English Grammar & Syntax Quiz: Quantity And Measure Expressions
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Quantity And Measure ExpressionsQuestion 1 of 19

The sauce needs only ... salt because it is already seasoned.

a few
several
a little
many
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English Grammar & Syntax Quiz

English Grammar & Syntax Quiz: Quantity And Measure Expressions

Practice Quantity And Measure Expressions in English Grammar & Syntax with focused quiz questions that help you check what you know, review explanations, and build confidence with test-style prompts.

What this quiz covers

This quiz focuses on Quantity And Measure Expressions, giving you a quick way to practice the rules, question types, and explanations that matter most for English Grammar & Syntax.

How to use this quiz

Try each quiz question before looking at the correct answer. Use the explanations to review missed ideas, then come back to similar questions until the pattern feels familiar.

All questions

Question 1

The sauce needs only ... salt because it is already seasoned.

  1. a few
  2. several
  3. a little (correct answer)
  4. many
Explanation: Salt is an uncountable noun, so you need a quantifier that works with uncountable amounts. 'A little' means a small amount and fits the context. The tempting wrong choice is 'a few', which is used with countable plural nouns, not uncountable ingredients like salt.

Question 2

Could you give me ... more minutes to finish the test?

  1. a few (correct answer)
  2. a little
  3. little
  4. much
Explanation: Minutes are countable, so you need a phrase for countable nouns: 'a few' gives a small number. 'A little' is tempting, but it works only with uncountable amounts like time or water, not countable items like minutes.

Question 3

Could you pass me ... sugar for my coffee, please?

  1. a few
  2. any
  3. many
  4. some (correct answer)
Explanation: Because sugar is uncountable, you need a determiner used with uncountable nouns; some fits this polite request. The tempting choice is any, but any belongs in negatives and open questions, not in a friendly request where you expect the sugar to be passed.

Question 4

Because of the increased fare, ... passengers used the train last month.

  1. less
  2. fewer (correct answer)
  3. much less
  4. a little
Explanation: Passengers are countable, so you need a comparative quantifier for plural nouns: fewer. The tempting wrong choice is less, which describes uncountable amounts like fare or time, not individual passengers. Much less and a little are also for uncountable nouns, so they do not fit here.

Question 5

The trainer offered me three ... of advice about the interview.

  1. pieces of advice (correct answer)
  2. piece of advice
  3. pieces of advices
  4. advice pieces
Explanation: Advice is uncountable, so you pluralize the measure word piece: three pieces of advice. Using advices is not standard English, and piece of advice is the tempting wrong answer because it keeps advice singular, but three requires the plural pieces.

Question 6

Which choice best completes the sentence while preserving the chef's meaning that both small quantities will be sufficient? The soup still needs   carrots and   salt.

  1. few; little
  2. a few; little
  3. few; a little
  4. a few; a little (correct answer)
Explanation: When dealing with quantifiers in English, the key distinction to understand is the difference between few/a few (used with count nouns) and little/a little (used with noncount nouns) — and crucially, how the article "a" changes the meaning entirely. "Carrots" is a count noun (you can count individual carrots), so you must use few or a few. "Salt" is a noncount noun (you can't count individual salts), so you must use little or a little. That narrows your choices immediately. But the chef's meaning is the real deciding factor here: the sentence specifies that both small quantities will be sufficient. The word "a" makes all the difference — a few and a little mean "a small but adequate amount," carrying a positive or neutral tone. Without the article, few and little mean "not enough," implying a shortage or deficiency. Because the chef wants to convey sufficiency — not scarcity — the correct answer is D, a few; a little, pairing the right quantifiers with the right noun types while preserving the intended meaning. Looking at the distractors: A (few; little) uses correct noun agreement but wrongly implies there isn't enough of either ingredient. B (a few; little) correctly handles carrots with a positive connotation, but little salt implies an insufficient amount — only half the meaning is preserved. C (few; a little) makes the opposite mistake, getting salt right but implying too few carrots. A handy tip: always check for two things — noun type (count vs. noncount) and tone (sufficient vs. insufficient). The article "a" is a small word that carries big meaning.

Question 7

Which choice correctly completes the sentence? Forty dollars   too much for one ticket, but the two twenty-dollar bills on the counter   intended for separate purchases.

  1. is; were (correct answer)
  2. are; was
  3. is; was
  4. are; were
Explanation: When a question gives you two separate subjects and two separate blanks, you need to evaluate subject-verb agreement independently for each clause — don't let the first blank influence your thinking about the second. For the first blank, the subject is "forty dollars." Although dollars is plural in form, when a sum of money functions as a single unit or total amount, it takes a singular verb. You're not thinking of forty individual dollars acting separately — you're treating $40 as one price. So the correct verb is is, not are. For the second blank, the subject is "the two twenty-dollar bills." Here, the bills are being treated as distinct, physical objects intended for different purposes — they are genuinely multiple things acting separately. This calls for a plural verb: were, not was. That makes choice A (is; were) correct. Choice B (are; was) gets both blanks wrong — it treats the dollar amount as plural and the bills as singular, which is the reverse of correct logic. Choice C (is; was) gets the first blank right but incorrectly uses the singular was for "two twenty-dollar bills," ignoring that they are plural subjects in this context. Choice D (are; were) gets the second blank right but incorrectly uses are for the dollar sum. The key trap here is assuming that because both subjects involve money, they should behave the same grammatically. They don't — context determines whether a monetary expression is singular (a lump sum) or plural (individual items). Always ask yourself: is this money acting as one unit or as separate objects?

Question 8

  neighbor complained about the noise, but I don't know who.

  1. Some (correct answer)
  2. Any
  3. Every
  4. Many
Explanation: Use "some" before a singular noun to mean an unspecified or unknown person: "Some neighbor complained" means one particular neighbor, though you don't know which one. "Any" would be wrong here because it suggests it doesn't matter which neighbor, not a mystery about a specific complainer.

Question 9

The office needs   new furniture and   chairs.

  1. some, a few (correct answer)
  2. a few, some
  3. a little, much
  4. some, a little
Explanation: Furniture is uncountable, so it needs some, not a few. Chairs are countable plural, so they need a few. The tempting mistake is using a few with furniture, since a few only works with countable nouns, while some works with both.

Question 10

Let me give you   before the interview.

  1. a really good advice
  2. a few really good advice
  3. a piece of good advice (correct answer)
  4. some really good advices
Explanation: Advice is an uncountable noun, so it has no plural and cannot follow 'a' or 'an'. Use a piece of before it: a piece of good advice. The tempting choice a really good advice is wrong because you can't put a in front of uncountable advice.

Question 11

I have hardly   money left until payday.

  1. some
  2. any (correct answer)
  3. a few
  4. many
Explanation: Hardly acts as a negative, so the sentence needs a negative-polarity item: any. You might choose some, but some belongs in positive statements like "I have some money," not after hardly. Since money is uncountable, a few and many don't work either.

Question 12

Which choice correctly completes the sentence? Two-thirds of the farmland   protected, whereas two-thirds of the individual plots   privately owned.

  1. is; are (correct answer)
  2. are; is
  3. is; is
  4. are; are
Explanation: When a sentence uses a fraction or percentage as its subject, the verb must agree with the noun in the prepositional phrase that follows the fraction — not with the fraction itself. This is called the "fraction rule" of subject-verb agreement, and it's one of the trickiest patterns tested on grammar exams. In the first clause, "two-thirds of the farmland," the key noun is farmland — an uncountable, singular mass noun. Because farmland is singular, it takes a singular verb: is. In the second clause, "two-thirds of the individual plots," the key noun is plots — a countable, plural noun. Because plots is plural, it takes a plural verb: are. That gives you is; are, which is choice A. Choice B (are; is) reverses the logic entirely — it treats the singular noun farmland as plural and the plural noun plots as singular. Choice C (is; is) correctly handles farmland but incorrectly applies a singular verb to plots, perhaps because both clauses start with "two-thirds" and the fraction itself looks the same. Choice D (are; are) makes the opposite error, defaulting to plural for both, which works for plots but fails for farmland. The trap here is focusing on the fraction ("two-thirds") and assuming it always takes the same verb form. It doesn't — the fraction is just a modifier. Your strategy: skip past the fraction and find the noun after "of." That noun controls the verb. Singular noun → singular verb; plural noun → plural verb. Every time.

Question 13

Which choice most naturally completes the sentence? Although there isn't   coffee left, I can offer you   tea if you'd like.

  1. some; any
  2. any; some (correct answer)
  3. any; any
  4. some; some
Explanation: When completing sentences in English, the distinction between "some" and "any" is crucial — and it's one of the most commonly tested grammar points. The key rule: use any in negative contexts and questions, and some in affirmative (positive) contexts. Look at the sentence structure: "Although there isn't   coffee left, I can offer you   tea." The first blank sits inside a negative clause ("there isn't"), so it demands any. The second blank sits inside a positive, affirmative clause ("I can offer you"), so it calls for some. That logic makes B) any; some the correct answer — it perfectly matches the grammatical polarity of each clause. Here's why the other choices fall apart. A) some; any reverses the pattern entirely, placing some in a negative context and any in a positive one — both are wrong. This is a classic trap if you're working on instinct rather than rules. C) any; any correctly identifies the first blank but then misapplies any to the positive clause, where it sounds unnatural and grammatically awkward. D) some; some makes the opposite error of C — it gets the second blank right but uses some in the negative context of the first blank, which native speakers would immediately flag as incorrect. A handy tip: scan each blank and ask, "Is this clause positive or negative?" If negative (or a question), reach for any. If positive, reach for some. This two-second check will solve most some/any questions you encounter on this exam.

Question 14

Which pair of expressions correctly completes the sentence? Before the interview, Mara received   from the recruiter and reviewed   about the company.

  1. three useful advices; two detailed informations
  2. three useful pieces of advice; two detailed pieces of information (correct answer)
  3. three useful pieces of advices; two detailed pieces of informations
  4. three useful advice pieces; two detailed information pieces
Explanation: When you see a question involving words like advice and information, you're being tested on mass nouns (also called uncountable nouns). These are nouns that cannot be counted directly — you can't say "one advice" or "two informations" the way you'd say "one apple" or "two books." To express quantity with mass nouns, English requires a unit of measurement phrase, the most common being piece of (plural: pieces of). This is exactly why B is correct. "Three useful pieces of advice" and "two detailed pieces of information" use the proper structure: a countable number → a countable unit (pieces) → of → the mass noun in its base, singular form (advice, information). The formula is: [number] + pieces of + [uncountable noun]. A fails because it treats advice and information as if they were regular countable nouns — writing "three advices" and "two informations" adds a plural -s directly to mass nouns, which is grammatically incorrect in standard English. C gets the structure partially right by using "pieces of," but then incorrectly pluralizes the mass nouns themselves — advices and informations are not valid English forms. The noun after of must remain singular and uncountable. D inverts the word order entirely, placing the noun before pieces ("advice pieces," "information pieces"). While this might feel intuitive, it's not an accepted English construction for quantifying mass nouns. Your study tip: memorize a short list of common mass nouns (advice, information, furniture, luggage, news) and practice pairing them with piece(s) of. On grammar exams, these words almost always signal a countability trap.

Question 15

Which pair of quantity expressions correctly completes the sentence? The laboratory purchased   for the new wing but only   for the initial round of trials.

  1. a large amount of new equipment; a small number of testing machines (correct answer)
  2. a large number of new equipment; a small amount of testing machines
  3. a large amount of new equipments; a small number of testing machine
  4. a large number of new equipments; a small amount of testing machine
Explanation: When you see quantity expressions like "a large amount of" or "a large number of," the key question to ask is: is the noun countable or uncountable? Use number with countable nouns (things you can count individually) and amount with uncountable (mass) nouns. "Equipment" is an uncountable mass noun in English — you cannot say "one equipment, two equipments." It has no plural form and takes amount, not number. "Testing machines," on the other hand, are discrete, countable items, so they correctly pair with number. That logic points directly to answer A: "a large amount of new equipment; a small number of testing machines." Answer B reverses the pairing — "a large number of new equipment" is incorrect because you cannot count individual "equipments," and "a small amount of testing machines" fails because machines are countable, not a mass noun. Answer C makes the right choice with "amount" for equipment but then incorrectly pluralizes it as "equipments" — a form that simply does not exist in standard English — and also drops the article before "testing machine" while leaving it singular. Answer D compounds errors from both B and C: it uses "number" with the uncountable "equipments," uses "amount" with countable "testing machine," and again pluralizes "equipment" incorrectly. A quick study tip: memorize a short list of common uncountable nouns that test-takers frequently misuse — equipment, information, furniture, advice, luggage. These never take a plural -s and always pair with amount, never number.

Question 16

Which choice correctly completes the sentence? The filter must be replaced  , so the technician records each replacement on a   maintenance schedule.

  1. every three days; three-days
  2. every three day; three-days
  3. each three days; three-day
  4. every three days; three-day (correct answer)
Explanation: When a sentence uses two different grammatical roles for a time expression — one as an adverb phrase and one as a compound adjective — you need to apply two distinct rules simultaneously. For the first blank, you need an adverbial phrase that describes how often the filter is replaced. In English, we use "every" (not "each") with plural time units to express recurring intervals: "every three days" is the natural, idiomatic construction. "Every" signals a repeated cycle, while "each" typically pairs with a singular noun ("each day"), making it grammatically awkward before a plural like "days." For the second blank, the time expression is acting as a compound adjective modifying "maintenance schedule." When a compound adjective precedes a noun, its components are hyphenated and the unit of time becomes singular: "three-day maintenance schedule." Think of it like "a two-hour movie" or "a six-foot ladder" — the number-unit pair becomes a single modifier, and the unit drops its plural form. That logic confirms D — "every three days; three-day" — as the correct answer. Looking at the wrong choices: A incorrectly hyphenates the adverbial phrase ("three-days"), which is never correct in that position. B compounds two errors — "every three day" is ungrammatical because a bare plural requires the "s" after "day," and "three-days" misuses hyphenation. C uses "each three days," which is an unnatural collocation in English and doesn't idiomatically express a recurring interval. Your strategy: whenever a number-plus-time-unit appears before a noun, hyphenate it and make the unit singular. When it stands alone as an adverb phrase, keep the plural and drop the hyphen.

Question 17

Which choice correctly completes the sentence? Three pairs of scissors   delivered to the studio, but one pair   too dull to use.

  1. was; were
  2. were; was (correct answer)
  3. was; was
  4. were; were
Explanation: When a sentence contains multiple subject-verb pairs, you need to evaluate each one independently for subject-verb agreement. The key here is identifying the true subject of each clause — not just the nearest noun. In the first clause, "three pairs of scissors" is the subject. The number three tells you there are multiple pairs, making this subject plural — so it takes "were." Don't let "scissors" fool you; the head noun is "pairs," and three of them were delivered. In the second clause, "one pair" is the subject. "One" signals a singular subject, so it takes "was." Even though "scissors" follows "pair," the head noun is still "pair," and one pair is always singular. This makes B) were; was the correct answer. Choice A (was; were) reverses the logic entirely — it treats the plural subject as singular and the singular subject as plural, which is the opposite of correct agreement. Choice C (was; was) gets the second clause right but incorrectly treats "three pairs" as singular, perhaps because students fixate on "scissors" (a word that's always plural) and overcorrect. Choice D (were; were) gets the first clause right but then incorrectly treats "one pair" as plural — likely because "scissors" again distracts the eye. A reliable strategy: always strip the prepositional phrase from the subject before deciding on verb agreement. "Three pairs of scissors" → focus on pairs (plural). "One pair of scissors" → focus on pair (singular). This trick works for any subject that contains a tricky prepositional phrase.

Question 18

Which choice correctly completes the sentence? The number of unresolved complaints   declined, but a number of serious cases   under review.

  1. has; remains
  2. have; remain
  3. has; remain (correct answer)
  4. have; remains
Explanation: When you see a subject-verb agreement question with two blanks, treat each clause independently and identify the true subject of each verb — don't let nearby nouns mislead you. The first clause, "The number of unresolved complaints," has "the number" as its subject. "The number" is a singular noun phrase, so it takes a singular verb: has declined. The phrase "of unresolved complaints" is just a prepositional modifier — it doesn't change what the subject is. The second clause, "a number of serious cases," is a different construction entirely. Here, "a number" functions as a quantifier meaning several or many, making the true subject effectively plural (the cases themselves). So the correct verb is the plural remain, not remains. This makes C — has; remain the correct answer. Looking at the wrong choices: A (has; remains) gets the first verb right but treats "a number of serious cases" as singular, which misreads that phrase. B (have; remain) gets the second verb right but wrongly treats "the number" as plural — likely because "complaints" (plural) sits right next to the verb, creating a proximity trap. D (have; remains) makes both errors, applying plural logic to "the number" and singular logic to "a number of." The key study tip here is to memorize this contrast as a fixed rule: "the number" = singular; "a number of" = plural. This exact pairing is a classic exam trap precisely because the two phrases look so similar. When you spot either one, pause and apply the rule before choosing your verb.

Question 19

Which choice correctly completes the sentence? For the pilot program, the warehouse ordered   and separately stocked  .

  1. four dozen of batteries; dozens spare cables
  2. four dozens batteries; dozen of spare cables
  3. four dozen batteries; dozens of spare cables (correct answer)
  4. four dozens of batteries; dozen spare cables
Explanation: When working with quantity expressions in English, you need to understand how words like dozen behave differently depending on whether they follow a numeral or stand alone as a general plural. The word dozen is a collective noun. When it follows a specific numeral — like four — it stays singular and uninflected: you say four dozen batteries, not four dozens batteries. Think of it like four hundred or four thousand; those words never take an -s after a numeral either. Additionally, no preposition "of" is inserted between the numeral-noun phrase and the item being counted: four dozen batteries, not four dozen of batteries. When dozens stands alone without a numeral, however, it becomes a true plural and does require "of" before the noun it modifies: dozens of spare cables, meaning "many groups of cables." That makes C — four dozen batteries; dozens of spare cables — the correct answer, as it applies both rules accurately. A fails on both counts: four dozen of batteries wrongly inserts "of," and dozens spare cables drops the required "of" after the standalone plural. B commits the opposite errors: four dozens batteries wrongly pluralizes dozen after a numeral, and dozen of spare cables treats singular dozen as if it needs "of" without a numeral preceding it. D combines both mistakes from A and B, pluralizing dozens after the numeral and omitting "of" after the standalone dozen. A quick memory rule: numeral + dozen + noun (no "of," no "-s"), but dozens + of + noun (both required) when no numeral leads.