few

[fyoo]

adjective

fewer, fewest 

1. not many but more than one.

   Few artists live luxuriously.

noun

1. (used with a plural verb),  a small number or amount.

   Send me a few.

2. the few, a special, limited number; the minority.

   That music appeals to the few.

pronoun

1. (used with a plural verb),  a small number of persons or things.

   A dozen people volunteered, but few have shown up.

few

/ fjuː /

determiner

1. 1. a small number of; hardly any

      few men are so cruel

   2. ( as pronoun; functioning as plural )

      many are called but few are chosen

2. (preceded by a)

   1. a small number of

      a few drinks

   2. ( as pronoun; functioning as plural )

      a few of you

3. informal,  several

4. 1. at great intervals; widely spaced

   2. not abundant; scarce

5. to consume several ( or too many) alcoholic drinks

6. informal,  several

noun

1. a small number of people considered as a class Compare many

   the few who fell at Thermopylae

Other Word Forms

• fewness noun
• overfew adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of few¹

First recorded before 900; Middle English fewe, Old English fēawe; cognate with Gothic fawai; akin to Latin paucus “few,” paulus “little,” pauper “poor,” Greek paûros “little, few”

Word History and Origins

Origin of few¹

Old English fēawa ; related to Old High German fao little, Old Norse fār little, silent

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. quite a few, a fairly large number; many.

   There were quite a few interesting things to do.

2. few and far between, at widely separated intervals; infrequent.

   In Nevada the towns are few and far between.

More idioms and phrases containing few

• a few
• bricks shy of a load, (a few)
• of few words
• precious few
• quite a bit (few)

Example Sentences

Tinseltown has made many great films about the exploits of cops: “L.A Confidential,” “Heat,” “Serpico,” “Training Day,” just to name a few.

From Los Angeles Times

Nobody can claim it was a thing of wonder, but it was a performance built on grit and it was a point that could matter a great deal in the next few months.

From BBC

He clawed his way back into the side for the Copa America a few months before that iconic trip to Wembley, though Higuita admits he feared he had blown his chances with his party trick.

From BBC

However, it’s also one of the few groves that has not burned in the last 10 years.

From Los Angeles Times

Over the course of a few months, they told me how the girls had become addicted to what they now suspect was spice, and would come home so high they would collapse.

From BBC

Related Words

• several 
• some