few

[fyoo]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR few ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective, few·er, few·est.

not many but more than one: Few artists live luxuriously.

noun

(used with a plural verb) a small number or amount: Send me a few.

the few, a special, limited number; the minority: That music appeals to the few.

pronoun

(used with a plural verb) a small number of persons or things: A dozen people volunteered, but few have shown up.

Idioms

few and far between, at widely separated intervals; infrequent: In Nevada the towns are few and far between.

quite a few, a fairly large number; many: There were quite a few interesting things to do.

Origin of few

before 900; Middle English fewe, Old English fēawe; cognate with Gothic fawai; akin to Latin paucus few, paulus little, pauper poor, Greek paûros little, few

Related formso·ver·few, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for few

several, some, petty, minority, less, scanty, slight, lean, middling, short, minute, scattering, minor, trifling, sprinkling, smattering, exiguous, imperceptible, inconsequential

Examples from the Web for few

Contemporary Examples of few

A few days later, Bush replied, “We will uphold the law in Florida.”
Jeb Bush’s Unseen Anti-Gay Marriage Emails
Jackie Kucinich
January 9, 2015
Like many Americans—but few Republican presidential candidates—the former Florida governor has evolved on the issue.
Jeb Bush’s Unseen Anti-Gay Marriage Emails
Jackie Kucinich
January 9, 2015
Sputtering, I manage a few “hut-hut-huts” with the other students.
How Taryn Toomey’s ‘The Class’ Became New York’s Latest Fitness Craze
Lizzie Crocker
January 9, 2015
We do see that a few European countries have them on the books: Germany, Poland, Italy, Ireland, a couple more.
In Defense of Blasphemy
Michael Tomasky
January 9, 2015
So it might be me projecting my desires onto Archer to want to just get away from work for a few weeks.
‘Archer’ Creator Adam Reed Spills Season 6 Secrets, From Surreal Plotlines to Life Post-ISIS
Marlow Stern
January 8, 2015

Historical Examples of few

Here we see but a few of the last links, and those imperfectly.
Philothea
Lydia Maria Child
They were both silent for a few moments; and Eudora's countenance was troubled.
Philothea
Lydia Maria Child
So small was it that to have gone a few feet to either side would have been to miss it.
The Spenders
Harry Leon Wilson
Or, if I'd only got tied up in some way for a few weeks—something I could tide over.
The Spenders
Harry Leon Wilson
I can get along for a few hours, and then I'll have a doctor look at it.
Brave and Bold
Horatio Alger

British Dictionary definitions for few

few

determiner

a small number of; hardly anyfew men are so cruel
(as pronoun; functioning as plural)many are called but few are chosen

(preceded by a)

a small number ofa few drinks
(as pronoun; functioning as plural)a few of you

a good few informal several

few and far between

at great intervals; widely spaced
not abundant; scarce

have a few or have a few too many to consume several (or too many) alcoholic drinks

not a few or quite a few informal several

noun

the few a small number of people considered as a classthe few who fell at Thermopylae Compare many (def. 4)

Derived Formsfewness, noun

Word Origin for few

Old English fēawa; related to Old High German fao little, Old Norse fār little, silent

xref

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Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for few

adj.

Old English feawe (plural; contracted to fea) "few, seldom, even a little," from Proto-Germanic *faw-, from PIE root *pau- (1) "few, little" (cf. Latin paucus "few, little," paullus "little," parvus "little, small," pauper "poor;" Greek pauros "few, little," pais (genitive paidos) "child;" Latin puer "child, boy," pullus "young animal;" Oscan puklu "child;" Sanskrit potah "a young animal," putrah "son;" Old English fola "young horse;" Old Norse fylja "young female horse;" Old Church Slavonic puta "bird;" Lithuanian putytis "young animal, young bird"). Always plural in Old English.

Phrase few and far between attested from 1660s. Unusual ironic use in quite a few "many" (1883), earlier a good few (1828). The noun is late 12c., fewe, from the adjective.

Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few. [Winston Churchill, 1940]

Idioms and Phrases with few

few

In addition to the idioms beginning with few

few and far between
few bricks shy of a load
few words

also see:

a few
bricks shy of a load, (a few)
of few words
precious few
quite a bit (few)