"little to if any"

Ildiko Santana (asker) Mar 1, 2010:

Thank you I appreciate everyone's input. We all make mistakes when in a rush.. I sincerely hope that the tsunami's impact will be little if any.

Patricia Rosas Feb 27, 2010:

as I'm following the news, I'm finding more! Here's one that just makes my teeth gnash! The increasing wave heights began shortly around 11:15 a.m. local time (either shortly after or around, right?) I guess these poor folks are writing so fast, they can't even proof it before they send it out on the wire ...)

Oliver Lawrence Feb 27, 2010:

Agree with Tony M .

Noni Gilbert Riley Feb 27, 2010:

100% Patricia, Tony and Sheila are completely right in their diagnosis!

Sheila Wilson Feb 27, 2010:

As Tony says "little to no warning" is possible here so maybe that's what they started with before changing to "little if any warning". Note that "warnings" (plural) is not really correct either. It reads like someone writing too fast and not checking the copy.

Tony M Feb 27, 2010:

Me too! Looks like an editing left-over: originally 'little to no', changed to 'little if any', only the 'to' got left behind!

Patricia Rosas Feb 27, 2010:

I agree with you! Sounds awkward to me! I did a Google search, and it was a little strange. The first page says there are over 3 million hits for the phrase, but the second page shows that there were only 14 hits. If I'd been editing that article, I would have cut the "to." I see it is an article on the tsunami, so I suppose the author was writing fast and perhaps posting without the benefit of an editor ...