En inglés no solo importa decir qué tienes, sino cuánto.
Por eso existen las quantity expressions, que nos permiten hablar de cantidades grandes, pequeñas, afirmativas o negativas, tanto con sustantivos contables como incontables.
Countable Nouns (sustantivos contables)
Los contables son los que podemos contar: 1, 2, 3… (books, apples, chairs).
En singular usamos a / an y en plural añadimos -s o seguimos las reglas de plurales.
Ejemplos:
- There is a book on the desk.
- There are two chairs in the classroom.
Expresiones comunes para countable nouns
- A few → unos pocos
I have a few friends in New York.
She bought a few books from the store. - Some (+) → algunos
There are some markers on the desk.
We need some chairs for the meeting. - Enough → suficientes
There are enough students in the class.
We have enough sandwiches for everyone. - Several → varios
There are several houses in this street.
He read several articles yesterday. - Many (– / ?) → muchos (preguntas o negativo)
Are there many people at the party?
There aren’t many cars in the parking lot. - A lot of (+) → muchos (afirmativo)
He has a lot of friends in Mexico.
There are a lot of pencils in the box. - Any (– / ?) → ninguno o alguno (en negativo o preguntas)
Are there any books on the desk?
There aren’t any chairs in the room.
Uncountable Nouns (sustantivos incontables)
Los incontables no se pueden contar individualmente (water, rice, sugar, music).
Siempre se usan en singular, sin a / an.
Ejemplos:
- There is water in the bottle.
- There is sugar in the bowl.
Expresiones comunes para uncountable nouns
- A little → un poco
There is a little rice in the kitchen.
I need a little money for lunch. - Some (+) → algo de
There is some milk in the fridge.
We need some information for the project. - Enough → suficiente
There is enough time to finish the exam.
We have enough sugar for the cake. - Much (– / ?) → mucho (preguntas o negativo)
Is there much water in the bottle?
There isn’t much rice on the plate. - Very much → muchísimo (énfasis)
She doesn’t have very much patience.
He doesn’t read very much information online. - A lot of (+) → mucho (afirmativo)
There is a lot of milk in the glass.
We have a lot of music to listen to. - Any (– / ?) → nada o algo (en negativo o preguntas)
Is there any sugar in the coffee?
There isn’t any water in the pool.
Comparación rápida
| Expresión | Contables (plural) | Incontables |
|---|---|---|
| Some (+) | Some books / Some friends | Some water / Some rice |
| A few / A little | A few chairs (pocos) | A little milk (un poco) |
| Many / Much | Many cars / Many students | Much sugar / Much time |
| A lot of | A lot of houses / A lot of pens | A lot of rice / A lot of info |
| Any (–/?) | Any chairs? / not any books | Any water? / not any sugar |
| Enough | Enough students / Enough chairs | Enough milk / Enough time |
Conclusión
Ya sabes cómo usar las quantity expressions para hablar de lo que tienes, lo que no tienes y lo que necesitas.
👉 Reglas rápidas:
- A few / A little → cantidad pequeña pero positiva.
- Some → en afirmativo.
- Many / Much → en preguntas o negativo.
- A lot of → lo más común en afirmativo.
- Any → clave en negativo y preguntas.
💬 Tu reto: escribe 2 frases con contables y 2 con incontables usando any.
Ejemplo: Are there any apples? / There isn’t any rice.
📍 Para más ejercicios y recursos descargables, explora inglesatutiempo.com.
