Q
noun
the 17th letter of the English alphabet, a consonant.
Q
1 American
[kyoo]
/ kju /
Or
q
noun
-
Q's,
plural
-
Qs,
plural
-
q's,
plural
-
qs
plural
-
the 17th letter of the English alphabet, a consonant.
-
any spoken sound represented by the letter Q or q, as in quick, acquit, or Iraq.
-
something having the shape of a Q .
-
a written or printed representation of the letter Q or q.
-
a device, as a printer's type, for reproducing the letter Q or q.
Q
2
American
Q
3
American
Symbol.
-
the 17th in order or in a series.
-
(sometimes lowercase) the medieval Roman numeral for 500.
-
Biochemistry. glutamine.
-
Physics. heat.
-
Thermodynamics. a unit of heat energy, equal to 10 18 British thermal units (1.055 × 10 21 joules).
-
Also called Q-factor. Electronics. the ratio of the reactance to the resistance of an electric circuit or component.
-
Biblical Criticism. the symbol for material common to the Gospels of Matthew and Luke that was not derived from the Gospel of Mark.
q.
4
American
abbreviation
q.
5
American
abbreviation
-
quart; quarts.
-
query.
-
question.
-
quintal.
-
quire.
Q.
6
American
abbreviation
-
quarto.
-
Quebec.
-
Queen.
-
question.
-
(in Guatemala) quetzal; quetzals.
Q
1
British
symbol
-
chess queen
-
question
-
physics heat
abbreviation
Q.
2
British
abbreviation
-
quartermaster
-
Also: q. quarto
-
Queen
-
question
q.
3
British
abbreviation
-
quart
-
quarter
-
quarterly
q
4
British
/ kjuː /
noun
-
the 17th letter and 13th consonant of the modern English alphabet
-
a speech sound represented by this letter, in English usually a voiceless velar stop, as in unique and quick
q
5
British
symbol
q
Idioms
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of q.
From the Latin word quadrāns
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The use of Q phrases by government agencies during wartime has excited online conspiracy theorists.
From Salon ● Aug. 28, 2026
I was given the chance to go behind the scenes and speak to some of those behind the success of Dept Q.
From BBC ● Aug. 26, 2026
Through this partnership, robot delivery is now available to nearly 200 local restaurants, including Sushi Q, the Indian Kitchen and Mel & Rose.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 17, 2026
Q: Why didn’t you mention the Travel to Europe app?
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026
In the summer of 1977, after a lecture and a long Q & A in a Midtown Manhattan bookstore, I was approached by a middle-aged man with an accent much like my own.
From "Class Matters" by The New York Times
Flowers the subjects either of regular or irregular peloria, q. v., are often destitute of some or all their stamens, e.g.
From Vegetable Teratology An Account of the Principal Deviations from the Usual Construction of Plants by Maxwell T. Masters
Frondescence of the petals has been observed most frequently in the following cases; some, perhaps, were cases merely of virescence, q. v.; see also under Chloranthy, Prolification.
From Vegetable Teratology An Account of the Principal Deviations from the Usual Construction of Plants by Maxwell T. Masters
Bacula of E. q. hopiensis from northeastern Arizona are like those in typical E. q. quadrivittatus.
From The Baculum in the Chipmunks of Western North America by John A. White
Although both species occur in some of the same areas, E. q. hopiensis is more abundant than is E. minimus in stands of pinyon and juniper, along cliffs, and at low elevations.
From Mammals of Mesa Verde National Park, Colorado by Sydney Anderson
Of similar import to "Ne'er draw your dirk," q. v.
From The Proverbs of Scotland by Alexander Hislop
It’s one thing to have John Q. Public, who reads and watches certain news outlets where you’ve appeared, mistake you for someone else.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 23, 2025
“He’s obviously a talented politician,” said Q. Whitfield Ayres, a GOP pollster with extensive campaign experience in Georgia and other presidential swing states.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 9, 2025
Air Force Gen. Charles Q. Brown Jr., the fired Joint Chiefs chairman, is the second Black general to serve in the role.
From Slate ● Feb. 25, 2025
Signs of bird flu in cats include runny nose and discharge around the eyes, explained Michael Q. Bailey, president-elect of the American Veterinary Medical Association.
From Salon ● Feb. 12, 2025
“This is my colleague, Q. Q, this is Gus.”
From "Paper Towns" by John Green
The Fed Board in Washington oversees supervision of large regional banks like SVB, and Fed Vice Chair Michael Barr is undertaking a review of what went wrong to be published on May q.
From Reuters ● Apr. 12, 2023
The letters q, p, d and b are all shaped identically but rotated, and some have argued serifs make them easier to identify.
From New York Times ● Jan. 19, 2023
First show that q is in static equilibrium.
From Textbooks ● Aug. 12, 2015
The electrostatic or Coulomb force is conservative, which means that the work done on q is independent of the path taken.
From Textbooks ● Aug. 12, 2015
But the q in Jacqueline is too hard so I write Jackie Woodson for the first time.
From "Brown Girl Dreaming" by Jacqueline Woodson
Q’s posts also stopped, leaving many followers adrift.
From Salon ● Jul. 21, 2025
“Justin, he’s throwing to him a lot,” Roman said, “and Q’s answering the call.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 11, 2025
It is not disputed that Child Q's sanitary pad was thereby exposed.
From BBC ● Jun. 3, 2025
Just across the parking lot from Station Q’s new office, a third kind of Majorana hunt is underway.
From Science Magazine ● Dec. 20, 2023
I search my memory for this Uncle Q’s story—his name has come up several times before but I’ve never met him, never seen him, until now.
From "American Street" by Ibi Zoboi
It reintroduced Suzy Qs, a snack cake that resembles an ice cream sandwich, and launched Fritter Rings, which the CEO said bring a “country fair kind of vibe.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 8, 2026
"We've got a whole line of Qs doing really cool stuff in the tech space who are women," he said.
From BBC ● Mar. 4, 2024
Your Qs aren’t hard, but when you’re obnoxious, we answer other reporters’ Qs.”
From Washington Times ● Jan. 24, 2020
“He’s definitely on his Ps and Qs as far as pass protection,” Talib said of Anderson.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 19, 2018
Some Os and Qs and Cs long and narrow.
From "One Crazy Summer" by Rita Williams-Garcia
Viewed this way, minding our p’s and q’s is less about proscriptive notions of correctness, and more about mindfulness, self-discovery and proper conduct.
From Seattle Times ● Sep. 7, 2023
Being aware of how to mind your p's and q's in each of those places is essential to getting by or possibly moving up in the world.
From Salon ● Nov. 24, 2022
For parents worried that virtual assistants are encouraging bad manners in children, it’ll be a good way to prod the little ones to remember their p’s and q’s.
From The Verge ● Nov. 29, 2018
"That's the biggest adjustment. It makes me lock in defensively. I know I have to be on my p's and q's."
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 8, 2018
She snaps back, “Now, you just mind your own p’s and q’s there!”
From "Shouting at the Rain" by Lynda Mullaly Hunt
E-Mili 1st 3 qs wasted but 4th was a vg one.
From BBC ● Jan. 23, 2013
After the camera pans to the board – which has the words 'shaqattack', 'shaqalici', 'shaquesque' and, yes, 'shaqfu' on it – Shaq is asked: "How do you get so many qs?"
From The Guardian ● Oct. 12, 2012
He minds not only the ps and qs of acting but the entire alphabet of stagecraft.
From Time Magazine Archive
Diana is closeted in Clarence House, the residence of the Queen Mother, getting a cram course in monarchical ps and qs.
From Time Magazine Archive
For instance, there were twenty ss, and only two qs.
From The Adventures of Bobby Orde by Worth Brehm
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
