If we really think about it, quantity expressions, other than actual numbers and words like “none,” do not specify exact amounts, and some vary widely in the actual amounts they can refer to. The choice of any one of them—“several,” “a lot,” “a bit,” “a few,” “many”– depends on how the speaker feels about the amount being referred to, and whether that amount feels small or large or somewhere in between.
WOTD: tout
transitive verb to publicize flatteringly and boastfully.The company is touting its new product as a miracle drug.The film’s producer touted his new starlet unabashedly. intransitive verb to seek customers, votes, or the…
WOTD: lucid
adjective easy to understand; articulate; clear.She gave a lucid presentation and we learned a good deal from it. See the full entry
WOTD: mutation
noun a sudden, apparently abnormal change or alteration in a genetically determined structure, as opposed to gradual evolutionary change.The disease is the result of a mutation in a particular gene.A mutation has…
WOTD: egotist
noun a conceited person; braggart.That egotist bragged about himself all evening. See the full entry