We use the quantifiersmuch, many,a lot of, lots ofto talk about quantities, amounts and degree. We can use them with a noun (as a determiner) or without a noun (as a pronoun).
Much, manywith a noun
We usemuchwith singular uncountable nouns andmanywith plural nouns:
[talking about money]
I haven’t gotmuchchange. I’ve only got a ten euro note.
Are theremanycampsites near you?
Questions and negatives
We usually usemuchandmanywith questions (?) and negatives (−):
Is theremuchunemployment in that area?
Howmanyeggs are in this cake?
Do you thinkmanypeople will come?
It was pouring with rain but there wasn’tmuchwind.
There aren’tmanywomen priests.
Affirmatives
In affirmative clauses we sometimes usemuchandmanyin more formal styles:
There ismuchconcern about drug addiction in the US.
He had heardmanystories about Yanto and he knew he was trouble.
In informal styles, we prefer to uselots ofora lot of:
I went shopping and spenta lot ofmoney.
Not:I went shopping and spent much money.
See also:
Lots,a lot,plenty
Much of, many of
When we usemuchormanybefore articles (a/an, the), demonstratives (this, that), possessives (my, your) or pronouns (him, them), we need to useof:
Howmuch ofthis book is fact and how much is fiction?
Claude, the seventeenth-century French painter, spentmuch ofhis life in Italy.
Unfortunately, notmany ofthe photographers were there.
Howmanyofthem can dance, sing and act?
This much, that much
When we are talking to someone face-to-face, we can usethis muchandthat muchwith a hand gesture to indicate quantity:
[the speaker indicates a small amount with his fingers]
I only hadthatmuchcake.
A lot of,lots ofwith a noun
We usea lot ofandlots ofin informal styles.Lots ofis more informal thana lot of.A lot ofandlots ofcan both be used with pluralcountable nouns and with singular uncountable nouns for affirmatives, negatives, and questions:
We’ve gotlots ofthings to do.
That’sa lot ofmoney.
There weren’ta lot ofchoices.
Can you hurry up? I don’t havea lot oftime.
Are therea lot ofgood players at your tennis club?
Have you eatenlots ofchocolate?
See also:
Lots,a lot,plenty
Much,many,a lot of,lots of: negative questions
When we usemuchandmanyin negative questions, we are usually expecting that a large quantity of something isn’t there. When we usea lot ofandlots ofin negative questions, we are usually expecting a large quantity of something.
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The speaker expects that they have sold a small quantity of tickets. |
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The speaker expects that they have sold a large quantity of tickets. |
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The speaker expects that there is a small quantity of food left. |
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The speaker expects that there is a large quantity of food left. |
Much,many,a lot,lots: without a noun
We usually leave out the noun aftermuch, manyanda lot, lotswhen the noun is obvious:
A:Would you like some cheese?
B:Yes please but nottoo much. (not too much cheese)
A:Can you pass me some envelopes?
B:Howmany?(how many envelopes?)
A:How many people came?
B:A lot. (orLots.)
Muchwith comparative adjectives and adverbs:much older, much faster
We can usemuchbefore comparative adjectives and adverbs to make a stronger comparison:
Sometimes the prices in the local shop aremuchbetter than the supermarket’s prices.
I feelmuchcalmer now I know she’s safe.(much calmer than I felt before)
She’s walkingmuchmore slowly since her operation.(much more slowly than before)
Too much,too manyandso much,so many
Too much,too manywith a noun
We often usetoobeforemuchandmany. It means ‘more than necessary’.We can usetoo muchbefore an uncountable nounandtoo manybefore a plural noun, or without a noun when the noun is obvious:
I boughttoo muchfood. We had to throw some of it away.
They had a lot of work to do.Too much.(too much work)
There aretoo manycars on the road. More people should use public transport.
There are 35 children in each class. It’stoo many.(too many children)
So much,so manywith a noun
We usesorather thanverybeforemuchandmanyin affirmative clauses to emphasise a very large quantity of something:
He hasso muchmoney!
Not:He has very much money!
There wereso manyjobs to do.
As much as,as many as
When we want to make comparisons connected with quantity, we useas much asandas many as:
Try and find outas muchinformationasyou can.
You can askas manyquestionsasyou want.
See also:
As…as
As much as,as many as
Much,manyanda lot of,lots of: typical errors
We usemuchwith uncountable nouns andmanywith countable nouns:
It doesn’t needmucheffort.
Not:It doesn’t need many effort.
We usually usea lot ofandlots ofrather thanmuchandmanyin informal affirmative clauses:
There area lot ofmonuments anda lot ofhistoric buildings in Rome.
Not:There are many monuments and many historic buildings in Rome.
She gave mea lot ofinformation.
Not:She gave me much information.
We don’t useofaftermuchormanywhen they come immediately before a noun without an article (a/an, the), demonstrative (this, that), possessive (my, your) or pronoun (him, them):
They haven’t mademanyfriends here.
Not:They haven’t made many of friends here.
We don’t usea lot ofwithout a noun:
A:Do many people work in your building?
B:Yes. Quitea lot. (quite a lot of people)
Not:Quite a lot of.