Students often mix up “few” and “a few” in their TOEFL essays and discussion responses. Here’s what you should know:
“A few” means something like “some.” You can’t use it when you are talking about a lot of something, but it does not necessarily mean “not many.” Use it like this:
- “A few students passed the test” = some students passed the test (but not a lot of ideas)
- “I need a few ideas about how to negotiate a better contract” = I need some ideas about how to negotiate a better contract (but not a lot of ideas)
- “I saw a few people on my way to the store” = I saw a some people on my way to the store (but not a lot of people)
Just use “a few” when you are talking about “some” of something. Don’t use it to emphasize that you are talking about “not many” of something.
“Few” means something like “not many”. Use it when you want to emphasize that you are talking about “not many” of something. Like this:
- “Few students passed the test” = not many students passed the test
- “I have few ideas about how to negotiate a better contract” = I don’t have many ideas about how to negotiate a better contract
- “I saw few people on my way to the store” = I didn’t see many people on my way to the store
Can you see the difference? The correct wording depends on what you want to emphasize.