1

I read the following, but can not understand meaning of a hell of a lot:

Todd: So when people go to your web site what can they see?
Jason: Not a hell of a lot but I did draw everything on there myself, every button every single piece of graphic you see on there I drew, just photographs of me, my friends, drawings that I've done and posted up and not really much else, but it's good if you just want to check it out. Check some photos out.

Can any one explain it?

4
  • 1
    as @cornbread points out, it would be good if you could provide the sentence immediately preceding this one.
    – Jim
    Commented Jun 2, 2012 at 2:29
  • 4
    Any dictionary worth the name has the answer to this question. For example, this one does. Voting to close as General Reference.
    – tchrist
    Commented Jun 2, 2012 at 2:49
  • Or, if that link doesn't work, this one does, too.
    – J.R.
    Commented Jun 2, 2012 at 9:56
  • ELL! Please vote to close.
    – David
    Commented Mar 10, 2019 at 20:45

3 Answers 3

6

The quoted text isn't formal, grammatical English, but the transcription of a flow of thoughts, so it is a little tricky to parse.

Hell of a (which you may see written as helluva) adds strong emphasis to a concept; it may be considered a mild profanity. She's a hell of a sailor means that she is an exceptional sailor. Hell of a lot means there is a large amount or a high degree of something. The recipe uses a hell of a lot of sugar means that the recipe calls for a great deal of sugar.

Not a hell of a lot, then, means that there is not a great deal or high degree of something. It could refer to something said previously. It could be a statement of modesty, that whatever being discussed is no big deal despite the work the writer seems to have put into it. It could mean something else entirely.

1

A hell of a lot, often seen as a helluva lot is a colorful way of expressing a great deal of x.

Examples:

  • We went to a buffet for dinner and I had a hell of a lot of food.
  • $30 trillion is a hell of a lot of money.

Whatever x your example refers to must have been given in the previous sentence.

0

My dictionary says:

a / one hell of a — — (informal) used to emphasise something very bad or great: it cost us a hell of a lot of money

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged .