Which should you use, only a few or only few? The determiner few is used for emphasizing how small the number of people or things is. Since only is used for emphasizing the smallness of a number, only is not used before few.
| Incorrect: |
Teachers turned out for duty yesterday, but only few students attended classes.
|
| Correct: |
Teachers turned out for duty yesterday, but only a few students attended classes.
|
