Use of ‘Little’ & ‘Few’ (Explained in Hindi)

A) Little/A little/The little जब adjective होते हैं तो ये uncountable nouns के साथ प्रयोग में लाये जाते हैं; जैसे

little milk; a little milk

B) Few/A few/The few जब adjective होते हैं तो ये plural countable nouns के साथ प्रयोग में लाये जाते हैं; जैसे

few books; a few books

1. A Little/A Few

ये दोनों ही सकारात्मक (positive) अर्थों में use होते हैं. A little = किसी वस्तु की थोड़ी सी मात्रा; A few = थोड़े से ही व्यक्ति अथवा वस्तु; e.g.

a) I drank some tea and ate a little bread before leaving for my office.
b) I’m having a dinner  party for a few close friends.

2. Little/Few

‘Little’ और ‘few’ नकरात्मक (negative) अर्थों में use होते हैं.
Little = किसी वस्तु की न के बराबर मात्रा; Few = व्यक्तियों अथवा वस्तुओं की न के बराबर संख्या

a) They had little money to spend. (= उनके पास खर्च करने को न के बराबर पैसे थे.)
b) Few towns in India have public libraries. (= भारत के न के बराबर कस्बों में ही सार्वजनिक पुस्तकालय हैं.)

3. The Little/The Few

The little = थोड़ी सी ही कोई वस्तु लेकिन जितनी है वो सारी की सारी; The few = थोड़े से ही व्यक्ति अथवा वस्तु लेकिन जितने हैं वो सारे के सारे

a) The little information he had was not quite satisfactory. (= उसके पास जो भी थोड़ी-बहुत सूचना थी वो काफी नहीं थी.)
b) The few friends he has are all very kind.  (जितने भी थोड़े-बहुत उसके पास दोस्त हैं वे सब के सब बड़े दयालु हैं.)

For more chapters/topics on English Grammar read the following book authored by me.

Link for buying the above book

For English Practice Sets on various topics read the following book authored by me.

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Use of ‘Little’ & ‘Few’ (Explained in English)

i) Little/A little/The little as Adjectives are used before uncountable nouns; e.g.

little milk; a little milk

ii) Few/A few/The few as adjectives are used before plural countable nouns; e.g.

few books; a few books

1. A Little/A Few

Both have positive meanings. A little = a small quantity of something; A few = a small number of people or things; e.g.

a) I drank some tea and ate a little bread before leaving for my office.
b) I’m having a dinner  party for a few close friends.

2. Little/Few

‘Little’ and ‘few’ denote scarcity or lack and have the force of a negative meaning.
Little = not much or enough (hardly any); Few = not many (hardly any)

a) They had little money to spend.
b) Few towns in India have public libraries.

3. The Little/The Few

The little = not much but all that there is; The few = not many but all that there is

a) The little information he had was not quite satisfactory.
b) The few friends he has are all very kind.

For more chapters/topics on English Grammar read the following book authored by me.

Link for buying the above book

For English Practice Sets on various topics read the following book authored by me.

Link for buying the above book