Less and Fewer Are Not Interchangeable
These two words may be the most misused words in the language. They are not interchangeable; each has a specific meaning and a specific usage.
Fewer is a comparative adjective used with things that may be counted — a good test is to determine whether the word is something that has both a singular and a plural (like book or egg). Fewer is also used with collective nouns (like people).
Less is used with uncountable things (like misery or happiness. It may also be used with plural nouns when referring to money or distance (less than fifty miles).
While misuse of these words probably won’t get you into serious trouble with your editor — primarily because nearly everyone misuses these words — proper usage will prove you to be a grammar maven.
1 Comment
Delighted to find another stickler for correct usage!
The one that trips me up the most is ‘that’ vs ‘which’ and the one that annoys me the most is using apostrophe-s to designate a plural…
And what can you say about ‘different than’ vs ‘different from,’ dear Editormum?