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‘Fewer’ and ‘less’<br />

1. Fewer is the comparative of few (few, fewer, the fewest).<br />

Less is the comparative of little (little, less, the least).<br />

2. Fewer goes with plural countables: Fewer videos have been imported this year than last.<br />

3. Less goes with uncountables: Less oil has been produced this year than last.<br />

4. Informally, we often use less with uncountables. Some native speakers think it’s wrong:<br />

Less people are travelling abroad this year.<br />

People are buying less newspapers than they used to.<br />

E. ‘Both’ and ‘all’<br />

‘Both/both the’ and ‘all/all the’ with nouns<br />

1. We use both and both the (or both my, etc.) in exactly the same way to refer to two<br />

particular people or things (plural countable nouns):<br />

Both children/Both the children are in bed. Both cars/Both the cars are very fast.<br />

2. We use all + noun to refer to things in general: (= the whole number or amount):<br />

All children like to play. (plural countables) All advice is useless. (uncountable nouns)<br />

3. All the refers to particular people or things:<br />

All the children in our street like to play. (all the + plural countable nouns)<br />

All the advice you gave me was useless. (all the + uncountable noun)<br />

‘Both’ and ‘all’: word order with verbs<br />

Both and all have three basic positions in affirmative <strong>sentence</strong>s:<br />

a. after be when it is the only verb in a <strong>sentence</strong>:<br />

<strong>The</strong> girls are both ready. (= Both girls/ Both the girls are ready.)<br />

<strong>The</strong> girls are all ready. (= All the girls are ready.)<br />

b. after auxiliaries (can, etc.) or the first auxiliary when there is more than one:<br />

<strong>The</strong> girls can both speak French. (= Both girls/Both the girls can speak French.)<br />

<strong>The</strong> committee should all have resigned. (= All the committee should have resigned.)<br />

c. before the main verb when there is only one verb:<br />

<strong>The</strong> girls both left early. (= Both girls/Both the girls left early.)<br />

<strong>The</strong> girls all left early. (= All the girls left early.)<br />

‘Both’ and ‘all’: word order with pronouns<br />

Subject<br />

Instead of: We/<strong>The</strong>y are both ready. We can say: Both of us/them are ready.<br />

We/<strong>The</strong>y all left early. All of us/them left early.<br />

Object<br />

Instead of: I love you both/all. We can say: I love both of you/all of you.<br />

He gave us both/all some money. He gave some money to both/all of us.<br />

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