少则…，多则…
anywhere from … at the low end to … at the high end
Structure
主语 少则 数量1 ， 多则 数量2
What it means
Gives the bottom and top of a range: “anywhere from … to …”. 则 is the written 就: 少则 “if few, then”, 多则 “if many, then”.
How it is built
Subject + 少则 + number + unit，多则 + number + unit: 修复一幅古画，少则几个月，多则好几年 (restoring an old painting takes from a few months to several years).
When to use it
For amounts, prices, time or numbers of people in news, reports and features. In speech say 少的…，多的… or 从…到…. The order can be reversed: 多则十几天，少则三五天.
Watch out
Each half needs its own 则 and a number. ✗ 少则三天，多一周 ✓ 少则三天，多则一周. Amounts only, not adjectives: ✗ 少则便宜，多则贵.
Examples
如今，名家书画少则几百万，多则上亿。
Today works by well-known painters and calligraphers sell for anything from a few million yuan to over a hundred million.
修复一幅古画，少则几个月，多则好几年。
Restoring an old painting takes anything from a few months to several years.
这位老师的讲座很受欢迎，每场少则几十人，多则上千人。
The teacher’s lectures are very popular, drawing anything from a few dozen people to over a thousand.
Learn this in Lesson 238 · HSK 9+: 拍卖与赝品 (Auctions and fakes)
A dialogue, a reading, word cards with audio and a drill that uses it, in Learn Chinese with Bao. The first lessons of every level are free.
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