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Casiopea
( English teacher ) |
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a lot of and
lots of , which carry the
same basic meaning: a great deal of, are colloquial (i.e., informal)
but nonetheless Standard and acceptable.
lots of is considered more
informal than lots of.
There's no rule on usage: Both a
lot of and lots of
are used with plural count nouns and non-count nouns, like this,
Plural Count Noun
There are a lot of books
in your bag. (OK)
There are lots of books
in you bag. (OK)
Non-Count Noun
There is a lot of milk left
in your glass. (OK)
There is lots of milk
left in your glass. (OK)
In terms of grammar, the verb agrees in number with the noun: if the
noun is plural then the verb is plural,
A lot of books were
left on the table.
Lots of books were
left on the table.
if the noun is not plural, then the verb is not plural,
A lot of milk was
left on the table.
Lots of milk was
left on the table.
In academic writing, the more formal 'a great deal of' or 'many',
with plural count nouns, and 'a great deal of' or 'much', with
non-count nouns are used:
Plural Count Noun
There are a great deal of
books in your bag.
A great deal of books
are in your bag.
Non-Count Noun
There is a great deal of
milk left in your glass.
A great deal of milk
is left in your glass.
In terms of meaning, speakers tend not to make a distinction between
a lot of and
lots of; both refer to
a great quantity. But, for
some speakers, lots of tends
to mean, more than a lot of (i.e., a greater quantity).
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