less or fewer ?

　　舉個典型的例子：在美國超市里買東西，結(jié)帳時你可以選擇走普通通道或快速通道。快速通道上面必定有顯眼的標(biāo)志：For X items or less（購買不超過X件物品的顧客可使用此道）。到目前為止我還沒有看到任何一家超市用For X items or fewer。

　　被許多語言學(xué)家推薦的M erriam-Webster’s Concise Dictionary of English Usage 有專門的less/fewer 條目，里面確認(rèn)了這一現(xiàn)象：Here is the rule as it is usually encountered:fewer refers to number among things that are counted,and less refers to quantity or amount among things that are measured. This rule is simple enough and easy enough to follow. It has only one fault----it is not accurate for all usage.

　　（通常的原則是：fewer形容可數(shù)名詞，跟“數(shù)”掛鉤；less形容不可數(shù)名詞，跟“量”掛鉤。這個原則簡單易行，只有一個缺陷----它并不總能準(zhǔn)確描述所有的用法。）