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Nouns, articles & quantity · CEFR B1 · Independent
The "a" changes the mood completely. A few means some, and sounds fine. Few means hardly any, and sounds like a complaint.
Rebuild this lesson’s reference sentence. Other tasks can have other valid word orders.
Tap words to add or remove them. Drag words into the answer, or use the buttons. Arrow keys move a selected word.
I have a few friends here, so I am never lonely.
a few = some · few = almost none
Question 1 of 1
Choose an answer, then check why it fits.
This is a check of this example, not an English level assessment.
Example 1 of 1
I have a few friends here, so I am never lonely.
"Few" without "a" means almost none, which contradicts the second half.
The shape
a few = some · few = almost none
Say how little there is, and whether that is a problem.
In Hindi
"a" पूरा भाव बदल देता है। a few यानी कुछ, few यानी लगभग कोई नहीं।
CoCap explains every structure in both languages, because a rule you understand in Hindi is a rule you can use in English.
The sentence Indian-English speakers actually produce, and the reason it is wrong.
| Commonly said | Correct English |
|---|---|
I have few friends here, so I am never lonely. | I have a few friends here, so I am never lonely. "Few" without "a" means almost none, which contradicts the second half. |
These come first. The rest of this makes more sense once they are automatic.
Where this structure sits in the ladder, and what surrounds it.
few / a few / little / a little is a CEFR B1 structure — the independent band — and it belongs to nouns, articles & quantity. CoCap’s syllabus files every structure this way so you can learn in order instead of jumping between whatever a search happened to return.
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