# Nhiều / ít: many / few in Vietnamese (A1)

> Nhiều (many, a lot of) and ít (few, not much) go before the noun, like a number: nhiều người (a lot of people), ít tiền (not much money).

Source: https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/nhieu-it/ · Updated 2026-11-09

**many / few**

Pattern: `nhiều / ít + [noun]`

Level: A1 (our estimate) · Register: everyday

Typed without accents: nhieu, it

Variants:

- thiếu
- thừa
- đầy
- đông / vắng (crowded / quiet)

*Nhiều* (many, a lot of) and *ít* (few, not much) go before the noun, like a number: *nhiều người* (a lot of people), *ít tiền* (not much money). Unlike a number, they usually need no classifier: *nhiều bạn* (lots of friends), though one is fine too: *nhiều cuốn sách*.

English has "many" for things you count and "much" for things you don't. Vietnamese uses *nhiều* for both, and *ít* for both "few" and "little": *nhiều xe* (a lot of motorbikes), *nhiều nước* (a lot of water). Bare *ít* leans to "not much"; for a friendly "a little, some", say *một ít* or *một chút*: *Cho em một ít nước.* Can I have a little water?

They often come after *có*: *Ở đây có nhiều quán ăn ngon.* There are lots of good places to eat here. In speech the *có* is often dropped: *Sài Gòn nhiều xe máy quá!*

For a place that's crowded or empty, with people or with traffic, Vietnamese uses *đông* (crowded) and *vắng* (quiet): *Chợ đông quá.* The market is packed. *Thiếu* (short of) and *thừa* (more than needed) go before a noun in the same way: *thiếu tiền* (short of money).

After a verb, *nhiều* and *ít* say how much you do it instead: *ăn nhiều* (eat a lot).

## A common mistake

✗ Ở đây có người nhiều.

✓ Ở đây có nhiều người.

Inside the noun phrase, *nhiều* and *ít* go before the noun, like a number. (You'll also hear them after the noun as the comment on it: *Ở đây người nhiều quá.* There are so many people here.)

## Examples

- Sài Gòn nhiều xe máy quá! — Saigon has so many motorbikes!
- Quận Một có nhiều quán cà phê đẹp. — District 1 has lots of nice cafés.
- Em có ít bạn ở đây. — I don't have many friends here.
- Cuối tháng em ít tiền lắm. — I don't have much money at the end of the month.
- Hôm nay chợ đông quá. — The market is so crowded today.

## Words in this pattern

- [ít](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/words/it-few/#s_it_few): few
- [nhiều](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/words/nhieu-many/#lx_nhieu): many

## Compare

- [Counting things: number + classifier + noun (hai con chó)](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/num-clf-noun/): counting with a classifier
- [A lot, a little: verb + nhiều / ít](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/nhieu-it-after-verb/): a lot / little (how much you do)

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