quite...

[plin]

Hi,

Please explain the difference, if any:



quite many people

quite a lot of peole

quite a few people. Thanks.

[ponpoco256]

Please explain the difference, if any:
quite many people
quite a lot of peole
quite a few people.Hello Plin

I somehow didn't like to answer this question. But as it is still unanswered, I'll try.

First of all, I have to say "quite many people" is not idiomatic at least among well-educated native speakers. You will find this phrase very frequently used online, but people like New York Times reporters wouldn't use it. "Quite a few people" is more idiomatic but "quite a lot of people" is also used. Usually "a lot of people" is taken to be larger in the number of the people than "a few people". But there is no threshold number of people to differentiate two usages. The choice is dependent on the speaker and the context. What makes your question more difficult to settle is that "quite" is a deceptive word. The adverb can be used either to strengthen or weaken the meaning of the following adjectival phrase. Most people seem to use "quite a few people" to mean "more people" than simple "a few people" but some people use it in the opposite way. A similar discussion could apply to "quite a lot of people", but I am not so sure about this.

ponpoco

[Rusty]

Hello Plin

I somehow didn't like to answer this question. But as it is still unanswered, I'll try.

First of all, I have to say "quite many people" is not idiomatic at least among well-educated native speakers. You will find this phrase very frequently used online, but people like New York Times reporters wouldn't use it. "Quite a few people" is more idiomatic but "quite a lot of people" is also used. Usually "a lot of people" is taken to be larger in the number of the people than "a few people". But there is no threshold number of people to differentiate two usages. The choice is dependent on the speaker and the context. What makes your question more difficult to settle is that "quite" is a deceptive word. The adverb can be used either to strengthen or weaken the meaning of the following adjectival phrase. Most people seem to use "quite a few people" to mean "more people" than simple "a few people" but some people use it in the opposite way. A similar discussion could apply to "quite a lot of people", but I am not so sure about this.

ponpoco That's a very good answer, ponpoco. About quite a lot of people: It seems to me, as a native speaker, that this means a little less than a lot of people. You are right that quite a few means a little more than a few.

[plin]

Thanks you both for the replies.

Maybe I shouldn't ask this question since there is no specific answer, but out of curiosity, if we were hard pressed to place some numbers on these idiomatic forms, can we put some figures beside them? Think of a wedding reception to which 200 people are invited. I start the figures; change them as you like. If I am asking the impossible, just ignore the darn thing.:) Thanks for your trying though.


People who attended:


a few people---3 to 10?

quite a few people---10 to 50?

quite a lot of people- 100 and up?

quite many people--- same?