some

[Tara2]

How should we know when "some" means "a little" and when it means "a large amount"?



by a small amount or degree; a little:

She says she's feeling some better.

We could turn down the heat some if that would make you more comfortable

some determiner (LARGE AMOUNT)

a large amount or number of something:
It took some effort to get the thing upstairs.
We discussed the problem at some length.

 

[Tara2]

Where did you find that sentence? It does not sound natural to me.

I found in here:
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/some

 

[Rover_KE]

She says she's feeling some better.

That's described as US INFORMAL.

We'll hear from our American friends about the frequency of that usage soon.

It's certainly not natural in BE.

 

[Tara2]

That's described as US INFORMAL.

We'll hear from our American friends about the frequency of that usage soon.

It's certainly not natural in BE.

But in the UK, The general meaning of "some" is "an amount or number of something that is not stated but is limited", so how can "some" mean "a large amount"?

 

[emsr2d2]

Sometimes, the entire phrase is what gives "some" a more specific meaning. "at some length" always means "for quite a long time".

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

Where did you find that sentence? It does not sound natural to me.

It's colloquial southern US English (and as ungrammatical in the US as anywhere).

 

[Tara2]

Sometimes, the entire phrase is what gives "some" a more specific meaning. "at some length" always means "for quite a long time".

Should we memorize those phrases or there is a rule?

 

[emsr2d2]

I think you'll have to memorise them as you come across them.

 

[bubbha]

That's described as US INFORMAL.

We'll hear from our American friends about the frequency of that usage soon.

I'm American but it doesn't sound natural to me.

Perhaps it's regional dialect.

 

[jutfrank]

The emphasis of 'large amount' is also largely expressed by the pronunciation of the word.

 

[jutfrank]

Should we memorize those phrases or there is a rule?

One rule that can help you identify this usage is when the following word is an uncountable noun:

There is quite some distance between them.
It might take some time.
That's going to take some beating.

 

[emsr2d2]

True, but water is an uncountable noun and it would be possible to say "I think you have a leak. I can see some water at the bottom" even if it were only a small amount of water.

 

[jutfrank]

True, but water is an uncountable noun and it would be possible to say "I think you have a leak. I can see some water at the bottom" even if it were only a small amount of water.

Absolutely true. Let me be clear because I don't want anyone to misunderstand:

Not all cases in which some is followed by an uncountable noun have the emphasis of 'a large amount'.

In fact, only a tiny minority. However, if the following noun is countable, you can be confident that this is not the meaning.

 

[Raymott]

Should we memorize those phrases or there is a rule?

There's no rule, but the context, and the way it's expressed, and associated words give the meaning. There are quite a few words like that, Take 'while'.

A: How long will it take?
B: Oh, only a while.
B: Oh, quite a while.

Can you guess which one means a short time and which a long time? You can learn them if you have to.
A: How many words like this are there?
B: Only a few.
B: Quite a few.

 

[Tarheel]

It might be a regionalism. "I'm feeling some better" sounds natural enough to me. (Missouri and North Carolina.)

 

[SoothingDave]

It's not natural to me.

 

[Tara2]

Some lack of agreement!


;-)

Do "Some" mean "a large amount" or "a little" in here?

 

[jutfrank]

Do "Some" mean "a large amount" or "a little" in here?

Look again at post #18. What do you think?

 

[Tara2]

Look again at post #18. What do you think?

A few?

 

[jutfrank]

A few?

No. Try again.