Quantifier

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ˈkwɑn.tɪ.faɪ.ɚ/

Definitions

1. A word or phrase that expresses amount or quantity, such as "some," "many," "all," or "few"
2. A term or expression that indicates the extent or quantity of something, such as a specific number, a general amount, or a comparative degree
3. An element of language that denotes the quantity, degree, or extent of a noun, including terms like "several," "most," and "none"

Etymology: The word is a plain English formation: "quantify" plus the agent suffix "-er", meaning one who or that which quantifies, or in grammar, a word that shows quantity. The suffix arrived through Old French "-ier" from Latin "-arius", which English speakers borrowed and used in countless agent nouns such as "writer" and "teacher". "Quantify" itself traces back to the Latin "quantus", meaning "how much", combined with "-ficare", from "facere", "to make". The Medieval Latin "quantificare" gave English the verb, so a quantifier is literally something that makes a thing "how much". The same Latin "quantus" also underlies "quantity" and "quantum", which is a useful reminder that these words share a root and a sense of measurement.

Synonyms: modifier, determinative