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Webster 1913 Edition

Some

Some

(sŭm)
,
Adj.
[OE.
som
,
sum
, AS.
sum
; akin to OS., OFries., & OHG.
sum
, OD.
som
, D.
sommig
, Icel.
sumr
, Dan.
somme
(pl.), Sw.
somlige
(pl.), Goth.
sums
, and E.
same
. √191. See
Same
,
Adj.
, and cf.
-some
.]
1.
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;
as,
some
wine;
some
water;
some
persons
. Used also pronominally;
as, I have
some
.
Some
theoretical writers allege that there was a time when there was no such thing as society.
Blackstone.
2.
A certain; one; – indicating a person, thing, event, etc., as not known individually, or designated more specifically;
as,
some
man, that is, some one man
.
“Some brighter clime.”
Mrs. Barbauld.
Some
man praiseth his neighbor by a wicked intent.
Chaucer.
Most gentlemen of property, at
some
period or other of their lives, are ambitious of representing their county in Parliament.
Blackstone.
3.
Not much; a little; moderate;
as, the censure was to
some
extent just
.
4.
About; near; more or less; – used commonly with numerals, but formerly also with a singular substantive of time or distance;
as, a village of
some
eighty houses;
some
two or three persons;
some
hour hence
.
Shak.
The number slain on the rebel’s part were
some
two thousand.
Bacon.
5.
Considerable in number or quantity.
“Bore us some leagues to sea.”
Shak.
On its outer point,
some
miles away.
The lighthouse lifts its massive masonry.
Longfellow.
6.
Certain; those of one part or portion; – in distinction from
other
or
others
;
as,
some
men believe one thing, and
others
another
.
Some
[seeds] fell among thorns; . . . but
other
fell into good ground.
Matt. xiii. 7, 8.
7.
A part; a portion; – used pronominally, and followed sometimes by of;
as,
some
of our provisions
.
Your edicts
some
reclaim from sins,
But most your life and blest example wins.
Dryden.
All and some
,
one and all. See under
All
,
adv.
[Obs.]
☞ The illiterate in the United States and Scotland often use some as an adverb, instead of somewhat, or an equivalent expression; as, I am some tired; he is some better; it rains some, etc.
Some . . . some
,
one part . . . another part; these . . . those; – used distributively.
Some
to the shores do fly,
Some
to the woods, or whither fear advised.
Daniel.
☞ Formerly used also of single persons or things: this one . . . that one; one . . . another.
Some
in his bed,
some
in the deep sea.
Chaucer.

Webster 1828 Edition

Some

SOME

,
Adj.
sum.
1.
Noting a certain quantity of a thing, but indeterminate; a portion greater or less. Give me some bread; drink some wine; bring some water.
2.
Noting a number of persons or things, greater or less, but indeterminate. Some theoretical writes allege that there was a time when there was no such thing as society.
3.
Noting a person or thing, but not known, or not specific and definite. Some person, I know not who, gave me the information. Enter the city, and some man will direct you to the house. Most gentlemen of property, as some period or other of their lives, are ambitious of representing their country in parliament.
4.
It sometimes precedes a word of number or quantity, with the sense of about or near, noting want of certainty as to the specific number of amount, but something near it; as a village or some eighty houses; some two or three persons; some seventy miles distant; an object at some good distance.
5.
Some is often opposed to others. Some men believe one thing, and others another.
6.
Some is often used without a noun, and then like other adjectives, is a substitute for a noun. We consumed some of our provisions, and the rest was given to the poor. Some to the shores do fly, some to the woods. Your edicts some reclaim for sins, but most your life and blest example wins.
7.
Some is used as a termination of certain adjectives, as in handsome, mettlesome, blithesome, fullsome, lonesome, gladsome, gamesome. In these words, some has primarily the sense of little, or a certain degree; a little blithe or glad. But in usage, it rather indicates a considerable degree of the thing or quantity; as mettlesome, full of mettle or spirit; gladsome, very glad or joyous.

Definition 2024

some

some

See also: -some

English

Alternative forms

Pronoun

some

  1. A certain number, at least one.
    • 2013 July 19, Timothy Garton Ash, “Where Dr Pangloss meets Machiavelli”, in The Guardian Weekly, volume 189, number 6, page 18:
      Hidden behind thickets of acronyms and gorse bushes of detail, a new great game is under way across the globe. Some call it geoeconomics, but it's geopolitics too. The current power play consists of an extraordinary range of countries simultaneously sitting down to negotiate big free trade and investment agreements.
    Some enjoy spicy food, others prefer it milder.‎
  2. An indefinite quantity.
    Can I have some of them?‎
  3. An indefinite amount, a part.
    please give me some of the cake;  everyone is wrong some of the time‎

Synonyms

  • (an indefinite quantity): a few

Antonyms

Translations

Determiner

some

  1. A certain proportion of, at least one.
    Some people like camping.‎
    • 2013 July 20, “The attack of the MOOCs”, in The Economist, volume 408, number 8845:
      Since the launch early last year of […] two Silicon Valley start-ups offering free education through MOOCs, massive open online courses, the ivory towers of academia have been shaken to their foundations. University brands built in some cases over centuries have been forced to contemplate the possibility that information technology will rapidly make their existing business model obsolete.
    • 2006, Charles H Lippy, Faith in America [Three Volumes] [3 Volumes]: Changes, Challenges, New Directions, Greenwood Publishing Group, ISBN 9780275986056, page 73:
      Many people, especially some evangelical Christians, have been less than optimistic about the Potter influence.
  2. An unspecified quantity or number of.
    Would you like some grapes?‎
    • 1898, Winston Churchill, chapter 4, in The Celebrity:
      The Celebrity, by arts unknown, induced Mrs. Judge Short and two other ladies to call at Mohair on an afternoon when Mr. Cooke was trying a trotter on the track. […] Their example was followed by others at a time when the master of Mohair was superintending in person the docking of some two-year-olds, and equally invisible.
    • 1918, W. B. Maxwell, chapter 22, in The Mirror and the Lamp:
      In the autumn there was a row at some cement works about the unskilled labour men. A union had just been started for them and all but a few joined. One of these blacklegs was laid for by a picket and knocked out of time.
    • 2013 July-August, Sarah Glaz, “Ode to Prime Numbers”, in American Scientist, volume 101, number 4:
      Some poems, echoing the purpose of early poetic treatises on scientific principles, attempt to elucidate the mathematical concepts that underlie prime numbers. Others play with primes’ cultural associations. Still others derive their structure from mathematical patterns involving primes.
  3. An unspecified amount of (something uncountable).
    Would you like some water?‎
    • 1918, W. B. Maxwell, chapter 10, in The Mirror and the Lamp:
      It was a joy to snatch some brief respite, and find himself in the rectory drawing–room. Listening here was as pleasant as talking; just to watch was pleasant. The young priests who lived here wore cassocks and birettas; their faces were fine and mild, yet really strong, like the rector's face; and in their intercourse with him and his wife they seemed to be brothers.
    After some persuasion, he finally agreed.‎
  4. A certain, an unspecified or unknown.
    I've just met some guy who said he knew you.   The sequence S converges to zero for some initial value v.‎
    • 1922, Ben Travers, chapter 4, in A Cuckoo in the Nest:
      By some paradoxical evolution rancour and intolerance have been established in the vanguard of primitive Christianity. Mrs. Spoker, in common with many of the stricter disciples of righteousness, was as inclement in demeanour as she was cadaverous in aspect.
    • 2013 June 14, Jonathan Freedland, “Obama's once hip brand is now tainted”, in The Guardian Weekly, volume 189, number 1, page 18:
      Where we once sent love letters in a sealed envelope, or stuck photographs of our children in a family album, now such private material is despatched to servers and clouds operated by people we don't know and will never meet. Perhaps we assume that our name, address and search preferences will be viewed by some unseen pair of corporate eyes, probably not human, and don't mind that much.
  5. A considerable quantity or number of.
    He had edited the paper for some years.‎
    • 1898, Winston Churchill, chapter 2, in The Celebrity:
      We drove back to the office with some concern on my part at the prospect of so large a case. Sunning himself on the board steps, I saw for the first time Mr. Farquhar Fenelon Cooke. He was dressed out in broad gaiters and bright tweeds, like an English tourist, and his face might have belonged to Dagon, idol of the Philistines.
  6. (informal) A remarkable.
    He is some acrobat!‎

Synonyms

Antonyms

Derived terms

Translations

Adverb

some ‎(not comparable)

  1. Of a measurement: approximately, roughly
    I guess he must have weighed some 90 kilos.
    Some 30,000 spectators witnessed the feat.
    Some 4,000 acres of land were flooded.

Translations

Statistics

Most common English words before 1923: could · our · than · #65: some · other · very · upon

Anagrams

Finnish

Etymology

Short for sosiaalinen media ‎(“social media”).

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈsome/
  • Hyphenation: so‧me

Noun

some

  1. (jargon) social media
    Jos tänä päivänä aikoo menestyä politiikassa, on pakko olla somessa.
    If one wants to be successful in politics nowadays, it's obligatory to be in the social media.

Declension

Inflection of some (Kotus type 8/nalle, no gradation)
nominative some somet
genitive somen somejen
partitive somea someja
illative someen someihin
singular plural
nominative some somet
accusative nom. some somet
gen. somen
genitive somen somejen
someinrare
partitive somea someja
inessive somessa someissa
elative somesta someista
illative someen someihin
adessive somella someilla
ablative somelta someilta
allative somelle someille
essive somena someina
translative someksi someiksi
instructive — somein
abessive sometta someitta
comitative — someineen

Galician

Verb

some

  1. third-person singular present indicative of sumir

Italian

Noun

some f

  1. plural of soma

Anagrams

Portuguese

Pronunciation

Verb

some

  1. first-person singular (eu) present subjunctive of somar
    É importante que eu some números.
    It’s important that I add numbers.
  2. third-person singular (ele and ela, also used with você and others) present subjunctive of somar
    É importante que ele some números.
    It’s important that he adds numbers.
  3. third-person singular (você) affirmative imperative of somar
    Você aí, some números sozinho.
    You there, add numbers by yourself.
  4. third-person singular (você) negative imperative of somar
    Você aí, não some números sozinho.
    You there, don’t add numbers by yourself.

Pronunciation

Verb

some

  1. third-person singular (ele and ela, also used with você and others) present indicative of sumir
    Ele some.
    He vanishes.
  2. second-person singular (tu, sometimes used with você) affirmative imperative of sumir
    Tu aí, some sozinho.
    You there, vanish by yourself.

Etymology

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 somige ‎(“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.

Pronunciation

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