Grammar choices
Fewer vs. Less
Fewer goes with things you can count one by one, like fewer apples or fewer emails. Less goes with amounts you measure but don't count, like less sugar or less noise.
| Word | Part of speech | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| fewer | determiner | a smaller number of, used with plural nouns you can count |
| less | determiner | a smaller amount of, used with nouns you cannot count |
| adverb | to a smaller degree; not as much |
Fewer
determiner: a smaller number of, used with plural nouns you can count
- This year, fewer students signed up for the trip.
- Try to use fewer paper towels in the kitchen.
Less
determiner: a smaller amount of, used with nouns you cannot count
- This recipe uses less butter than the original.
- I spend less time on my phone since I deleted that app.
adverb: to a smaller degree; not as much
- I worry less about money now that I keep a budget.
- This chair is less comfortable than the old one.
How to remember the difference
If you would say many, use fewer. If you would say much, use less. Many cars, fewer cars; much traffic, less traffic.
Good to know
Time, money, distance and weight usually take less, even with numbers: less than ten miles, less than five dollars. The checkout sign 10 items or less is a common idiom that some guides accept, but 10 items or fewer is the careful choice.
Spot the mistake
There were
lessfewer people at the game than last week.Correct: There were fewer people at the game than last week.
Check yourself
Pick the word that fits each sentence.
1. We had problems with the new software than with the old one.
Answer: fewer. Problems can be counted one by one, so fewer fits.
2. Add salt next time, because the soup was too salty.
Answer: less. Salt is an amount you measure, not count, so less fits.
Strunk wrote about this in 1918: his note on less in The Elements of Style.