Struggling with the English side of the exercises

Question

I get that plusieurs represents a greater quantity than quelqu'un, but I'm struggling with the exercises because I can't keep track of whether they expect a few to represent a greater quantity than several or vice versa.
At least in the English I speak, the difference between these two words is subtle and comes down to feeling more than quantity. 
Is there some other way to structure the exercises that doesn't rely on making novel (or at least regional) distinctions in English?

Cécile Janty-Davies · Accepted Answer

Bonjour Andrew, 
To me, these words have equivalent translations in both languages and go in progression of amount -

quelques = a few ( not many)
plusieurs = several ( many) 
de nombreux = numerous ( quite a lot)

Hope this helps!

Andrew McNabb · Answer

I just got the quiz wrong again because I don't know the difference between "several" and "a few". I would use both words for around 3-7, and I definitely wouldn't use "several" as a synonym for "many".

Since "plusieurs" seems to have a more clear distinction from "quelques" than "several" does from "a few", it would be really helpful if the quizzes could focus directly on the French meaning instead of a translation to English that can't be precise.

Right now the only way I can pass the quiz is to memorize the specific answer, and I'm pretty sure I'm going to keep failing the quiz every few weeks when I forget the English side of the question. 🙂

Andrew McNabb · Answer

I just got the quiz wrong again because I don't know the difference between "several" and "a few". I would use both words for around 3-7, and I definitely wouldn't use "several" as a synonym for "many".

Since "plusieurs" seems to have a more clear distinction from "quelques" than "several" does from "a few", it would be really helpful if the quizzes could focus directly on the French meaning instead of a translation to English that can't be precise.

Right now the only way I can pass the quiz is to memorize the specific answer, and I'm pretty sure I'm going to keep failing the quiz every few weeks when I forget the English side of the question. 🙂