The words that trick most test-takers — decoded
Try these first, then watch the video below.
"Not all animals are cute."
Which of the following can we 100% support?
"Not all" = some are not = at least one is not. We know at least one animal is not cute. We have no idea whether most are cute or not — "not all" tells us nothing about the majority.
"Few vegetables are tasty."
Which of the following can we 100% support?
"Few" = some are AND most are not. "Few vegetables are tasty" means some vegetables are tasty, but most are not. Two pieces of information in one word.
"Not every restaurant on this street is expensive."
Which of the following can we 100% support?
"Not every" = not all = at least one is not. At least one restaurant is not expensive. (B) goes way too far — "not every" does not mean "none."
"Few movies this year were worth watching."
Which of the following can we 100% support?
"Few" = some are AND most are not. Some movies were worth watching. (B) goes too far — "few" guarantees that at least some were, so "no movies" is wrong.
Video 1: Not All, Few — coming soon
Coming soon.
Lesson + Video coming soon
Reference sheet for advanced translation words. Bookmark this page and come back to it while practicing.
| Few | Some are AND most are not (two claims in one) |
| Not all / Not every / Not always | = Some are not (at least one is not) |
| At most | Upper bound — could be zero |
| Coming soon |
| Coming soon |