1
: wholly, completely
not quite finished
2
: to an extreme : positively
quite sure
often used as an intensifier with a
quite a swell guy
quite a beauty
3
: to a considerable extent : rather
quite near
Phrases
quite a bit
: a considerable amount
quite a few
: many

Examples of quite in a Sentence

He felt that the world he had loved had quite gone. Edmund Wilson, New York Times Book Review, 20 July 1986
The men who made love to the left-wing college girls were either medical students, who had contempt for them and forgot them, or jocks, who bragged falsely of having made conquests of quite other girls. Renata Adler, Pitch Dark, 1983
In my opinion, my work … ain't quite good enough … William Faulkner, in Faulkner in the University, (1959) 1977
Irene Franey, a little older than I, was quite a beauty John O'Hara, letter, 30 Dec. 1963
“Are you quite finished?” “Not quite.” I am quite capable of doing it myself, thank you. They assured me that I was quite mistaken. We hadn't quite made up our minds. She's quite right, you know. I quite forgot your birthday. No one realized quite what was happening. Quite why he left is unclear. That is not quite what I said.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Among seismic sports television changes during the past 50 years, the NBA’s new media rights deal, one that officially begins this week, isn’t quite as earth-shaking as CBS losing the NFL to Fox in 1994 or ABC losing Monday Night Football in 2005. Barry Jackson updated October 21, Miami Herald, 21 Oct. 2025 The film was produced by Sony Pictures as part of a slate sold to Netflix, but outside of some music rights (the music is, in fairness, quite popular), Netflix holds the IP rights, including to consumer products, Sony Pictures CEO Ravi Ahuja said last month. Alex Weprin, HollywoodReporter, 21 Oct. 2025 With its fragile, creamy structure, removing it from a regular baking pan can be quite tricky. Molly Allen, Southern Living, 21 Oct. 2025 Meditating my way into the natural world, as a daily practice, was quite restorative. Literary Hub, 21 Oct. 2025 See All Example Sentences for quite

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from quite, adjective, quit

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of quite was in the 14th century

Cite this Entry

“Quite.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/quite. Accessed 23 Oct. 2025.

Kids Definition

quite

adverb
1
: beyond question or doubt : completely
quite alone
quite sure
2
: more or less sense 1, rather
we live quite near the school

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