some

A1 Topic:Grammar & Function Words

Also spelled orae

US /sʌm/ UK /sʌm/ See IPA manual

Homophones

sum /ˈsʌm/

Minimal pairs

Sounds like thumb /θ/ vs /s/ Sounds like psalm /ʌ/ vs /ɑ/

Freq #94

Meanings

1

det
An unspecified amount of something you cannot count.

Can I have some water, please?
2

det
An unspecified number of countable things.

I bought some apples at the market.
3

pron
A certain number or amount, but not all.

Some enjoy spicy food, while others prefer it milder.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

3 pron · a certain number or amount,... a few

Opposites

many much no none

Word family

Derived forms othersomesomebody somedaysomedayssomedeal somehow someone someplacesomeponysomething sometime sometimes

Related forms quantifier

Appears in

Phrases (2)

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Tongue twisters (1)

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Betty Botter
Betty Botter bought some butter. “But,” she said, “this butter’s bitter; If I put it in my batter, It will make my batter bitter; But a bit of better butter Will but make my batter better.” So she bought a bit of butter Better than the bitter butter, And made her bitter batter better. So it was better Betty Botter Bought a bit of better butter.

Compare the vowels in bit, better, batter and butter while keeping /b/ steady. Use your normal accent for the middle consonant of Betty, ...

Etymology

From Middle English som, sum, from Old English sum (“some, a certain one”), from Proto-West Germanic *sum, from Proto-Germanic *sumaz (“some, a certain one”), from Proto-Indo-European *sem- (“one, whole”). Cognate Scots sum, some (“some”), North Frisian som, sam, säm (“some”), West Frisian sommige, somlike (“some”), dialectal Dutch som, saom (“some”), standard Dutch sommige (“some”), Low German somige (“some”), German dialectal summige (“some”), Danish somme (“some”), Swedish somlig (“some”), Norwegian sum, som (“some”), Icelandic sumur (“some”), Gothic 𐍃𐌿𐌼𐍃 (sums, “one, someone”). More at sam…

*sem- Proto-Indo-European som Middle English sum Old English *sum Proto-West Germanic *sumaz Proto-Germanic

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Topics

Grammar & Function Words

External links

# some

**Type:** Word
**Level:** A1
**Part of speech:** det, pron
**IPA (US):** /sʌm/
**IPA (UK):** /sʌm/
**Frequency rank:** 94

## Meanings
1. An unspecified amount of something you cannot count.
2. An unspecified number of countable things.
3. A certain number or amount, but not all.

## Examples
- Can I have some water, please?
- I bought some apples at the market.
- Some enjoy spicy food, while others prefer it milder.

## Antonyms
- many
- much
- no
- none

## Derived Forms
- othersome
- somebody
- someday
- somedays
- somedeal
- somehow
- someone
- someplace
- somepony
- something
- sometime
- sometimes

## Related Forms
- quantifier

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: *sem-
- Root: som
- Root: sum
- Root: *sum
- Root: *sumaz

## Etymology
From Middle English som, sum, from Old English sum (“some, a certain one”), from Proto-West Germanic *sum, from Proto-Germanic *sumaz (“some, a certain one”), from Proto-Indo-European *sem- (“one, whole”). Cognate Scots sum, some (“some”), North Frisian som, sam, säm (“some”), West Frisian sommige, somlike (“some”), dialectal Dutch som, saom (“some”), standard Dutch sommige (“some”), Low German somige (“some”), German dialectal summige (“some”), Danish somme (“some”), Swedish somlig (“some”), Norwegian sum, som (“some”), Icelandic sumur (“some”), Gothic 𐍃𐌿𐌼𐍃 (sums, “one, someone”). More at sam…

## AI Etymology
Some is from Middle English som, sum, from Old English sum (“some, a certain one”), from Proto-West Germanic *sum, from Proto-Germanic *sumaz (“some, a certain one”), from Proto-Indo-European *sem- (“one, whole”). Cognate Scots sum, some (“some”), North Frisian som, sam, säm (“some”), West Frisian sommige, somlike (“some”), dialectal Dutch som, saom (“some”), standard Dutch sommige (“some”), Low German somige (“some”), German dialectal summige (“some”), Danish somme (“some”), Swedish somlig (“some”), Norwegian sum, som (“some”), Icelandic sumur (“some”), Gothic 𐍃𐌿𐌼𐍃 (sums, “one, someone”). Important forms in the word's history include Proto-Indo-European *sem-, Middle English som, Old English sum, Proto-West Germanic *sum, Proto-Germanic *sumaz. In current use it includes senses such as An unspecified amount of something you cannot count and An unspecified number of countable things.

## Topics
- Grammar & Function Words

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