Confusing words: Less vs fewer

Use fewer with things you can count.
Use less with things you measure, not count.

• Fewer meetings (you can count meetings)
• Less funding (you measure funding, not count it)

If you mix these, it could be a question of style. In informal style, we use less for everything. In more formal style, we distinguish between countable and uncountable.

Exercise: Choose “less” or “fewer”

1. The UN mission reported ___ delays this quarter.
2. The department held ___ training sessions due to budget cuts.
3. Staff had ___ incentive to complete the new compliance requirements.
4. The report included ___ recommendations than expected.

 Answer key

1. fewer (delays are countable)
2. fewer (training sessions are countable)
3. less (incentive is uncountable)
4. fewer (recommendations are countable)

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Author: Carol Waites

Presentation/editing by Christina O’Shaughnessy 
https://worldwidewriting.org/

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Carol Waites (PhD)
Email: carolswritingtips@gmail.com
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Carol’s memoir of her times at the United Nations, Behind the Flags, is available on Amazon and lulu.com

ISBN 9783952632703 Behind the Flags Amazon
9783952632710 Behind the Flags Black and White Version Amazon (Australia and Japan)
9783952632727 Behind the Flags lulu.com

It is also available for sale at Payot and in the UN bookshop at the Pregny entry in Geneva.