Question
Updated on
2 Feb 2021
- Russian
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English (UK)
-
Italian
Question about English (UK)
We use " little" for uncountable nouns then why do we use "a little girl" ?
We use " little" for uncountable nouns then why do we use "a little girl" ?
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2 Feb 2021
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- English (UK)
- English (US)
"little" refers to an amount when we talk about uncountable nouns, but when we talk about countable nouns, it means "small in size"
"a little girl" = a small girl (countable)
"a little water" = a small amount of water (uncountable)
"a little car" = a small car (countable)
"a little rain" = a small amount of rain (uncountable)
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- English (UK)
- English (US)
"little" refers to an amount when we talk about uncountable nouns, but when we talk about countable nouns, it means "small in size"
"a little girl" = a small girl (countable)
"a little water" = a small amount of water (uncountable)
"a little car" = a small car (countable)
"a little rain" = a small amount of rain (uncountable)
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- Russian
@askingsaint Thank you a lot! What is more common in British English " small" or "little". Are there any differences between using " little" and " small"? ( if I had the mistakes in the sentences, please, correct me and I'm sorry for that).💎🌹
- English (UK)
- English (US)
@autumnrrain there's no real difference. They're exactly the same if you're talking about size. This goes for every dialect of English, as well. Note that "small" cannot be used for quantities, though; "a small rain" is incorrect.
I will point out that "little" can sometimes have a more abstract meaning than "small", though. "my little sister" is someone's younger sister, and "my small sister" would be unnatural in this sense.
"little" is slightly more casual and probably a bit more common as a result, but they're equally used.
Your sentences are perfectly fine, good job! ^^
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