2.207 omitting 'of'

When the context makes it clear, or when you think that the person you are talking to will understand what you mean, you can sometimes reduce the structure to the quantifier only. For example, if you are talking about applications for a job and there were twenty candidates, you can say 'Some were very good' rather than 'Some of them were very good'.

• A few crossed over the bridge.
• Some parts can be separated from the whole.
• Lally stuffed the lot into the sink.
• I have four bins. I keep one in the kitchen and the rest in the dustbin area.
• Most of the books had been packed into an enormous trunk and the remainder piled on top of it.