The difference between how much and how many
The difference between how much and how many
The difference between how much and how many is that how much is used with uncountable nouns, while how many is used with countable nouns. Common uncountable nouns in English are time, water, and fun. We cannot compare the Arabic language with the English language, because in the Arabic language there are many things that are countable but not counted in the English language.
Examples of the countable things we have in English are nouns such as apples, telephones, and cars.
Examples of using How much with translation
- How much time do we have to finish the test? How long do we have to finish the test?
- How much money did you spend? How much money did we spend??
- How much sugar would you like in your coffee? How much sugar do you want to add in your coffee?
- How much paper will I need? How much paper do I need?
- How much milk is in the fridge? How much milk is there in the fridge?
- How much traffic was there on the way to work? How much traffic on the way to work
In the previous examples, we notice the use of uncountable words, such as time, money, sugar, paper, and traffic. So if you are a beginner in English, it is best to start by learning basic words and memorizing that they are uncountable. After a while, you will notice that you can easily differentiate between countable and uncountable words.
Examples of How many that are used for the number are:
- How many days are there in January? How many days are there in january
- How many people work in your company? How many people work in your company
- How many cousins do you have? How many relatives do you have
- How many books did you buy? How many books have you read?
- How many countries are there in the world? How many countries in the world
- How many students are in the class right now? How many students are there in the class now?
How much and how many uses
One must learn the rudimentary uses of how much and how many. For example, when talking about money and the cost of something, we use “how much.” Because money itself is not counted
for example
- How much does the book cost? What is the cost of the book
- How much do the toys cost? How much do these games cost?
How much can be used with verbs and not just with nouns in order to inquire about the price of something, in the following form
- How much is it? What is its cost
- How much are the apples? What is the price of apples
So, to inquire about prices, we use “how much.” But in the event that there is a currency and not to inquire about the price in general. The case turns to the use of the number How many
- How many dollars does the house cost? How much does this house cost in dollars?
- How many euros do you need for lunch? How many euros do you need for lunch?
The uses of how much and how many are not limited to money, but you must know the basic things that the uncountable comes with in order to apply them in your daily conversations.
- Activities: such as job, music, and social activities “housework, music, socializing”
- Different types of food: such as fish and meat
- Liquids: such as water, alcohol, and juices
- Different materials: such as wood, leather
Example:
- How much homework do you have? How many jobs do you have to do?
- How much knowledge do you have about the subject? How much knowledge do you have about this
- How much help did he give you last week? How much help did he give you last week?
Countable nouns are easy to identify because they often end in s for the plural. But it doesn’t always have to end that way. Example:
- How many books are there on the shelf? How many books are on the shelf
How to answer how many and how many questions
In order to answer the questions, you have to know how to answer accurately, because there is a slight difference between answering the countable and uncountable questions
We use a lot of to answer countable and uncountable questions, followed by a noun in the answer, and it may not come
- How much rice do we have? We have a lot of rice. How much rice do we have? We have a lot of rice
- How many friends did you make on vacation? – I made a lot of friends. How many friends did you make on the trip? I’ve got a lot of friends
- How much time do you have today? – I have a lot. How much time do you have today? I have plenty of time
- How many cars have you had in your life? – I’ve had a lot. How many cars have you had in your life? I’ve got a lot of cars
Or we can answer with some with countable and uncountable nouns, for example:
How much money do youhave? – I have some money, but not much. How much money do you have? I have some money, but not much
- How many apples are on the table? There are some apples on the table. How many apples are there on the table? There are some apples on the table.
- As for the use of a few, it is with countable nouns, and a little with uncountable nouns
- How much fun did you have? -I had a little fun last week. How much fun did you have? I had a little fun last week
- How many glasses did you drink? – I drank a few glasses of milk. How many bottles did you drink? I drank a few glasses of milk
Countable and uncountable nouns
For countable nouns we use many, for example:
- There are many things to do in Dublin. There are many things to do in Dublin
- There are many good teachers at language school
For uncountable nouns, we use much, for example:
- I don’t have much water left. I don’t have enough water
- I don’t have much time. I don’t have enough6time