Meaning

4 senses
  1. An indefinite, but usually small, number of.

    There are a few cars (=some, but a relatively small number) in the street.

    Quite a few people (=a significant number) were pleasantly surprised.

    wenig

    немно́гийnemnógij, ма́лоmálo, не́сколькоnéskolʹko

    ма́лоmálo, кі́лькаkílʹka, небага́тоnebaháto

  2. Not many; a small (in comparison with another number stated or implied) but somewhat indefinite number of.

    Very few did she have not to go there, did she?

    I was expecting a big crowd at the party, but very few people (=almost none) turned up.

    ма́лоmálo

  3. Obscuring one to two oktas (eighths) of the sky.

    Tonight: A few clouds. Increasing cloudiness overnight.

  4. (US?) Having a 10 percent chance of measurable precipitation (0.01 inch); used interchangeably with isolated.

Examples

5869 sentences
  1. I gave him a few books.

    Я дав йому кілька книжок.

    ruЯ дал ему несколько книг.

    deIch gab ihm einige Bücher.

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  2. A few days later, he came.

    Він прийшов через декілька днів.

    ruНесколько дней позже он пришёл.

    deEin paar Tage später kam er.

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  3. She has very few close friends.

    У неї мало близьких друзів.

    ruУ неё очень мало близких друзей.

    deSie hat sehr wenige enge Freunde.

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  4. I've met Tom a few times.

    Я кілька разів зустрічав Тома.

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  5. Just give me a few hours.

    Просто дай мені кілька годин.

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Translations

9 languages
Українська
By meaning 1
indefinite, usually small number:
Русский
By meaning 1
indefinite, usually small number:
Deutsch
By meaning 1
indefinite, usually small number:

Origin

From Middle English fewe, from Old English fēaw (“few”), from Proto-West Germanic *fau, fr

From Middle English fewe, from Old English fēaw (“few”), from Proto-West Germanic *fau, from Proto-Germanic *fawaz (“few”), from Proto-Indo-European *peh₂w- (“few, small”).

Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source

Forms

fewer/less, fewest/least

Synonyms

1 synonyms

Antonyms

1 antonyms

Word family

11 related words

Collocations

12 patterns
  • few days days
  • for a few
  • a few minutes
  • a few days
  • few minutes
  • few days
  • a few more
  • a few years
  • a few hours
  • few more days
  • only a few
  • have a few

See also

neighbours in the dictionary
few — meaning, examples, forms, synonyms | Krumeto