You use some to refer to a quantity of something or to a number of people or things, when you are not statingthe quantity or number precisely.
Robin opened some champagne.
Heat a tablespoon of olive oil, a clove of garlic and some black pepper in a saucepan.
He went to fetch some books.
Some children refuse to eat at all and others overeat.
Some is also a pronoun.
Our apples are ripe. We're going out this morning with step-ladders to pick some.
2. determiner
You use some to emphasize that a quantity or number is fairly large. For example, if an activity takes some time, it takes quite a lot of time.
[emphasis]
The question of local government finance has been the subject of debate for someyears.
I have discussed this topic in some detail.
He remained silent for some time.
It took some effort to conceal her relief.
3. determiner
You use some to emphasize that a quantity or number is fairly small. For example, if somethinghappens to some extent, it happens a little.
[emphasis]
'Isn't there some chance that William might lead a normal life?' asked Jill.
All mothers share to some extent in the tension of a wedding.
Some fishing is still allowed, but limits have been imposed on the size of the catch.
4. quantifier
If you refer to some of the people or things in a group, you mean a few of them but not all of them. If you refer to some of a particular thing, you mean a part of it but not all of it.
Some of the people already in work will lose their jobs.
Remove the cover and spoon some of the sauce into a bowl.
I was with a completely new team, some of whom I knew, but many I did not.
Some of us are sensitive to smells, others find colours easier to remember.
Some is also a pronoun.
When the chicken is cooked I'll freeze some.
5. determiner
If you refer to some person or thing, you are referring to that person or thing but in a vague way, without stating precisely which person or thing you mean.
[vagueness]
If you are worried about some aspect of your child's health, call us.
He always thinks some guy is going to come along and fix his life.
6. adverb
You can use some in front of a number to indicate that it is approximate.
[vagueness]
I have kept birds for some 30 years.
He waited some 80 to 100 yards from the big pink villa.
The headquarters is some 30 miles due west.
7. adverb [ADVERB after verb]
Some is used to mean to a small extent or degree.
[US]
If Susanne is off somewhere, I'll kill time by looking around some.
On holiday in France we could ski some and relax.
8. determiner
You can use some in front of a noun in order to express your approval or disapproval of the person or thing you are mentioning.
[informal, feelings]
She lived to be ninety-nine years old and she'd raised eight kids. That was sometough woman!
'Some party!'—'Yep. One hell of a party.'
English Easy Learning GrammarDeterminersDeterminers are words that make the reference of nouns more specific. If I say ‘thiscar’ it is clear that I mean a particular car which is near me. If ... Read more
English Easy Learning GrammarIndefinite pronounsThe indefinite pronouns are used when you do not know or do not need to say preciselywho or what you are referring to. The noun phrase which they substitute ... Read more
English Easy Learning GrammarNoun phrases with several determinersMost noun phrases contain only one determiner or none at all, but if there are more,they follow a definite order. Determiners can be divided into four ... Read more
some in British English
(sʌm, unstressed səm)
determiner
1.
a.
(a) certain unknown or unspecified
some idiot drove into my car
some people never learn
b.
(as pronoun; functioning as sing or plural)
some can teach and others can't
2.
a.
an unknown or unspecified quantity or amount of
there's some rice on the table
he owns some horses
b.
(as pronoun; functioning as sing or plural)
we'll buy some
3.
a.
a considerable number or amount of
he lived some years afterwards
b.
a little
show him some respect
4. (usually stressed) informal
an impressive or remarkable
that was some game!
5.
a certain amount (more) (in the phrases some more and (informal) and then some)
6.
about; approximately
he owes me some thirty pounds
adverb
7. US not standard
to a certain degree or extent
I guess I like him some
Word origin
Old English sum; related to Old Norse sumr, Gothic sums, Old High German sum some, Sanskrit samá any, Greek hamē somehow
-some in British English1
suffix forming adjectives
characterized by; tending to
awesome
tiresome
Word origin
Old English -sum; related to Gothic -sama, German -sam
-some in British English2
suffix forming nouns
indicating a group of a specified number of members
threesome
Word origin
Old English sum, special use of some (determiner)
-some in British English3
(-səʊm)
combining form in countable noun
a body
chromosome
Word origin
from Greek sōma body
some in American English
(sʌm)
adjective
1.
being a certain one or ones not specified or known
open some evenings
2.
being of a certain unspecified (but often considerable) number, quantity, degree,etc.
to have some fear, married for some years
3.
about
some ten of them
4. US, Informal
remarkable, striking, etc.
it was some fight
pronoun
5.
certain ones not specified or known
some agree
6.
a certain indefinite or unspecified number, quantity, etc. as distinguished from the rest
take some
adverb
7.
approximately; about
some ten men
8. Informal
to some extent; somewhat
slept some
9. US, Informal
to a great extent or at a great rate
must run some to catch up
Idioms:
and then some
Word origin
ME som < OE sum, a certain one, akin to Goth sums < IE *som- > same
-some in American English1
(səm)
like, tending to, tending to be
toilsome, tiresome, lonesome
Word origin
ME -som < OE -sum, akin to some
-some in American English2
(səm)
a group of (a specified number of) members
threesome
Word origin
ME -sum < sum, som, some
-some in American English3
(soʊm)
1.
body
chromosome
2.
chromosome
monosome
Word origin
< Gr sōma, body: see soma1
Examples of 'some' in a sentence
some
Some felt guilty about surviving while others had died.
Times, Sunday Times (2008)
They will be if we learn some of the secrets of joy.
Christianity Today (2000)
In some ways he liked having this nice new aeroplane.
Len Deighton Bomber
Some people have received as many as eight slamming calls a day.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
Yet there will always be some things outside their control.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
This is the year that buyers finally get some good news.
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
Some of the detailing still needs improving.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
We set off for his house to see some samples.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
We can already see some areas for improvement.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
When you find some interest or activity you will have something to share with a partner.
The Sun (2009)
Try an hour on a grand prix horse some time.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
The majority of us just learn that some foods are more "fattening" than others.
Kowalski, Robert E The 8-Week Cholesterol Cure (1990)
Some people find this hard to accept.
Hambly, Dr Kenneth Banish Anxiety - how to stop worrying and take charge of your life (1991)
It was a case of doing anything just to get some money.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
See the website for more details and to get some free sample sachets.
The Sun (2015)
There are also some marvellously statuesque perennials for boggy soil.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
This is in fact already true of some of them.
Cockett, Richard Thinking the Unthinkable (1994)
Some outstanding school food is also sampled.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
They once saw him as one of their own but some would now like to see the back of him.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
Some of the details are galling.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
We've taken a bit of rain and there are some showers about but we are fine.
The Sun (2013)
In other languages
some
British English: some /sʌm; səm/ DETERMINER
You use some to talk about an amount of something.
Can I have some orange juice, please?
American English: some
Arabic: بَعْضُ
Brazilian Portuguese: algum
Chinese: 一些的
Croatian: nešto
Czech: trochu
Danish: nogle
Dutch: wat
European Spanish: unos
Finnish: joku
French: quelques
German: (irgend)ein
Greek: μερικός
Italian: un po'
Japanese: いくらかの
Korean: 어떤
Norwegian: litt av en
Polish: jakieś
European Portuguese: algum
Romanian: niște
Russian: некоторый
Latin American Spanish: unos
Swedish: ganska
Thai: เล็กน้อย
Turkish: bazı
Ukrainian: трохи
Vietnamese: một chút
British English: some /sʌm; səm/ PRONOUN
Some means a quantity of something or a number of people or things.
The apples are ripe and we are going to pick some.
American English: some
Arabic: بَعْضُ
Brazilian Portuguese: alguns
Chinese: 有些
Croatian: nešto
Czech: nějaký
Danish: nogle
Dutch: een aantal
European Spanish: algunos
Finnish: jotkut
French: certains
German: einige
Greek: κάποιοι
Italian: alcuni
Japanese: いくらか
Korean: 약간
Norwegian: noen
Polish: kilku
European Portuguese: alguns
Romanian: câțiva
Russian: кое-кто
Latin American Spanish: algunos
Swedish: några
Thai: บางส่วน
Turkish: bazı
Ukrainian: певна кількість
Vietnamese: một vài người
All related terms of 'some'
go some
to do or achieve quite a lot
some day
Some day means at a date in the future that is unknown or that has not yet been decided.
some more
You can use some more to indicate that something continues to happen for a further period of time.
some little
rather extensive ; fairly full
and then some
and more than that
for some reason
If you say that something happened or is true for some reason , you mean that you know it happened or is true, but you do not know why.
take some beating
to be difficult to improve upon
not a hope
used ironically to express little confidence that expectations will be fulfilled
cut someone some slack
to make things slightly easier for someone than you normally would, because of their special circumstances or situation
some hope/not a hope
If you say ' Some hope ', or ' Not a hope ', you think there is no possibility that something will happen , although you may want it to happen.
sth will take some beating
If you say that something will take some beating , you mean that it is very good and it is unlikely that anything better will be done or made.
in large measure in some measure
If something is true in some measure or in large measure , it is partly or mostly true.
to a large extent to some/a certain extent(etc)
You use expressions such as to a large extent , to some extent , or to a certain extent in order to indicate that something is partly true , but not entirely true.
to some/a certain degree (etc)
You use expressions such as to some degree , to a large degree , or to a certain degree in order to indicate that something is partly true , but not entirely true.
get any good of
to handle to good effect
a long way from/some way from
If you say that something is a long way from being true , you are emphasizing that it is definitely not true.
one-day
One day or some day or one of these days means at some time in the future .
give a person five
to greet or congratulate someone by slapping raised hands
Chinese translation of 'some'
some
adj
(= a little, a few) 一些 (yīxiē)
some milk/books一些牛奶/书(書) (yīxiē niúnǎi/shū)
would you like some wine?你来(來)点(點)葡萄酒吗(嗎)？ (nǐ lái diǎn pútáojiǔ ma?)
we've got some time but not much我们(們)还(還)有些时(時)间(間)，但不太多了 (wǒmen hái yǒu xiē shíjiān, dàn bù tài duō le)
there must be some steps we can take我们(們)一定能采(採)取些什么(麼)措施 (wǒmen yīdìng néng cǎiqǔ xiē shénme cuòshī)
(= certain, in contrasts) 某些 (mǒuxiē)
some people say that ... 有些人说(說) ... (yǒuxiē rén shuō ... )
some people hate fish, while others love it有些人讨(討)厌(厭)鱼(魚)，而有些人喜欢(歡) (yǒuxiē rén tǎoyàn yú, ér yǒuxiē rén xǐhuan)
(unspecified)
some (or other)某一 (mǒuyī)
he was asking for some book (or other)他要某本书(書) (tā yào mǒu běn shū)
some woman was asking for you有位女士找你 (yǒu wèi nǚshì zhǎo nǐ)
some day某天 (mǒu tiān)
we'll meet again some day有一天我们(們)会(會)再见(見)面的 (yǒu yī tiān wǒmen huì zài jiànmiàn de)
shall we meet some day next week?我们(們)在下个(個)星期的某天见(見)面好吗(嗎)？ (wǒmen zài xià gè xīngqī de mǒu tiān jiànmiàn hǎo ma?)
(= considerable) 相当(當)的 (xiāngdāng de)
(inf, emphatic) 了不得的 (liǎobudé de)
that was some party!那个(個)聚会(會)好棒！ (Nàge jùhuì hǎo bàng!)
pron
(= a certain amount, certain number) 一些 (yīxiē)
I've got some我有一些 (wǒ yǒu yīxiē)
there was/were some left还(還)剩下一些 (hái shèngxià yīxiē)
some of it/them它的一部分/他们(們)中的一些 (tā de yī bùfen/tāmen zhōng de yīxiē)
some of the play was good戏(戲)剧(劇)中的某些部分是好的 (xìjù zhōng de mǒuxiē bùfen shì hǎo de)
could I have some of that cheese?给(給)我点(點)儿(兒)那种(種)奶酪好吗(嗎)？ (gěi wǒ diǎnr nà zhǒng nǎilào hǎo ma?)
I've read some of the book那本书(書)我读(讀)了一些 (nà běn shū wǒ dúle yīxiē)
adv
(= approximately)
some 10 people大约(約)10人 (dàyuē shí rén)
(US, = to a degree) 一点(點)儿(兒) (yīdiǎnr)
we can walk some我们(們)可以走一走 (wǒmen kěyǐ zǒu yī zǒu)
All related terms of 'some'
some day
某天 mǒu tiān
I've got some
我有一些 wǒ yǒu yīxiē
in some ways
在某些方面 zài mǒu xiē fāngmiàn
some 10 people
大约(約)10人 dàyuē shí rén
some milk/books
一些牛奶/书(書) yīxiē niúnǎi/shū
to some extent
在某种(種)程度上 zài mǒu zhǒng chéngdù shang
some of it/them
它的一部分/他们(們)中的一些 tā de yī bùfen/tāmen zhōng de yīxiē
某些/每个(個)/没(沒)有/任何地方 mǒuxiē/měigè/méiyǒu/rènhé dìfang [ 个(個) gè ] ⇒ The poor guy obviously didn't have any place to go. → 那个可怜的家伙显然没有任何地方可去。 Nàge kělián de jiāhuo xiǎnrán méiyǒu rènhé dìfang kě qù.
there was/were some left
还(還)剩下一些 hái shèngxià yīxiē
to give sth some thought
琢磨某事 zuómo mǒushì
I've read some of the book
那本书(書)我读(讀)了一些 nà běn shū wǒ dúle yīxiē
some of the play was good
戏(戲)剧(劇)中的某些部分是好的 xìjù zhōng de mǒuxiē bùfen shì hǎo de