Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • adjective Being an unspecified number or quantity.
  • adjective Being a portion or an unspecified number or quantity of a whole or group.
  • adjective Being a considerable number or quantity.
  • adjective Unknown or unspecified by name.
  • adjective Logic Being part and perhaps all of a class.
  • adjective Informal Remarkable.
  • pronoun An indefinite or unspecified number or portion.
  • pronoun An indefinite additional quantity.
  • adverb Approximately; about.
  • adverb Informal Somewhat.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • In some degree: to some extent; somewhat: as. I am some better; it is some cold.
  • As; so; ever: used indefinitely after certain adverbs and pronouns, like so, soever.
  • A suffix used to form adjectives from nouns or adjectives, as mettlesome, blithesome, lonesome, gladsome, gamesome, gruesome, quarrelsome, toothsome, troublesome, wholesome, winsome.
  • A; a certain; one: noting a person or thing indefinitely, either as unknown or as unspecified.
  • In this sense often fallowed by a correlative other or another.
  • A certain indefinite or indeterminate quantity or part of; more or less: often so used as to denote a small quantity or a deficiency: as, bring some water; eat some bread.
  • In logic, at least one, perhaps all; but a few logicians sometimes employ a semidefinite some which implies a part, but not all.
  • A certain indefinite or indeterminate number of: used before plural substantives: as, some years ago.
  • Hence A certain number of, stated approximately: in a quasi-adverbial use before a numeral or other word of number: as, a place some seventy miles distant; some four or five of us will be there.
  • A certain person; one.
  • A certain quantity, part, or number, as distinguished from the rest: as, some of them are dead; we ate some of our provisions, and gave away the rest.
  • In this sense some is very commonly repeated, somesome (or, formerly, other some, as in Acts xvii. 18) meaning ‘a number … others,’ or ‘the rest.’
  • The plural some is occasionally used in the possessive.
  • Some, as originally used partitively with numbers (AS. feówra sum, one of four, etc.), has come to be an apparent distributive suffix, as in foursome, sevensome.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • adjective Consisting of a greater or less portion or sum; composed of a quantity or number which is not stated; -- used to express an indefinite quantity or number. Used also pronominally.
  • adjective A certain; one; -- indicating a person, thing, event, etc., as not known individually, or designated more specifically.
  • adjective Not much; a little; moderate.
  • adjective About; near; more or less; -- used commonly with numerals, but formerly also with a singular substantive of time or distance.
  • adjective Considerable in number or quantity.
  • adjective Certain; those of one part or portion; -- in distinction from other or others.
  • adjective A part; a portion; -- used pronominally, and followed sometimes by of.
  • adjective [Obs.] one and all. See under All, adv.
  • adjective one part … another part; these … those; -- used distributively.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • pronoun A certain number, at least one.
  • pronoun An indefinite quantity.
  • pronoun An indefinite amount, a part.
  • determiner A certain proportion of, at least one.
  • determiner An unspecified quantity or number of.
  • determiner An unspecified amount of (something uncountable).
  • determiner A certain, an unspecified or unknown.
  • determiner A considerable quantity or number of.
  • determiner informal a remarkable.
  • adverb Of a measurement; approximately, roughly

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • adverb (of quantities) imprecise but fairly close to correct
  • adjective quantifier; used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
  • adjective remarkable
  • adjective relatively much but unspecified in amount or extent
  • adjective relatively many but unspecified in number

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Middle English, from Old English sum, a certain one; see sem- in Indo-European roots.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Middle English some, sum, from Old English sum ("some, a certain one"), from Proto-Germanic *sumaz (“some, a certain one”), from Proto-Indo-European *sem- (“one, whole”). Cognate Scots sum, some ("some"), North Frisian som, sam, säm ("some"), West Frisian sommige, somlike ("some"), Low German sum ("some"), Dutch sommige ("some"), German dialectal summige ("some"), Danish somme ("some"), Swedish somlig ("some"), Norwegian sum, som ("some"), Icelandic sumur ("some"), Gothic 𐍃𐌿𐌼𐍃 (sums, "one, someone"). More at same.

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Examples

  • But though DAYBREAKERS wobbles they set up a glorious ending, then make it much less effective, and anybody who's watched CNN will immediately think up a simple and effective tactic that the vampires for some strange reason fail to use, there are little things all through the movie that make you realize, "Okay, they didn't think of *everything,* but at least they thought about *some* things."

    quick review: DAYBREAKERS hradzka 2010

  • They seem to have waterred down that prediction some, recently, still from memory, I think that Casey Lusking just “predicted” that *some* junk DNA will be found to have a function.

    Two analyses of Meyer's "Signature in the Cell" - The Panda's Thumb 2010

  • On one hand it had some great ideas, but on the other..some weak ideas too..

    Alien Prequel Going 3-D and a New Trilogy on the Horizon? « FirstShowing.net 2010

  • Sick puppies, some need help..some just need cappin!

    Cheeseburger Gothic » Answers! Answers! Precious answers. 2009

  • If you look back through the comments, someone did post some information on this topic...ie..some research on the doctor, and found that this doctor does exist..etc.

    The Fourth Kind Movie Trailer | /Film 2009

  • Indeed there would be some overlap in those maps because AFAIAC *some* U*U clergy misconduct manifests itself in the form of anti-religious intolerance and bigotry on the part of U*U ministers or anti-conservative and/or anti-Republican intolerance and bigotry on the part of U*U ministers.

    Multi Cultural UU: Removing Dissatisfaction Christine Robinson 2009

  • Prima facie, ˜every tall sailor respects some doctor™ and ˜some short boy likes every politician™ exhibit common modes of linguistic combination.

    Logical Form Pietroski, Paul 2009

  • You have to have some sort of engagement,  some sort of a carrot that not only entices that actual government but makes sure that other forces within Iran know there's an alternative.

    A Firmer Hand 2008

  • You've captured some great people here..some of my favourites too!

    10 Teachers to Follow on Twitter Mr. Byrne 2008

  • Outside after the Matam, tabarruk or Niyaze Hussain is distributed..some serve cold chilled sherbet, some serve hot piping tea..and as you exit from here you find women kids and men listening to pre recorded Majlis of Maulana Athar Saab Mirza..

    2008 February 01 « bollywoods most wanted photographerno1 2008

Comments

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  • "When several somes and alls occur in the same statement, ordinary syntax fails to express the meaning with precision, and logicians resort to a special notation." -- From the Centurty Dictionary's sixth definition

    August 29, 2011

  • The usage examples in the first definition confuse me, though--I think they are some weird.

    August 29, 2011

  • WORD: some

    One of the many DEFINITIONS for "some": (Adj., informal) Remarkable. -- American Heritage Dictionary; Wiktionary; Wordnet. (Cf., extraordinary, exceptional, unusual)

    EXAMPLE from Charlotte's Web:

    FARMER ZUCKERMAN: " . . . There is a large spider's web in the doorway of the barn cellar, right over the pigpen, and when Lurvy went to feed the pig this morning, he noticed the web because it was foggy, and you know how a spider's web looks very distinct in a fog. And spang in the middle of the web there were the words 'Some Pig.' The words were woven right into the web. They were actually part of the web, Edith. I know, because I have been down there and seen them. It says, 'Some Pig,' just as clear as can be. There can be no mistake about it. A miracle has happened and a sign has occurred here on earth, right on our farm, and we have no ordinary pig."

    "Well," said Mrs. Zuckerman, "it seems to me you're a little off. It seems to me we have no ordinary spider."

    "Oh, no," said Zuckerman. "It's the pig that's unusual. It says so, right there in the middle of the web."

    -- 1952 E.B. WHITE. Charlotte's Web. Chapter XI -- The Miracle (pages 80 - 81).
       
    <b>VISUAL</b> from <b><i>Charlotte's Web</i></b>:
    Garth Williams' illustration of Charlotte's spiderweb, on which she has written the phrase "<b>Some</b> pig":
    <<  http://flavorwire.com/260278/garth-williams-gorgeous-original-illustrations-for-charlottes-web/4/  >>
       

    September 26, 2013