Few and Less - fewer mistakes! In less time.

 How many can you count? Very few.

 English Language tip of the week from angelic Aunty Angela, your engaging expert English teacher.

The King James bible includes the immortal, memorable, grammatically correct phrase, 'many are called, but few are chosen'. The words many and few apply to objects or people that are countable.

For example,

'How many people (were at the meeting? Fewer than twenty?'

'How many steps did you climb? Fewer than ten?'

'This flight has fewer steps.'

The word lesser is rarely used, except to describe the smaller of two islands, or species of bird.

The lesser of two evils.

Less time uses less because time is an abstract idea, not a series of objects.

0Angela Lansbury