Level Five
Lesson 59
using some and any
The words “some” and “any” are extremely useful as adjectives or pronouns when talking about a general amount–not a specific number.
- The children need some toys to play with. (adjective: some toys)
- We’re going to get some water. (adjective: some water)
- I have a frozen pizza in the freezer. Do you want some? (pronoun: some = frozen pizza)
- There isn’t any bread. (There’s no bread.)
- He doesn’t need any help. (He needs no help.)
some and any
59a. some as an adjective
Let’s begin with the word “some.” For some reason, English language students overlook this word, or they just forget that it is a good choice as an adjective before a noun, mostly because of the way it sounds. Compare the following sentences:
- I bought bananas.
- I bought some bananas.
- She needs information.
- She needs some information.
- We got help.
- We got some help.
In each of the sentences above, the addition of “some” before the noun makes an improvement to the way the sentence sounds. How is that? It simply sounds more conversational, more relaxed.
- She’s having coffee.
- She’s having some coffee.
Both sentences sound good, but adding “some” sounds natural.
- She needs to get sleep.
- She needs to get some sleep.
In this example, the second sentence sounds much better.
59b. some as a pronoun
When “some” is a pronoun, it represents a noun, singular or plural.
- Some of the guests arrived early.
- We didn’t have some of the ingredients.
- A: Do you have money?
- B: No, I have to get some. (some = some money)
- Any of those days will be good for us to begin. (The subject in this sentence is “any.”)
- Some of this can’t be fixed.
In each of the sentences above, the addition of “some” before the noun makes an improvement to the way the sentence sounds. How is that? It simply sounds more conversational, more relaxed.
- Paying off a credit card is a problem for some.
- Some of the best fish in the lake are found right here.
59c. any as an adjective
Use “any” for a general amount or for no amount when making questions or when the verb is negative. The word “any” may be used with count or noncount nouns.
- We don’t have any potatoes.
- We don’t have any milk.
- Do you have any questions?
- Does the website have any information?
- Mark doesn’t like any of the choices before him.
- Sheila didn’t get any sleep last night.
- This isn’t any fun.
- Are there any oranges in the basket?
- He didn’t get any sleep last night, so now he’s really tired.
- Are there any more oranges on the tree?
59d. any as a pronoun
The word “any” can function as a subject or an object when it is a pronoun.
- Are any of the people in the office able to answer my question? (The subject is “any.” The prepositional phrase, of the people, indicates if “any” is singular or plural. Here it’s plural: Are any…)
- She offered me some popcorn, but I said I didn’t want any. (any = popcorn)
- We need a shopping cart. Are there any available? (any = shopping carts)
- We didn’t have any of the ingredients. (This means there were none of the ingredients for the recipe. Zero. Nothing. Nada. Contrast this with the example above that uses “some” for ingredients.)
- Polar bears need ice in order to survive, but in some parts of the world, there isn’t any. (any = ice, any ice)
- A: I need to get some gas.
- B: I’m sorry. We sold out. We don’t have any. (any = gas)
Are you ready to take a quiz? Quiz #59 – some and any