Some Misused 'Words.
“ TTALKING to a friend of mine,” writes W.H., “ I asked him if there were many at the races last Saturday. He replied: ‘Yes, there were a good few.’ Is this correct?”
Yes, it is passable. The Standard Dictionary gives it as provincial English, but it is more than that. It may be a contradiction in terms, but it has been grafted on to the language almost as firmly as “ a good many ” or “ a great many.” To find out whether 41 a good few ” fills a useful place in the language, take it and that other phrase, 44 a good many.” and weigh them against “ few,” 4 ‘ many,” 44 not many ” and 44 very few ” and you will find that they express a shade of meaning not easily arrived at otherwise. In Shakespeare’s time ‘‘ a many ” was often used. We speak of 44 so many ” and 44 too many ” and even 44 the many.” Frequent repetition of 44 many ” suggests how difficult this simple word must appear to a foreigner who tries to reconcile spelling and pronunciation. TOUCHSTONE.
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Bibliographic details
Star (Christchurch), Volume XLIV, Issue 643, 22 December 1932, Page 10
Word Count
181Some Misused 'Words. Star (Christchurch), Volume XLIV, Issue 643, 22 December 1932, Page 10
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