Exercises and Answers

Starting with the lesson "Fewer or Less," I have begun to include exercises with the grammar lessons so that those of you who wish to practice can do the exercises, and then immediately see the answers. In order to include the exercises and answers on the blog I had to convert them to jpg format, the same format in which photographs are stored. If you double click on the small figure to the left of the post you can open and then print the exercises. If you double click on the small figure on the right of the post you can open and print the answers.

Fewer or Less?

The words fewer and less have very similar meanings and both are usually translated using the Spanish word menos. They both refer to a decrease in an amount; however, they are used differently.

Fewer refers to a decrease in a countable quantity. Countable quantities are items that can be counted. For example books, houses, and cars are items that can be counted. We can say that we have three books in the bag, that there are six houses on our block, and that there are two cars in the parking lot. We can therefore use fewer to say things such as we have fewer books than you, that there are fewer houses on this block than on the next block, or that there are fewer cars in the parking lot than on the street.

Examples of things that cannot be counted include water, sunlight, and soil. We can, however, compare quantities of these items. We can say that there is less water in the bowl than yesterday, that there is less sunlight in this room than in that room, and that the heavy rains left us with less soil in our garden.

Occasionally there are some nouns that can use either adjective, and the choice will depend upon how the speaker is thinking of the object(s). For example, suppose we were using newspapers to protect a table top while we did some painting or other work on a table. Our friend put so much newspaper on the table that it not only protected the table, but it was actually making it difficult to work. We might say, “We need less newspaper on the table.” We wouldn’t be thinking of newspapers individually. We would be thinking in terms of the quantity of paper on the table. We would therefore use the word “less.”

Suppose, however, that we were staying in a hotel, and were accustomed to having eight or nine newspapers available for us to read when we went down to breakfast each morning. One day, instead of having eight or nine available, there are only four newspapers. We might say, “There are fewer newspapers today than there were yesterday.” In this case “fewer” is the word we would select. We would be thinking of individual newspapers, a quantity that can be counted.

Effect or Affect?

The two words “effect” and “affect” are confusing to many native English speakers. When spoken quickly, the words sound so similar that it can be difficult to discern which of the two the speaker is using.

“Affect” means to influence or to create a mental impression. Spanish synonyms include afectar, influir en, conmover. Here are some examples of its use.

- In the spring, the pollen from the trees affects my allergies. (Influences)
- The amount of sleep that I get affects how I feel in the morning. (Influences)
- The child’s crying affected me deeply. (Created a mental impression)

Notice that in each instance where we used “affect” we were stating that something influenced something else or that something created a feeling, or a mental impression.

“Effect” can be a noun or a verb. As a verb, it means to produce, to bring about, or to cause. Spanish synonyms include efectuar and llevar a cabo. Here are some example of its usage as a verb.

- During his term as president he was able to effect many beneficial changes.
- He effected the force needed to move the organization forward.

“Effect,” used as a verb, is not very common in English, and can sound funny even when properly used. I personally would advise somebody that is just learning English to avoid using it as a verb. There are plenty of other words that are more commonly used that mean the same thing.

“Effect” when used as a noun means something that is produced, a result, a consequence, or a mental or emotional impression. It is used very frequently in English and the Spanish speaker should have no fear of using it. Spanish synonyms include efecto and impresión. Here are some examples of its use as a noun.

- The cut on his hand was the effect of getting it caught in the door. (Result)
- The boss’s sarcasm had a devastating effect on the worker. (Emotional impression)
- Hotter summers is one of the effects of global warming. (Consequence)

“Affect” can be used as a noun, but it is very rare, and is principally used in medicine or psychiatry. The person new to English can assume that he or she will never have occasion to use “affect” as a noun. “Affect,” when used as a verb, can also mean to feign or pretend (fingir in Spanish), but that is also a less common usage.

Me or I?

Do you know the difference between these two sentences?

She likes him more than me.
She likes him more than I.

Probably most English speakers wouldn’t be able to tell you the difference, but the two sentences mean completely different things. To show the difference, I’ll add the words that are not spoken, but that can be inferred from the case of the pronouns.

She likes him more than she likes me.
She likes him more than I like him.

How do you know that? In sentence 1, “him” and “me” are pronouns in the “objective case.” They must be objects in the sentence. In sentence 2, “I” is in the “subjective case” it cannot serve as an object.