few
Few is a word for a small, non-specific number. A few is somewhere between a couple and a whole bunch.
When you say you're going to have a few fries, you'd better not eat the whole order — a few is a tiny number. It takes more than a few people to play basketball, though they could probably play two-on-two. This is one of many words for amounts that aren't specific, like a bunch, a load, or a bit. If someone refers to the few, they're talking about an elite, special group, like "The few. The proud. The Marines."
Definitions of few
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a quantifier that can be used with count nouns and is often preceded by `a'; a small but indefinite number“a few weeks ago”“a few more wagons than usual”“few roses were still blooming”“few women have led troops in battle”
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Synonyms:
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a couple of, a few
more than one but indefinitely small in number
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hardly a
very few
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fewer
(comparative of `few' used with count nouns) quantifier meaning a smaller number of
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some
quantifier; used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
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Antonyms:
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many
a quantifier that can be used with count nouns and is often preceded by `as' or `too' or `so' or `that'; amounting to a large but indefinite number
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galore
in great numbers
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many a, many an, many another
each of a large indefinite number
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legion, numerous
amounting to a large indefinite number
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some
relatively many but unspecified in number
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umpteen, umteen
innumerable but many
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more
(comparative of `many' used with count nouns) quantifier meaning greater in number
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some
quantifier; used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
- show more antonyms...
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a couple of, a few
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a small elite group“it was designed for the discriminating few”
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type of:
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elite, elite group
a group or class of persons enjoying superior intellectual or social or economic status
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elite, elite group
DISCLAIMER: These example sentences appear in various news sources and books to reflect the usage of the word ‘few'.
Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Vocabulary.com or its editors.
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