Less Vs. Fewer

While we are on the topic of English, I thought I would bring up another biggie. If you don’t hate me by now, you will after I write either this post or my next (and hopefully last) grammar correction post. I think we are all in agreement that nobody likes having their grammar corrected. I bet many people take it as a personal insult, no matter how many times they tell you that they are grateful that you just “corrected” them.

The funny thing about this whole grammar topic is that I really only know a few rules and they aren’t even real rules. I am sure there is some big, thick book out there that contains the official rules that we are all supposed to abide by, but we most likely wouldn’t be able to understand that. All you guys out there who are familiar with the real deal are rolling your eyes at me. Hey, at least I try.

Let’s get down to business.

The reason I bring this post up is because I just noticed the lead story on Yahoo!. It goes like this: Get ready for wild weather – The return of El Niño conditions could lead to dramatic storms through the winter. » Less fish, more rain.

Okay, there are two problems with this. The overriding issue is that whoever wrote this is in the writing business. If you are in the writing business, I would make a wild guess that you know how to write. The next problem is the grammar in the story description, “Less fish, more rain.” It should be “Fewer fish, more rain.”

It’s funny, because while reading the actual story, I noticed this line: “The warming of the ocean can also lead to a reduction in the seafood catch off the West Coast, and fewer fish can also impact food sources for several types of birds and marine mammals.” Hey, they got it right there, but not on the homepage. Weird.

So, what’s the rule? I was always taught that if you can count it, it’s fewer. If you can’t, it’s less. Here are some examples:

– I have fewer brain cells than…
– You have less body mass than…
– You have fewer hairs than…
– I have less hair than…

Oh yeah, you know all those signs at the checkout counters in supermarkets that say, “10 items or less?” Well, they are wrong. The wrong person made those signs and had them printed them up. They should have had them proofread. Oh well. I guess our nation’s youth will just continue to have “10 items or less” seared into their minds.

Here is a good website that explains the “Less vs. fewer” rule better than I did.