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
see also quite a bit, quite a few
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
The Oscar-winning British filmmaker crafts a sumptuous bad romance that’s quite haughty, darkly hilarious and ultimately heartfelt.
—Brian Truitt, USA Today, 10 Feb. 2026
Heartfelt without being cloying, this ad gets all the elements of its message of coming together right in ways that a similar ad from Spectrum couldn’t quite match.
—Omar L. Gallaga, Los Angeles Times, 9 Feb. 2026
Panarin has a no-move clause, and apparently was quite willing to use it as leverage to control his destination.
—Sean McIndoe, New York Times, 9 Feb. 2026
This all comes off as quite wholesome and healthy and refreshing to the large group of investors who spent the past three years bemoaning the increasing concentration of market value in a small cluster of AI-chasing tech platform giants.
—Michael Santoli, CNBC, 9 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for quite
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Brian Truitt, USA Today, 10 Feb. 2026
Heartfelt without being cloying, this ad gets all the elements of its message of coming together right in ways that a similar ad from Spectrum couldn’t quite match.
—Omar L. Gallaga, Los Angeles Times, 9 Feb. 2026
Panarin has a no-move clause, and apparently was quite willing to use it as leverage to control his destination.
—Sean McIndoe, New York Times, 9 Feb. 2026
This all comes off as quite wholesome and healthy and refreshing to the large group of investors who spent the past three years bemoaning the increasing concentration of market value in a small cluster of AI-chasing tech platform giants.
—Michael Santoli, CNBC, 9 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for quite
Cite this Entry
“Quite.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/quite. Accessed 16 Feb. 2026.
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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Merriam-Webster unabridged
