quite

adverb

ˈkwīt

Synonyms of quite next

: wholly, completely

not quite finished

: to an extreme : positively

quite sure

—often used as an intensifier with a

quite a swell guy

quite a beauty

: 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. See More

Recent Examples on the Web The good news is that said bourbon is quite good, and ultimately that’s the most important thing. —

Jonah Flicker, Robb Report, 17 Sep. 2023 Quick hits Getting feisty: The aforementioned battle in Boulder wasn’t quite as docile as most evening gatherings in Colorado. —

Michael Casagrande | McAsagrande@al.com, al, 17 Sep. 2023 Only this time her best was not quite good enough to win. —

Steve Galluzzo, Los Angeles Times, 17 Sep. 2023 The Hogs do have a quite satisfying recent return win, however, a 40-21 trouncing of Texas on Sept. 11, 2021, after falling heavily at the No. 7 Longhorns in 2008. —

Tom Murphy, Arkansas Online, 16 Sep. 2023 In many ways, Western North Carolina destinations — like Asheville, Highlands, Hot Springs, and Waynesville, to name just a few — are quite similar. —

Lydia Mansel, Travel + Leisure, 16 Sep. 2023 Bathrooms can get quite germy, and this option is the best bathtub cleaner for disinfecting. —

Brittany Vanderbill, Better Homes & Gardens, 16 Sep. 2023 And there are already quite a number of observational studies finding mental health benefits of gender-affirming care for both trans youth and adults. —

Theresa Gaffney, STAT, 15 Sep. 2023 Watch out for Chas Nobody has torched the Rangers quite like Chas McCormick has this year. —

Evan Grant, Dallas News, 5 Sep. 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'quite.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.