"much fewer" or "many fewer"

[teleostomi]

(1) There are a lot of mice, but much fewer cats in the room.
(2) There are a lot of mice, but many fewer cats in the room.

Which is correct, or wrong?:confused:

[oishii]

Hi Teleostomi,

I could immediately tell you that (2) is not correct and that (1) is a far better response.

I found a really nice explanation online and will share it with you.


"Many" is an adjective, while "much" is an adverb. As such, "many" cannot modify the adjective "fewer". Only an adverb can modify and adjective. "Much fewer" is simply more correct than "many fewer", despite its cacophony. "Many" modifies a noun: "many apples", but "much" modifies the adjective: "much fewer apples" or "far fewer apples".
Source (http://www.linuxjournal.com/article/7095)


I also came across a similar question online and this explanation...


Would you say “many fewer” or “far fewer” when referring to more than one of something? The correct idiom is “far fewer.” For reasons that can’t be explained, “many fewer” is not idiomatic English. Example: “Far fewer people are riding on Firestone tires these days.” Source (http://www.grammardoctor.com/archive7.htm)

[liuchunsheng123456]

but once i came across a sentence like that " this year, the factory produced many more TV sets than last year ." in my opnion , under this situation , "many more Tv sets "is acceptable.

[danmahaffey]

The choices depend on countability. Here is a simple table of uses:
many more -- countable
much more -- uncountable
many fewer -- countable
much less -- uncountableThis should help unravel this for you.

[teleostomi]

Thanks!
Sounds like both are OK, and sounds unnatural at the same time:eek:

[danmahaffey]

Oh, I don't think the choices in the table sound unnatural at all. Why do you? :confused:

[teleostomi]

:rolleyes: I meant (1) and (2).
How are you doing, yo!

[danmahaffey]

A quick fix would be to drop much or many and just say fewer. If you truly mean only a few cats, then say that--it goes well with the casual tone of a lot of mice.

I respect Oishii's command of English grammar and turn of phrase. And I know far fewer is a perfect way to compare quantities. Yet I believe the difference between many fewer and far fewer is one of degree--far fewer being more extreme. Few cats like dogs; many fewer like pigs; and far fewer like elephants. I also believe that the fear of many fewer comes from grammar myth.

And since you ask, I am doing well. I trust you are, yourself. How is the school year treating you?