Some or sum?
some is a pronoun meaning “A certain number (multiple but not all)”; sum is a noun meaning “A quantity obtained by addition or aggregation”. Use some as a pronoun and sum as a noun (sum is also a pronoun: “Pronunciation spelling of something”). They sound the same (/sʌm/). In written English (wordfreq, 2021 data) some is about 72 times as common as sum.
What is the difference between some and sum?
| some | sum | |
|---|---|---|
| Part of speech | pronoun, determiner, adverb, suffix | noun, verb, determiner, pronoun |
| Meaning | A certain number (multiple but not all) An indefinite quantity A nonzero, unspecified proportion of (a bounded set of countable things): at least two | A quantity obtained by addition or aggregation An arithmetic computation, especially one posed to a student as an exercise (not necessarily limited to addition) To add together |
| Example | Some enjoy spicy food, others prefer it milder | The sum of 3 and 4 is 7 |
| Forms | som, som', sum | sums sums, sumy |
| Pronunciation | /sʌm/ [sɐm] /sʊm/ | /sʌm/ /sʊm/ |
| In writing | 1,585 times per million words | 22 times per million words |
Sources: some and sum in the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0); written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
Every current meaning of some and sum
some
- 1
A certain number (multiple but not all)
Some enjoy spicy food, others prefer it milder
- 2
A nonzero, unspecified proportion of (a bounded set of countable things): at least two
Near-synonym: any
- 3
Of a measurement: approximately, roughly
I guess he must have weighed some 90 kilos
- 4
Characterized by some specific condition or quality, usually to a considerable degree
- 5
Denoting a group with a certain number of members
- 6
Body
- 7
Plus some indeterminate fraction not amounting to the next higher round number or significant digit; and change; -odd
twenty-some identifiable factors affecting the outcome
- 8
An indefinite quantity
Can I have some of them?
sum
- 1
A quantity obtained by addition or aggregation
The sum of 3 and 4 is 7
- 2
To add together
- 3
The basic unit of money in Kyrgyzstan
- 4
Eye dialect spelling of some
- 5
Pronunciation spelling of something
- 6
A type of administrative district used in China, Mongolia, and Russia. In Mongolia, a sum is smaller than a province. In China, it is only used in Inner Mongolia, where it is equivalent to a township
- 7
An arithmetic computation, especially one posed to a student as an exercise (not necessarily limited to addition)
We're learning about division, and the sums are tricky
- 8
To give a summary of
Source: the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0); obsolete, archaic, dialect and rare senses left out.
Which is more common, some or sum?
some appears 1,585 times per million words; sum 22 times per million words.
some 1,585 times per million wordssum 22 times per million words
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).