wéi vill

How Much and How Many: Wéi Vill

Level 1

Wéi vill means how much or how many: Wéi vill kascht dat?, Wéi vill Kanner hutt Dir?

How It Works

One phrase for much and many
English has how much and how many; Luxembourgish has only wéi vill. It is written as two words.

  • Wéi vill Kanner hutt Dir? (How many children do you have?)
  • Wéi vill Zäit hu mir nach? (How much time do we have left?)

Word order
Wéi vill and its noun stay together in first place. The conjugated verb comes after the whole group, and then the subject: Wéi vill Leit wunnen zu Lëtzebuerg? Here the noun Leit is the subject, so the verb is plural.

No word for of
The noun comes straight after vill, just as after other amount words (vill/e bëssen/e puer).

Prices and the time
Without a noun, Wéi vill kascht dat? asks the price. Wéi vill Auer ass et? (literally how much hour is it) is how you ask the time, and ëm wéi vill Auer means at what time. See telling the time.

Examples (6)

  1. Wéi vill kascht dat?

    How much does that cost?

    Word by Word: How much costs that?

  2. Wéi vill Kanner hutt Dir?

    How many children do you have?

    Word by Word: How many children have you?

    Polite Dir takes the plural verb form hutt.

  3. Wéi vill Auer ass et?

    What time is it?

    Word by Word: How much hour is it?

    This fixed question asks for the time.

  4. Wéi vill Zäit hu mir nach?

    How much time do we have left?

    Word by Word: How much time have we still?

    Hunn becomes hu before the m of mir by the n-rule.

  5. Ëm wéi vill Auer fänkt de Cours un?

    What time does the class start?

    Word by Word: At how much hour starts the class?

    Ëm wéi vill Auer asks at what time something happens.

  6. Wéi vill Leit wunnen zu Lëtzebuerg?

    How many people live in Luxembourg?

    Word by Word: How many people live in Luxembourg?

    Leit is the subject here, so the verb wunnen is plural.

Common Mistakes

  • Adding a word for of before the noun.

    Wéi vill vu Kanner hutt Dir?
    Wéi vill Kanner hutt Dir?

    The noun follows wéi vill directly. Luxembourgish needs no word like English of or French de here.

  • Using the singular verb with polite Dir.

    Wéi vill Kanner huet Dir?
    Wéi vill Kanner hutt Dir?

    Dir always takes the plural verb form, even when you speak to one person: Dir hutt, Dir sidd.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

wéi villLevel 1How Much and How Many: Wéi Vill

Learn This First

Before How Much and How Many: Wéi vill, learn How: Wéi.

Words in This Pattern

wéiAuer