Would fewer than/less than be correct here? I say fewer than, because countable employees are mentioned: Fewer than 10% of the employees participated in the program. And: Fewer than 5% of the patients was/were affected. (I say were.) Thanks,
10% of a number that's unknown is not really countable, though. I could be wrong, but with percentages, I always say "less than." I'd say "fewer than 50 employees ... " or "less than ten percent of employees ... "
I think you might need to figure out your was/were issue, b/c according to CMOS the fewer/less distinction should be based on the nouns. Use "less" for singular nouns, "fewer" for plural nouns. ETA: Aaron beat me!
Thanks, all. Aaron, you said, "Less for singular, fewer for plural." Could you cite a couple of examples? I don't quite understand. Sorry.
"Jonathan had less money than Daniel." "Daniel had fewer sisters than Jonathan." "Robert had less empathy than Ted Bundy." "Ted Bundy had fewer brain cells than Albert Einstein." Does that suffice? Edit: Next time tag (@victo) or quote me. I'll see it faster that way.
To clarify the point being made concerning singular and plural, % is a collective and collectives are singular. The employees in reference are behind a prepositional wall. They do not rule. No prepositional wall and now "100" serves as a numerical adjective modifying employees, which is a plural.
This might help make it more definitive: use less with a plural noun that is a mass, a measurement, or a total, especially in expressions following less than: less than two hours less than $30 less than five miles less than three gallons a total population of less than five million less than 10 percent of them are now nomadic less than half of all Roma children regularly attend school
It's really the difference between formalities. Fewer than sounds more formal than less than. That's how I would peg it, but either say the same thing meaning they're both correct.
There can also be a few gray areas, depending on word meaning and usage. If I have nine one-dollar bills, I have fewer than ten dollars (count). I also have less than ten dollars (amount).
