Write Right: Couple, Few, Some, Several, Many

MAY 22, 2013 By ERIN FELDMAN    

A couple, few, some, several, and many walks into a bar…Oh, wait, that isn’t right. Let’s restart.

I confess I thought actual rules existed regarding “couple,” “few,” “some,” “several,” and “many.” I was mistaken. There are no firm rules, only guidelines, and those are based on what sound and feel right.

For instance, it is generally accepted that “couple” refers to two things. It makes sense; people use the word “couple” to refer to two people who are in a relationship. Thus, a “couple” of socks refers to two socks that may or may not be mismatched after a brawl in the dryer.

“Few” is trickier. It refers to more than two things but does not refer to as many things as “some” or “several.” To make the word even more problematic, it can be modified by “a,” which changes the meaning entirely. “I have a few socks” means something different from “I have few socks.” The second case might cause one to wonder why a person has few socks. Were they lost in that infamous dryer? Eaten by the dog? No one knows. The first case tends to signify that the person does, indeed, have enough socks to at least last until the next wash day. He or she has enough socks unlike the person who has few of them.

“Some” is understood as meaning more than “few” but less than “several.” What does that mean exactly? No one’s sure; thus, people use the word as it feels right to them. Thus, one might say “I have some socks you can borrow,” or “I will have to do some shopping to replace some socks.”

“Several” is used to mean more than “some” but less than “many.” Again, there is no exact number. The dictionary says it means more than a few but not a great number. In a sentence? “Alicia’s grandmother knitted several pairs of socks for her for Christmas.” It might not be the greatest Christmas gift, but at least Alicia has socks again.

As for “many,” it means a multitude. “She has many toe socks” means that she has several toe socks, perhaps more than the number of regular socks. “Many,” like the other words, has no exact number associated with it. It is safe to say, though, that the girl who has many toe socks probably has a drawer overflowing with them.

Any questions about “couple,” “few,” “some,” “several,” or “many”? Feel free to leave a comment here on this blog. Your question and the answer could be featured in a future post.  Also we are leaving this video if you have some doubt about the topic.