Why does ‘few’ sometimes mean a lot “There’s quite a few ducks in the pond.” and sometimes a little “There’s only a few ducks in the pond.”?

Question

Why does ‘few’ sometimes mean a lot “There’s quite a few ducks in the pond.” and sometimes a little “There’s only a few ducks in the pond.”?

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Answer 1

Yeah, context plays a powerful role in shaping language. Another example is ‘soon’. “I’m in the shower, i’ll be there soon”. “I think the housing market is going to calm down soon”. For a word that is supposed to describe a length of time, its meaning fluctuates a lot.