|---|---|
| All (of) the people are here. | 100% are here. |
| Not all (of) the people are here. | Less than 100% |
| All (of) the people are not here. | Not well defined. Could be “not all” or “none” |
| None of the people are here. | 0% Focus on “people” (are) |
| Not any of the people are here. | 0% Focus on “each” individual (is) |
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| Some, Most, Many, Several, Few, A Few, A lot of | Use |
|---|---|
| Some (of the) people are here. Some (of the) people are not here. | Focus: positive Focus: negative |
| Most of the people are here. Most of the people are not here. | Focus: positive (uncommon) |
| Many (of the) people are here. Many (of the) people are not here | Focus: positive (uncommon) |
| Not many (of the) people are here. Several (of the) people are here | Focus: negative. More people were expected. Focus: positive |
| A few (of the) people are here. Few (of the) people are here. | Focus: positive. At least some are here. Focus: negative. More people were expected. |
| A lot of (the) people are here. A lot of (the) people are not here. | Focus: positive Focus: negative |
| Not a lot of (the) people are here. Three (of the) people are here. Three (of the) people are not here. | Focus: negative. More people were expected. Focus: positive Focus: negative |
| Half of the people are here. Half of the people are not here. | Focus: positive 50% are here. Focus: negative 50% are absent. |
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[wps_table style=”default”]
| Both, neither, one | Use |
|---|---|
| Both (of the) people are here. | 100% are here. |
| One of the people is here. | Focus: negative |
| One of the people is not here | Focus: negative |
| Neither of the people is here. | Focus: negative |
| Neither of the people are here. | Focus: 100% are absent. (Very informal) |
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[wps_table style=”default”]
| Quantifiers in Questions | Use |
|---|---|
| Are all of the people here? | Yes, all of them are. Some of them are. Most of them are. No, none of them are. No, not many of them are. |
| Are most of the people here? | No, only some of them are. |
| Are any of the people here? | Yes, some of them are. Yes, most of them are. No, none of them are. |
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[wps_table style=”default”]
| Answers may differ depending on the questions: | Column 2 |
|---|---|
| Is anyone here? |
Even if only one person is here, the answer is positive. |
| Is everyone here? |
If even one person is not here, the answer is negative. Other possibilities:
|
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