1
: wholly, completely
not quite finished
2
: to an extreme : positively
quite sure
—often used as an intensifier with aquite a swell guy
quite a beauty
3
: to a considerable extent : rather
quite near
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.
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
Tanner, who is quite religious, was doing the latter.
—Jim Clash, Forbes.com, 14 Aug. 2025
Most of the utensils were pretty cheap, quite worn, and really should have been tossed a long time ago—including my black plastic spatula.
—Mark Marino, Bon Appetit Magazine, 14 Aug. 2025
Sometimes my evenings, too, are an exercise in box-checking, dissociation, and faux self-care, my body piloted by a brain that has never quite switched off work mode.
—Julie Beck, The Atlantic, 14 Aug. 2025
That is not quite a concession, but an important change in tone.
—Nick Paton Walsh, CNN Money, 14 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for quite
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
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Jim Clash, Forbes.com, 14 Aug. 2025
Most of the utensils were pretty cheap, quite worn, and really should have been tossed a long time ago—including my black plastic spatula.
—Mark Marino, Bon Appetit Magazine, 14 Aug. 2025
Sometimes my evenings, too, are an exercise in box-checking, dissociation, and faux self-care, my body piloted by a brain that has never quite switched off work mode.
—Julie Beck, The Atlantic, 14 Aug. 2025
That is not quite a concession, but an important change in tone.
—Nick Paton Walsh, CNN Money, 14 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for quite
Cite this Entry
“Quite.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/quite. Accessed 19 Aug. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
quite
adverb1
: 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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