Main Entry: quan·ti·ty

Pronunciation: \ˈkwän-tə-tē\

Function: noun

Inflected Form(s): plural quan·ti·ties

Etymology: Middle English quantite, from Anglo-French quantité, from Latin quantitat-, quantitas, from quantus how much, how large; akin to Latin quam how, as, quando when, qui who — more at who

Date: 14th century

1 a : an indefinite amount or number b : a determinate or estimated amount c : total amount or number d : a considerable amount or number —often used in plural <generous quantities of luck — H. E. Putsch>
2 a : the aspect in which a thing is measurable in terms of greater, less, or equal or of increasing or decreasing magnitude b : the subject of a mathematical operation c : an individual considered with respect to a given situation <an unknown quantity…as attorney general — Tom Wicker>
3 a : duration and intensity of speech sounds as distinct from their individual quality or phonemic character; specifically : the relative length or brevity of a prosodic syllable in some languages (as Greek and Latin) b : the relative duration or time length of a speech sound or sound sequence
4 : the character of a logical proposition as being universal, particular, or singular