a number of vs several

Both 'a number of' and 'several' are correct phrases used to indicate an unspecified but relatively large quantity. 'A number of' is more formal and can be used in both formal and informal contexts, while 'several' is more commonly used in informal situations. The choice between the two depends on the level of formality desired.

Last updated: April 03, 2024 • 188 views

The phrase 'a number of' is correct and commonly used in English to indicate an unspecified but relatively large quantity.

"a number of"

'A number of' is used to refer to an unspecified quantity of something. It can be used in both formal and informal contexts.

Examples:

A number of students attended the seminar.
There are a number of reasons for his absence.
She has a number of books on the shelf.

Show examples from the web [+]

Nov 11, 2023 ... Examples of a number of in a Sentence. Recent Examples on the Web In this position, Hitler began a surgical manipulation of the German political ...
For example, A number of tours are available, or We've visited a number of times. This idiom often is modified by an adjective giving some idea of quantity, as ...
Dec 8, 2019 ... Adding a number of years to a date ... OK, I am really struggling with this one! ... In column C “Expiry” I want it to add “Qualification duration” ...
May 3, 2023 ... Specify a number of features returned by a trace? ... Hi All,. I have a workflow where I'm trying to identify the "parent" feature of any given ...
Jan 16, 2014 ... The expression "a number of" also belongs to the same category—it is always followed by the plural form, as in "a number of days passed" or "a ...
Oct 19, 2023 ... I've shed a number of tears since last weekend... --> First of hope, as I stood in line to cast my vote in the Australian referendum to ...
How to create a number of associated tickets property for Contacts and Companies · Head to settings in your portal clicking the gear icon on the top right ...
Sep 7, 2023 ... 8300 likes, 321 comments - limoblaze_ on September 7, 2023: "I and @adaehimoses have had a number of memorable collaborations and “Talk ...

Alternatives:

several
many
numerous
a few
a handful

The word 'several' is correct and commonly used in English to indicate an unspecified but relatively large quantity, especially in informal contexts.

"several"

'Several' is used to refer to an unspecified quantity of something. It is more commonly used in informal situations.

Examples:

I have several friends in that city.
She bought several items at the store.
There are several ways to solve this problem.

Show examples from the web [+]

Your father lost several prototypes before Lore.
Tapping into that aggression requires peeling back several layers of yourself.
Now there are several biases in risk perception.
I was unsuitable on several levels.
It sometimes takes several attempts to achieve total randomness.
And there were several student deaths that semester.
In certain males it stays a relentless expertise for several several years.
She was in several psychiatric services.
Witnesses claim there were several victims, including the professor.
IA is working on several big cases.
Your response to several questions... suggests possible deception.
They are written in several languages, even Cyrillic.
I understand your party took several casualties.
We have evidence and several affirmations.
There were several problems with your attack strategy.
Your heart stopped for several minutes.
Four crossword puzzles shared across several newspapers.
World burned for several want to have more.
Although now I have several questions.
The doctor mentions several fractured ribs, heavy bruising.

Alternatives:

a number of
many
numerous
a few
a handful

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a number of vs several

"a number of"

"several"

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