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MadPotatoExpert Posted 15 years ago
Vocabulary

"little damage" VS "small damage"

Can anyone please explain why "little damage" is correct and "small damage" is not correct in the following test question?

It wasn't a bad crash and ............ damage was done to my car.
little Correct
small Incorrect
light Incorrect
mere Incorrect

taken from: www.cambridge.org/gb/elt/catalogue/subject/item382392/First-Certificate-in-English-(FCE)/?site_locale=en_GB

thank you
  

Top answer

"small damage" works in some other contexts but not here. The car suffered only small/minor damage. In your example, "little damage" means " practically no damage" and complements nicely with the "wasn't a bad crash" part.

— Ivanhr

  • "small damage" works in some other contexts but not here.
  • The car suffered only small/minor damage.
  • In your example, "little damage" means " practically no damage" and complements nicely with the "wasn't a bad crash" part.
  • The first part of the sentence calls for a negative in the second clause and this negative can be achieved only by using "little damage" (or "no damage" if no damage was done).
  • Note that the choice of a conjenction between the clauses is an important one.
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1 Answers
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"small damage" works in some other contexts but not here.

The car suffered only small/minor damage.

In your example, "little damage" means "practically no damage" and complements nicely with the "wasn't a bad crash" part. The first part of the sentence calls for a negative in the second clause and this negative can be achieved only by using "little damage" (or "no damage"
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