when do you use "less" in a sentence and when do you use "fewer"?

Answer 1

If you can’t count it, use less. If you can count it, use fewer.
• Cain has less love in his heart than anyone else I know.
• Cain gives fewer hugs than anyone else I know.
You can’t count love, but you can count hugs.

Answer 2

Here are some examples. See if you can notice a pattern.

Mom gave me less ice cream!
We had a lot less rain this year.
Could you make a little less noise?

Kids who cut class get fewer A's.
This year the club has 5 fewer members than last year.
Lets go after rush hour. There will be fewer cars on the road.

The rule is: use 'fewer' for things that can be counted.

This is a rule of traditional correct English. If you go to a supermarket you will see a sign reading, "Express checkout. 15 items or less." Strictly speaking, it should be "15 items or fewer." But it's become very common to uses "less" with countable things that most people accept it.

Answer 3

The answers you received on using less when you cannot count the item and fewer when you can count it are generally correct. Sometimes this does not seem correct but it is. You can count money, but we say something costs "less" than something else. This is because we are using the word "cost," and cost cannot be counted in this example. So it can get kind of complicated but if you use "can I count it" as a guide, you should not have any problems.

Answer 4

Remember the difference between the words. The word fewer means a smaller number and the number can be counted.
The word less means a smaller amount.

http://homepage.smc.edu/quizzes/cheney_joyce/fewerless.html

Answer 5

less is used for a quatity that can't be counted:
I like grape jelly less than orange marmalade.
fewer is used for quatities that can be counted:
I have fewer relatives than friends.
and finally, a way to remember :
from lynch's guide to grammar,
Less means "not as much"; fewer means "not as many." Trust your ear: if you'd use "much," use "less"; if you'd use "many," use "fewer." You earn less money by selling fewer products; you use less oil but eat fewer fries. If you can count them, use fewer.

Answer 6

I have eaten fewer calories than you today.

I weigh less than I did when I was in high school.

Answer 7

fewer deals more with quantities like there are fewer dogs than cats. less can do that stuff but it also can go with verbs like he is less enthusiastic than she is. less can be used in more situations.

Answer 8

Use "less" when it's a substance or a thing - i.e. if you wanted less water.

Use "fewer" if its a lot of smaller things - i.e. if you wanted fewer cornflakes.

Answer 9

according to Mr. Webster. few adj.small little. pro noun not many as in many left few stayed. a few of the men are wearing hats. Not less. few ness is a noun. Less adj compare to little. to diminish. smaller in size or amount. adv. less likely to a smaller extent. prep.a deduction. n. a smaller amount . Prepare your sentence and use both less and few. See what sounds right . Use your dictionary to see how you used it. fewer was not found in my dictionary.

Answer 10

Rule: Use fewer to describe countable things. Use less to describe uncountable quantities, collective amounts, and degree. These terms are not interchangeable.