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
There are few experiences that encapsulate the magic of New York City quite like seeing a Broadway show.
—Judy Koutsky, Forbes.com, 5 Apr. 2025
None have made a splash quite like The Devonshire, a Georgian-era Soho boozer that publican Oisín Rogers, Charlie Carroll, and chef Ashley Palmer-Watts have transformed into one of the hottest tickets in town.
—Amiel Stanek, Bon Appetit Magazine, 4 Apr. 2025
Watching those performers on the day, that scene was really quite difficult.
—Hunter Ingram, Variety, 4 Apr. 2025
After Thieriot talks a bit about next Friday’s episode (which finds Station 42 responding to an accident at a ski resort, and with which Mother Nature did not quite cooperate), the topic turns to the roller coaster that is the Bode/Gabriela (Stephanie Arcila) romance.
—Matt Webb Mitovich, TVLine, 4 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for quite
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Judy Koutsky, Forbes.com, 5 Apr. 2025
None have made a splash quite like The Devonshire, a Georgian-era Soho boozer that publican Oisín Rogers, Charlie Carroll, and chef Ashley Palmer-Watts have transformed into one of the hottest tickets in town.
—Amiel Stanek, Bon Appetit Magazine, 4 Apr. 2025
Watching those performers on the day, that scene was really quite difficult.
—Hunter Ingram, Variety, 4 Apr. 2025
After Thieriot talks a bit about next Friday’s episode (which finds Station 42 responding to an accident at a ski resort, and with which Mother Nature did not quite cooperate), the topic turns to the roller coaster that is the Bode/Gabriela (Stephanie Arcila) romance.
—Matt Webb Mitovich, TVLine, 4 Apr. 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 8 Apr. 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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Merriam-Webster unabridged
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