The words any and some in English are quantifiers: they give an idea of how many or how much of something, without giving an exact amount. Here is the basic difference between the two:
any | more than 0 (or none) |
some | more than 1 (or none) and less than a lot |
In this post we will be looking at the grammar of any and some and how to use them in different types of sentences. We’ll also look at a few other meanings that these words can have.
Do you have any questions about these words? I’m sure you’ll find some answers in this post. Let’s go!
Both any and some can be used before a noun, by themselves (as a pronoun), or before a prepositional phraseNo definition set for prepositional phraseLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. beginning with of.
any | some | |
|---|---|---|
before a nounNo definition set for nounLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. | I don’t want any bread. | I want some bread. |
by themselves (as pronounsNo definition set for pronounsLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum.) | I don’t want any. | I want some. |
before of | I don’t want any of the bread. | I want some of the bread. |
Let’s look at some more details:
Both any and some can be used before count nounsNo definition set for count nounsLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. or mass nounsNo definition set for mass nounsLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum.:
✅ any books
✅ any sugar
✅ some books
✅ some sugar
Both any and some are usually used with pluralNo definition set for pluralLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. count nouns:
I don’t have any books.
I have some books.
But you can sometimes use them with singularNo definition set for singularLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. count nouns as well:
Do you have any idea where classroom 205 is?
Some customer left her credit card at the counter.
You can learn more about when to use any and some with singular count nouns below.
Because any and some are quantifiersNo definition set for quantifiersLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum., they come before all the other words that describe a noun:
✅ some big black bugs
✅ any big black bugs
Any and some are never used before or after determinersNo definition set for determinersLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. (articlesNo definition set for articlesLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum., possessive adjectivesNo definition set for possessive adjectivesLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum., demonstrativeNo definition set for demonstrativeLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. words, or some other quantifiers)
❌ some my friends
❌ any the friends
❌ my some friends
❌ the any friends
When you use any and some before of, the noun that follows the prepositionNo definition set for prepositionLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. must have a definite article (the), a demonstrative adjective (that, this, these, those), or a possessive adjective (my, our, your, their, etc).
✅ some of the bread
✅ any of that bread
✅ some of these toys
✅ any of my toys
So far it’s very easy! Are you ready for the tricky part?
We use any and some differently, depending on whether you are making a positive statement, a negative statement, or a question.
The words any and some are used to form the following English words:
anyone, anybody, anything, anywhere, anytime
someone, somebody, something, somewhere, sometime
The rules below will also help you decide when to use words that start with some and any as well!
In positive statements and commands, we often use some but we do not use any. Here are some examples:
✅ Patricia saw some birds on her walk this morning.
❌ Patricia saw any birds on her walk this morning.
✅ Put some butter on my pancakes!
❌ Put any butter on my pancakes!
✅ Some of the kids got food on the floor.
❌ Any of the kids got food on the floor.
There are some cases where you can use any in a positive sentence, but when you use any in a positive sentence it has a different meaning. For example:
My daughter will eat any flavor of ice cream.
Have a look at the section on the “choice from a set” meaning of any to learn more!
You can use both any and some in negative statements, but there are some cases where you cannot use any or cannot use some.
Before the word not, use some but not any:
✅ Some kids don't like egg salad.
❌ Any kids don't like egg salad.
✅ Some of the dogs are not well-behaved.
❌ Any of the dogs are not well-behaved.
After the word not, use any but not some:
❌ I don’t have some money.
✅ I don’t have any money.
❌ Lucy didn’t eat some eggs for breakfast.
✅ Lucy didn’t eat any eggs for breakfast.
After not, you will also useany instead of no or none:
❌ I don’t have no money.
✅ I don’t have any money.
❌ Leslie didn’t eat none of the cookies.
✅ Leslie didn’t eat any of the cookies.
This is because, in English, we usually do not use “double negatives.” Because not (or -n't) is a negative word, we cannot also use no and none, so instead we use any.
The same rule applies to negative words like nothing or never: use some before the negative word and any after the negative word.
Some people have never seen any of my favorite movies.
Nobody has any money.
I like pizza without any sauce.
Paul has never seen any of my favorite movies.
Neither Lina nor Paul wanted any cake.
You can use some after a negative word if it has the “choice from a set” which we’ll discuss below, but this is rare. It is better to rephrase the sentence:
I know he doesn’t like some kind of cereal, but I don’t remember which kind.
Instead say:
I know that there is some kind of cereal that he doesn’t like, but I don’t remember which kind.
You can use both any and some in a question. But let’s look at the small differences in their meanings.
Are there any ducks on the pond? | Is there at least one duck on the pond? (a more common question) |
Are there some ducks on the pond? | Is there a group of ducks on the pond? (an unusual question) |
Do you see the difference? Let’s look at another example. Both of the questions above are good ways to ask someone if they want to eat cake.
Do you want any cake? | Do you want to eat cake? |
Do you want some cake? | Do you want a serving of cake? |
The difference is very small! Usually you will use Do you want any? with someone who doesn’t look like they want something and Do you want some? with someone who looks like they are waiting for you to offer it.
The words some and any usually have the meanings we’ve discussed above. However, there are some cases where their meaning is different. These are more advanced uses of some and any in English.
You can use some and any to say that a noun was chosen from a set of similar nouns. Here is the difference.
any + noun
some + noun
Usually, you will use a singular count noun with these meanings of some and any.
She likes any flavor of ice cream.
I know she wanted me to buy some flavor of ice cream but I don’t remember which one.
But sometimes you can use a plural noun with these meanings too:
I know she eats some flavors of ice cream, but I don’t remember which ones.
You will often hear the phrase or other after the noun when you use some this way. For example:
I’m sure you’ll find the answer in some grammar book or other.
As we mentioned above, the “choice from a set” meanings of any and some can be used freely in positive and negative sentences. They don’t follow the normal rules for any and some!
✅ I eat anything.
✅ He doesn’t eat something, but I don’t remember what it is…
There are a few instances that any is used as an adverbNo definition set for adverbLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum.:
You had a bad cold last week. Do you feel any better?
Things are going bad for David. I don’t think things could go any worse!
This adverb use of any is usually found before a comparative adjective (e.g. better / worse) and is pretty common. This is also where we get the adverb anymore which usually means “now.”
However, you cannot use some in the same way!
We’ve talked a lot about how to use some and any in this post! Now let’s talk about a few basic ideas you should remember:
Some and any can be used alone, before a noun, or before an of-phrase.
Usually we use some and not any in positive sentences.
Usually we use any and not some in negative sentences (except for the subject).
We can use both any and some in questions, but there is a slight difference in meaning.
Both any and some have a few other meanings which can sometimes break these rules.
Also remember that you can follow these same rules for using indefinite pronouns like someone or anyone!
Do you have a better understanding of some and any? Why not check out the activities I’ve prepared that will help you to practice these two words in sentences and questions? Also, if you want to learn more about quantifiers, why not read our post on quantifiers in English and how they are used?
