Molt, poc, tant, and quant can quantify a noun, stand for an omitted quantity, or modify a verb. Their form depends on that job. Before a noun they agree in gender and number; as adverbs of degree or amount they are invariant.
This is why Catalan says moltes preguntes but molt difícil, and tanta feina but treballa tant.
The agreeing paradigm
| Meaning | Masculine singular | Feminine singular | Masculine plural | Feminine plural |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| much/many | molt | molta | molts | moltes |
| little/few | poc | poca | pocs | poques |
| so much/so many; as much/many | tant | tanta | tants | tantes |
| how much/how many | quant | quanta | quants | quantes |
Tenim molta feina, molts encàrrecs urgents i poques hores lliures.
We have a lot of work, many urgent assignments, and few free hours.
Quants llibres vells i quantes revistes noves caben en aquestes dues prestatgeries?
How many old books and how many new magazines fit on these two shelves?
The quantifier agrees with the noun it measures; adjectives then agree with that noun independently: molts encàrrecs urgents, poques hores lliures.
With nouns: variable quantity determiners
Before a noun, these forms occupy the main quantitative determiner position: molt pa, molta aigua, molts llibres, moltes idees. They normally appear without an article when the quantity is indefinite.
Hi havia poca gent, però vam sentir moltes opinions diferents.
There were few people, but we heard many different opinions.
No posis tanta sal ni tantes espècies a la sopa.
Don't put so much salt or so many spices in the soup.
A definite article changes the structure and often adds a marked evaluative reading: els molts problemes que hem resolt means “the many problems that we have solved.” For the neutral quantity “many problems,” use molts problemes.
Most descriptive modifiers follow the noun: moltes propostes útils. A prenominal adjective can intervene only inside the noun phrase in its normal marked use: moltes bones idees. The quantifier remains at the left edge.
Han aportat moltes bones idees i pocs arguments convincents.
They have contributed many good ideas and few convincing arguments.
With verbs, adjectives, and adverbs: invariant molt and poc
When molt or poc expresses the degree of an adjective or adverb, or the amount of an action, it does not agree.
La Maria està molt cansada, però encara treballa molt.
Maria is very tired, but she still works a lot.
Les instruccions són poc clares i avancen molt lentament.
The instructions are not very clear, and they proceed very slowly.
The feminine adjective cansada does not turn adverbial molt into molta. Compare the minimal pair:
La Maria té moltes feines pendents.
Maria has many pending tasks.
La Maria està molt cansada.
Maria is very tired.
In the first sentence, moltes determines the plural noun feines. In the second, molt measures the adjective cansada.
The same distinction applies to poc: poques possibilitats but poc probable; pocs dies but dorm poc.
Tant with nouns and verbs; tan with degree
Before a noun, use agreeing tant/tanta/tants/tantes: tant soroll, tanta paciència, tants errors, tantes preguntes. After a verb, amount adverb tant remains invariant: treballa tant, no cridis tant.
Com pots tenir tanta paciència amb tants problemes?
How can you have so much patience with so many problems?
No treballis tant; demà també serà un dia llarg.
Don't work so much; tomorrow will be a long day too.
Before an adjective, adverb, prepositional phrase, or the degree word poc, the form is tan without final t: tan fàcil, tan cansada, tan ràpidament, tan a prop, tan poc probable. This form is also invariant.
Parla tan de pressa que no entenc tantes explicacions seguides.
He speaks so quickly that I can't understand so many explanations in a row.
In comparisons, use tant... com with nouns or verbs and tan... com with adjectives or adverbs: Té tants llibres com tu; Treballa tant com tu; És tan alta com tu; Corre tan ràpid com tu.
Quant for questions and exclamations
Agreeing quant/quanta/quants/quantes asks about the amount of a noun. It works in direct questions, embedded questions, and exclamations.
Quanta aigua necessitem i quants gots hem de portar?
How much water do we need, and how many glasses do we have to bring?
No sé quantes persones vindran ni quant menjar compraran.
I don't know how many people will come or how much food they'll buy.
Quanta gent que hi ha avui a la plaça!
There are so many people in the square today!
As an adverb or a free quantity pronoun with no recoverable noun, quant is invariant: Quant costa? Quant has menjat? When a specific omitted noun remains understood, however, pronominal quant agrees with it: Quants en vols? Quantes n'has comprat? Quanta en necessites?
Catalan interrogative quant has no written accent. Spanish cuánto is therefore a dangerous visual model. Also distinguish amount quant from time quan: Quant costa? “How much does it cost?” versus Quan obre? “When does it open?”
Complements with de
These quantifiers can join a noun directly: molta feina, poc sucre, tants llibres, quantes persones. Catalan also has a productive quantifier + de + noun pattern, especially with singular mass and measure expressions: molt de temps, poc de pa, tant de soroll, quant de vi.
| Common direct pattern | Common de-pattern |
|---|---|
| molta aigua | molt de temps |
| poca estona | poc de sucre |
| tanta gent | tant de soroll |
| quanta farina | quant de pa |
Quant de temps falta i quanta estona haurem d'esperar?
How much time is left, and how long will we have to wait?
The distribution of de varies by construction, lexical combination, and region; there is no honest rule that reduces it to English of. Learn high-frequency frames such as molt de temps, poca estona, tanta gent, and quant de temps. Before a vowel, de apostrophizes: molt d'oli, poc d'espai. (regional: Balearic) the pattern extends systematically to many plural count nouns, as in molts de llibres; elsewhere the form without de, molts llibres, is more usual in that context.
This bare-noun pattern is different from a true partitive, which selects members of a definite set. In molts dels llibres, poques de les propostes, and quants d'aquests arxius?, the quantifier still agrees with the understood noun, while de introduces an article or demonstrative meaning “of the.”
Moltes de les propostes eren útils, però poques d'aquestes idees eren noves.
Many of the proposals were useful, but few of these ideas were new.
Replacing an omitted noun
The same forms can stand without a noun when the noun is recoverable. Agreement still reflects what has been omitted.
—Quantes cadires necessites? —En necessito poques, però de gots en necessito molts.
How many chairs do you need? I need few, but I need many glasses.
The partitive pronoun en represents the quantified noun. The quantifier stays behind and agrees: en tinc molta for feminine singular mass, en tinc molts for masculine plural count nouns. See Partitive En for the full pattern.
Regional note
The agreeing paradigms are part of the general standard. A nearby variation concerns negative and interrogative quantity: Central often prefers gaire where (regional: Valencian and Tortosí) molt or massa may be more usual. That does not change the agreement of molt/poc/tant/quant when they determine nouns.
Common Mistakes
1. Agreeing an adverb with an adjective.
❌ Les nenes estan moltes cansades.
Incorrect — molt modifies the adjective and is invariant.
✅ Les nenes estan molt cansades.
The girls are very tired.
2. Failing to agree before a noun.
❌ Hi havia molt persones i poca seients.
Incorrect — both quantifiers determine nouns and must agree.
✅ Hi havia moltes persones i pocs seients.
There were many people and few seats.
3. Using tant before an adjective or adverb.
❌ Parla tant ràpid que em perdo.
Incorrect — before the adverb ràpid, use tan.
✅ Parla tan ràpid que em perdo.
He speaks so quickly that I lose track.
4. Confusing quant with temporal quan.
❌ Quan de temps falta per arribar?
Incorrect — the question asks an amount, not a time point.
✅ Quant de temps falta per arribar?
How much longer until we arrive?
5. Copying Spanish accentuation.
❌ Quàntes entrades queden?
Incorrect — Catalan quant and its inflected forms have no written accent.
✅ Quantes entrades queden?
How many tickets are left?
Key Takeaways
Before nouns, molt, poc, tant, and quant agree in gender and number. With verbs, adjectives, or adverbs, quantity and degree adverbs are invariant; before an adjective or adverb, tant becomes tan. Use quant for amount and quan for time. Learn both direct noun frames and frequent de-frames rather than translating English or Spanish mechanically.
Now practice Catalan
Reading grammar gets you part of the way. The exercises are where it sticks — free, no signup needed.
Start learning Catalan →Related Topics
- Prou, Massa, Bastant, and GaireB1 — Express enough, excess, moderate quantity, and polarity-sensitive quantity with the right agreement and word order.
- Partitive Determiners and DeB1 — Build Catalan quantity, subset, and noun-ellipsis constructions with de, and connect them to partitive en without copying French articles.
- Ordinals, Fractions, and Multipliers as DeterminersB1 — Use Catalan ordinals, fractional expressions, and multipliers with correct agreement, articles, position, and measurement conventions.
- En as a Partitive PronounB1 — Use partitive en to resume indefinite nouns, mass nouns, and counted sets while keeping quantities and agreement visible.
- Quin and Quina ExclamationsA1 — Build natural Catalan exclamations with quin, quina, quins, and quines, matching the noun and omitting the English-style article.
- Common Spanish Grammatical CalquesB2 — Diagnose Spanish-shaped Catalan in pronouns, prepositions, periphrases, articles, and connectors without mislabeling genuine regional usage.