When do i use less instead of fewer

Language researchers tend to believe that using "less" with some countable nouns is natural and that the restriction against doing so is constructed and forced.

Is this too much? What I ask is not that you use "10 items or less" in your own writing; it carries even more risk than using the "one-less-banana" construction. Her popular LinkedIn Learning courses help people write better to communicate better. Jump to Navigation. By Mignon Fogarty Grammar Girl. Now that my commute is shorter, I use less gasoline each week.

In the first sentence, fewer is used with the countable compound noun gallons of gasoline. In the second, less is used with the uncountable noun gasoline. Although we can count money, it is usual for us to think of money as a bulk quantity rather than an aggregate of currency units. Therefore, we use less rather than fewer. Rebecca has less than twenty dollars left in her checking account.

It is also customary to use less with regard to time, even though we can count time in seconds, minutes, hours, and so on. Ethan has been at his job for less than five years.

I wish I could spend less time on household chores. Yet, depending on how general or specific your reference to time is, it may require the use of fewer. I wish I could spend fewer hours on household chores and more on watching television. Weights are also nouns that are measured in a countable way, yet are customarily used with less rather than fewer.

Baby pandas weigh less than grams at birth. Accessibility Links Skip to content. Menu Close. Log in Subscribe. Oliver Kamm. Are you pronouncing 'kilometre' correctly? More on:. Top Stories 'I think they're going to sit it out': Family bogged in desert likely to be there all weekend.

A former cop calls it 'the number one threat to society'. But it's a crime no-one talks about. Third COP26 draft ensures rich nations deliver climate promises.

Sara Duterte is running for vice-president of the Philippines, and she may have to take her father on. But disaster could strike come March. This is why. Man killed in plane crash weeks after Blue Origin flight into space. French authorities investigate alleged rape of soldier at Elysee Palace. Grampians Peaks Trail opens as hikers question its steep price tag. Taylor Swift's heartbreak anthem has been re-recorded with revealing extra lyrics. Popular Now 1. Sara Duterte is running for vice-president of the Philippines, and she may have to take her father on Posted 1h ago 1 hours ago Sat 13 Nov at pm.

Katherine face mask mandate extended until Monday afternoon Posted 7h ago 7 hours ago Sat 13 Nov at am. More Just In. Back to top.