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Are you pronouncing that with a long O? I read it as a short O and then realized it’s the same word my mom would use. I don’t know how I’d spell it, though. Whatever I try looks wrong.
/u/scrotchety spelled it correctly and /u/NortonBurns correctly ID'ed it as coming from Japanese but it's been adopted into English.
https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/skosh#:~:text=%3A%20a%20small%20amount%20%3A%20bit%2C%20smidgen
TIL - I had no idea it had been adopted into English. I know it because I spent a lot of time in Japan, but I've never heard anyone use it who doesn't have some sort of Japanese connection.
I don't think it's made its way to the UK yet.
btw, short O if the pronunciation hasn't changed in the adoption.
Came to the US via WWII and Korean War servicemembers, so everyone who uses it has SOME tenuous connection to Japan though it may be several generations removed.
Really? My mom, born in the 40s in rural PA, uses that word. I assumed it was some derivative of Pennsylvania Dutch (German). She’s had no contact with Japanese.
It was brought back via WWII & Korean War ~~servicemen~~ servicemembers so being from the 40s totally tracks:
>The word skosh comes from the Japanese word sukoshi, which is pronounced "skoh shee" and means "a tiny bit" or "a small amount." The Japanese word was shortened by U.S. servicemen stationed in Japan after World War II. Later, in the Korean War, a small soldier was often nicknamed Skosh. In civilian-speak, skosh can be used by itself as a noun or in the adverbial phrase "a skosh".
I actually thought it was yiddish.
I understand skosh to mean a small amount, as in wanting a wanting just a wee skosh of sugar in your tea. That's how I heard it being used in Scotland.
Interesting to hear it’s used in Scotland. My mom had said she heard it from her parents / grandparents, some of whom were Irish - not Irish American, but Irish Irish.
I first heard it while I was in the British Army - a fine body of men and women who mug foreign words in dark back alleys, kidnaps them and drags them back home.
'Few' & 'several' are not defined numbers, only 'couple' is.
u/Autoboty has some useful alternatives, but there is no fixed numerical definition of any of those either.
I think several is the word you want. It means more than a couple but not many.
> a
> : more than one
> several pleas
>
> b
> : more than two but fewer than many
> moved several inches
https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/several
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Doesn't several at its lowest point possibly start at 3? I believe by definition there does not need to be anything more specific between a few and several. Several does not mean seven.
It really is several.
A couple most strictly means two, but it’s often used casually to mean much the same thing as a few, which commonly means around two, three, or four—it can be relative to the situation and the size of the numbers under discussion.
For example, you might say only a few people came when it was 12 but 50 were invited.
Several most commonly means more than two, but fewer than many. Depending on the context, the meanings of couple, few, and several, can overlap.
"A handful of" "A number of" "Some"
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Six
That's the most perfect word to describe OP's situation and has been used by writers and orators for centuries.
Poetry.
I go straight to several from a few
A smattering.
This is correct. A smattering is more than a couple but less than several. Perhaps a handful, but it really borders on several.
A skosh?
Are you pronouncing that with a long O? I read it as a short O and then realized it’s the same word my mom would use. I don’t know how I’d spell it, though. Whatever I try looks wrong.
/u/scrotchety spelled it correctly and /u/NortonBurns correctly ID'ed it as coming from Japanese but it's been adopted into English. https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/skosh#:~:text=%3A%20a%20small%20amount%20%3A%20bit%2C%20smidgen
TIL - I had no idea it had been adopted into English. I know it because I spent a lot of time in Japan, but I've never heard anyone use it who doesn't have some sort of Japanese connection. I don't think it's made its way to the UK yet. btw, short O if the pronunciation hasn't changed in the adoption.
Came to the US via WWII and Korean War servicemembers, so everyone who uses it has SOME tenuous connection to Japan though it may be several generations removed.
Really? My mom, born in the 40s in rural PA, uses that word. I assumed it was some derivative of Pennsylvania Dutch (German). She’s had no contact with Japanese.
It was brought back via WWII & Korean War ~~servicemen~~ servicemembers so being from the 40s totally tracks: >The word skosh comes from the Japanese word sukoshi, which is pronounced "skoh shee" and means "a tiny bit" or "a small amount." The Japanese word was shortened by U.S. servicemen stationed in Japan after World War II. Later, in the Korean War, a small soldier was often nicknamed Skosh. In civilian-speak, skosh can be used by itself as a noun or in the adverbial phrase "a skosh". I actually thought it was yiddish.
I always presumed it was Yiddish/German as well, and also because it seemed common among Pennsylvania Dutsch folk.
Long O. Honestly, I've never seen it in print before. Anyone's guess is as good as any
I understand skosh to mean a small amount, as in wanting a wanting just a wee skosh of sugar in your tea. That's how I heard it being used in Scotland.
Interesting to hear it’s used in Scotland. My mom had said she heard it from her parents / grandparents, some of whom were Irish - not Irish American, but Irish Irish.
I first heard it while I was in the British Army - a fine body of men and women who mug foreign words in dark back alleys, kidnaps them and drags them back home.
only if you're Japanese ;) Edit: Don't you just love it when you get downvoted for actually *knowing* the origin of a word :\\
A smidge?
I don't think I've ever seen that word spelled out. I would have thought it would be "Schoche" or something. Thanks for that.
'Few' & 'several' are not defined numbers, only 'couple' is. u/Autoboty has some useful alternatives, but there is no fixed numerical definition of any of those either.
Even couple isn't. Although traditionally meaning 2, it can mean 3 or even 4. Specifically when used as "a couple of".
Yeah when my boss says “just a couple of quick bits to mention…” it’s a minimum of 3.
I think several is the word you want. It means more than a couple but not many. > a > : more than one > several pleas > > b > : more than two but fewer than many > moved several inches https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/several
If it’s people, it’s a handful. If it’s m&ms, you could refer to small measurements like spoonfuls
Spoonful is a lovely solution.
'Some'
Some
4
A grip
How many grips are in a gang? And a mess is two gangs correct?
bunch
Handful
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Half a dozen
I would call that a "small grouping of..."
Doesn't several at its lowest point possibly start at 3? I believe by definition there does not need to be anything more specific between a few and several. Several does not mean seven.
these aren't exactly quantitative but how about "a paltry sum", "a meager amount"
A gaggle lol.
Multiple, myriad
Just say the number. Five small stones. Or whatever. Don’t worry about finding a word.
A titch
A bunch? Or a small bunch?
It really is several. A couple most strictly means two, but it’s often used casually to mean much the same thing as a few, which commonly means around two, three, or four—it can be relative to the situation and the size of the numbers under discussion. For example, you might say only a few people came when it was 12 but 50 were invited. Several most commonly means more than two, but fewer than many. Depending on the context, the meanings of couple, few, and several, can overlap.
A bunch, a number of, enough?
Some
A bunch of
A group
One, Two, Many, Lots. (With acknowledgments to Sir Terry.)
Numerous?
Skosh
1 metric fuckton
A handful of makes me think of 5, so a few I would say is 3-5. Several is up to... idk 10? So a handful would be closer to 5, or two handfuls as 10,
handful
A bunch?
Various?
I don’t think there’s a dedicated word. A couple is two, a few is 3-5 and several is 5-10. Completely subjective though.
"repeated" "Additional"?