‘few’ or ‘a few’ – What’s the difference?

You might hear someone say ‘I have few friends’

and another one say ‘I have a few friends’ and think

they might mean the same thing. However, there is

a difference which you can often discern from tone

or context. Let me explain:

 

few =    This has a negative meaning (implying ‘very few’) as in:

‘Trevor has few friends at school, so he feels rather lonely’.

 

 a few = This carries a positive meaning (although it denotes a small number) as in:

‘Trevor has a few friends at school now, so he is a lot happier’.

 

The difference is subtle, but the use of the

indefinite article ‘a’ changes the meaning

significantly.

 

Another similar example is little and a little as in:

 

‘We have little time before the bus arrives, so we had better stay here at the bus stop’.  

‘We have a little time before the bus arrives, so let’s go and get some coffee’.   

 

So be careful because one letter can sometimes

make a significant difference in meaning!