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Seraphin Posted 18 years ago
Grammar
"less" than 10 people ??
I presume it's a wrong usage of "less", as people are countable.
but why do i hear this expression so often, "it's a small company. we have less than 10 people".
shouldn't it be "we have fewer than 10 people" ?
It's wrong, right??
thanks a lot
but why do i hear this expression so often, "it's a small company. we have less than 10 people".
shouldn't it be "we have fewer than 10 people" ?
It's wrong, right??
thanks a lot
Top answer
Hi, Yes, but it's said so commonly that I think pretty soon people will stop saying it's wrong. Best wishes, Clive
- Hi, Yes, but it's said so commonly that I think pretty soon people will stop saying it's wrong.
- Best wishes, Clive
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9 Answers
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Hi,
Yes, but it's said so commonly that I think pretty soon people will stop saying it's wrong.
Best wishes, Clive
Yes, but it's said so commonly that I think pretty soon people will stop saying it's wrong.
Best wishes, Clive
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SeraphinIt's wrong, right??Right. It's wrong. But it's one of those mistakes that you'll have to learn to overlook when others make it. Otherwise you'll go crazy! It's one of the most common errors in English made by native speakers.
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This is very interesting. I am not a native speaker and yet for some unknown reasons I also always make this mistake. If you google for "less than 10 people", you can find 5 times as many hits as that for "fewer than 10 people". Perhaps, this mistake is so common that the correct phrase "fewer than 10 people" almost sounds awkward to me.
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Pterthis mistake is so common that the correct phrase "fewer than 10 people" almost sounds awkward to me.Don't feel like "The Lone Ranger"! Many people share this opinion!
CJ
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Hi,
I asked a similar question some months ago and got very good answers and some references.
If you're interested in my old thread, here it is: "Less/fewer than"
I asked a similar question some months ago and got very good answers and some references.
If you're interested in my old thread, here it is: "Less/fewer than"
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Hi,
Would you accept this as correct? I think it is but I can't explain the reason to myself.
an extra five dollars will help me greatly.
Would you accept this as correct? I think it is but I can't explain the reason to myself.
an extra five dollars will help me greatly.
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Hello Anon,
If you had asked a passer-by for $10, and he had given it to you, yes, you might say:
1. That's very generous of you, sir. But I'm about to make a number of rather expensive purchases, and an extra five dollars will help me greatly. Would you be so kind as to supplement your previous donation?
(That said, "would help me greatly" might be more us
If you had asked a passer-by for $10, and he had given it to you, yes, you might say:
1. That's very generous of you, sir. But I'm about to make a number of rather expensive purchases, and an extra five dollars will help me greatly. Would you be so kind as to supplement your previous donation?
(That said, "would help me greatly" might be more us
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The only occasion that I can think of in which this is a correct usage is in the case of statistics presented as a fraction in order to make it more accessible - I do not believe that it is incorrect if, for example, a shampoo manufacturer were to claim
"Less than 10 people in every 100 will have an allergic reaction to new SuperSuds!"
I'll let someone else confirm that, though.
"Less than 10 people in every 100 will have an allergic reaction to new SuperSuds!"
I'll let someone else confirm that, though.
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1. Less than 10 people.
2. Fewer than 10 people.
In #1, maybe, "less than" qualifies "10"; just as we can say "9 is less than 10", so we can say "less-than-10 people".
In #2, on the other hand, "fewer" qualifies "people", i.e. "fewer people than 10".
?
MrP
2. Fewer than 10 people.
In #1, maybe, "less than" qualifies "10"; just as we can say "9 is less than 10", so we can say "less-than-10 people".
In #2, on the other hand, "fewer" qualifies "people", i.e. "fewer people than 10".
?
MrP
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