- I have few friends.
- I have a few friends.
I thought "few" means just one, two or even none. "A few" typically means more than two. However it seems to me some people say "few" when they really mean "a few", am I right?
"I have a few friends" is just the same as saying "I have some friends".
"I have few friends", however, implies that you have only a few friends (as opposed to many). In some contexts (not always!), it can also imply that you don't feel very well about it, that you wish you had more friends.
Also, note that there is a very common expression "quite a few", which is a trap for foreign learners because it looks like it could mean "rather few, very few", but it does not. It means the exact opposite thing: "a large or significant number, many". So, saying "I have quite a few friends" is the same as saying "I have quite a lot of friends".
Let's have a look at one more example:
few = not very many, with a focus on the fact that this number is (remarkably) small.
"a few" = not very many, but at least more than one.
Your examples (1) and (2) are talking about the same number of friends, but (1) focuses on the fact that this is a small number and carries a negative connotation, like you don't have as many as one should/could have.
You can also have this apply to something that it is bad to have a lot of and reverse the connotations:
Few is what Huddleston & Pullum call an approximate negator, a negative which puts the quantity near zero rather than at zero. Because it's negative, it licenses negative polarity items (NPIs):
A few also indicates a small approximate number, but it's positive. As such, it doesn't license NPIs:
So the basic difference is between positive and negative.
Few, when used without a preceding 'a', means "very few" or "none at all". On the other hand, a few is used to indicate "not a large number". The difference is subtle, yet there are instances where the two can mean completely opposite things.
I can't think of any such example for "few minutes" and "a few minutes" but consider this:
This implies that I am not on board with the vendor's proposal. I have some objections, but not so many as to say "I have several objections...". Nevertheless, I have objections that need to be addressed.
This is a more positive statement that implies I am more or less on board with the proposal. It is not a whole-hearted endorsement, but I barely have any objections at all.
To begin with, something should be said about absolute quantity versus relative quantity:
I have a lot of friends. ≠ I have a few friends. [Countable noun]
I have a lot of money. ≠ I have a little money. [Uncountable noun]
(large ≠ small quantity, absolute = you do not know whether the person stating this feels that they would like to have more or not)
I have plenty of friends. ≠ I have few friends. [C] more ≠ fewer than needed
I have plenty of money. ≠ I have little money. [U] more ≠ less than needed
(large ≠ small quantity, relative = you do know that the person feels this is more than enough ≠ not enough)
If 'only' is used, it is it which makes the idea of reference to a desirable/needed quantity clear, and 'a few / a little' are used instead of 'few / little'. "I only have a few friends. / a little money." "*I only have few friends. / little money." would be pleonastic, redundant.
"A few" means "some" or "a handful". "A few" connotes "not an overwhelmingly large number, but not an insignificantly small number either."
"Few" means "virtually none" or "almost zero". "Few" without the preceding "a" connotes "an insignificantly small number"
Few of us realize the importance of this difference. -- (Regrettably,) many of us do not realize the importance of this difference. -- the stress on the negative aspect.
A few of us are aware of this important difference. -- (Fortunately,) some of us are aware of this difference. -- the stress is on the positive aspect.
In this example, "few" unambiguously stresses the scarcity, whereas "a few" is used to refer to a small amount, many times as a deliberate understatement.
Thank you for your interest in this question.
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