grammatical number - Many more vs much more / many fewer vs much fewer


This year there were:



  • many more people

  • much more people


Alternatively:



  • many fewer people

  • much fewer people


Which is considered better English?



Answer



Both much and many can be used, but which is appropriate depends on whether the noun they're referring to is countable or not.


With countable nouns, use many more or many fewer:



I had many more bananas than Tom. I had many fewer nickels than Alice.



With uncountable nouns, use much more or much less



How much more fiber does a banana have than an apple? How much less water does this process use?



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