Hi,
We’ve run out of coffee and there’s hardly any tea left. I can’t say “… and there’s hardly [s]none[/s] tea left” because “tea” is uncountable, can I?
Thanks in advance!
To me, ‘hardly any’ is the usual expression whether it is countable or uncountable.
Alternatively, you can consider:
… there is little tea left.
… there is very little tea left.
… there is not any tea left.
… there is no tea left.
The meaning will slightly change, though.
Is “hardly none” ever good English? I think not.
Yes, you are right. They are a combination of two negatives (a semi negator and a full negator) making the resultant meaning positive, which the poster, I think, may not have intended. But he can say ‘none of the tea is left’.
I don’t think you could say that, but for the reason different from which you mentioned.
As ‘none’—“ not one of a group of people, or things or no amount of something”[no matter countable or not];
and’ hardly’—“almost not, never, or none. used before words such as ‘ever’, ‘any’, ‘anyone’, or ‘anything’ to mean ‘almost never’, ‘almost none’, ‘almost no one’ etc”, you could say:” hardly any tea left” (=almost none) or “none of tea left” (= not any).
‘Is there any more milk?’ ‘No, none at all.’
While I was trying to post it, almost everything became clear. Just that:” hardly any tea left” and “none of tea left” describe more and less optimistic situations respectively…
Yes, Eugene, I also said he could use: 'none of (the) tea is left. Nevertheless, as Cristina points out, ‘hardly none’ is not good English and not acceptable. (I’m doubtful, however, about the use of ‘the’ unless he actually means some specific tea)
That can’t be right.
Hi all,
Thanks for your attention. 