Spotting errors sharpens grammar. A sign reads 'Ten items or less.' Since items are countable, what should it say?

The sign should read "ten items or fewer" because "items" is a countable noun — you can count one item, two items, ten items — and countable nouns pair grammatically with "fewer," not "less." This distinction mirrors the much/many split, applying the same countable-versus-uncountable logic to comparisons of quantity.

"Less" is reserved for uncountable nouns or amounts, as in "less water" or "less time," making it technically incorrect for discrete, countable items like grocery items. "Lesser" means inferior in degree or importance and doesn't function as a quantity comparative at all.

This fewer/less mistake is so widespread on real supermarket signs that grammar commentators frequently cite it as the textbook example of the rule being violated in everyday public life, despite being one of the most commonly taught grammar distinctions in schools.