I always thought these categories were clear.
- How many is a couple? Two.
- How many is a few? Three. Maybe four.
- A handful is five. Exactly.
- Several is seven. Maybe six or eight.
- A bunch is anywhere from 5-15.
- Usually means a bit more than you might expect.
It turns out there’s a lot of contention about some of them. Some people even argue about a “couple”. Some people are dumb.
Update: Three years later, XKCD tackles the issue.
By “as usual” do you mean that I’m wrong more than 50% of the time, or that I merely exceed your expectations? 🙂
Matt – It started with exactly three points. Then I felt compelled to keep going. But you have a good point. I added quotes to few to make it appear ironic or something.
Oren – If you had four drinks, I would not say that is a couple. Certainly it would more accurate to say a few.
Sidney – I don’t know what to say back except for that you’re wrong. As usual. 🙂
Am I the only one who noticed that you contradicted yourself here by defining a “few” as “Three. Maybe four”, and yet the title of the post is “A Few Thoughts” and you actually have six bullet points?
And even if you wanted to argue that the bullets are not “thoughts” but rather “definitions”, then I really see only one overall thought, that there is contention over the definitions.
Either way, you’ve broken your own strict definition of a “few”. Confusing, isn’t it? 😉
I also disagree about “couple.” Actually, I guess a mean “a couple.” For example, I had a couple of drinks last night. Could mean anywhere from 2-4.
Handful definitely does not mean exactly five- i think it’s closer to a bunch.
Are you letting your hair grow back in, or are you keeping your guest pass to the bald brotherhood?
Disagree with “several” of these:
Few = Three. I try not to use this term for anything other than this
Handful /= 5. A handful of what? What if it is sand? Marbles? Peanuts? Five peanuts would hardly make the hand “full” now, would it?
Several = more than 3, but otherwise poorly defined. Fairly subjective.
Bunch: I tend not to think of this as being something that is used to define any specific quantity. I think of it in the sense of grouping related things together. E.g. “You had a bunch of drinks in Las Vegas”…..incidentally, this sentence would also work for your definition of “bunch.”
Usually = more than 50%. In your case, what if your expectation is that a certain event were to happen 20% of the time? If the event happens 21% of the time–exceeding your expectation–I don’t think the term “usually” makes sense.