quarters
Britishplural noun
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housing or accommodation, esp as provided for military personnel and their families
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the stations assigned to military personnel, esp to each crew member of a warship
general quarters
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(in India) housing provided by an employer or by the government
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slang (functioning as singular) military short for quartermaster
Explanation
A place for people to live, especially if they're in the military, can be called quarters. If you join the Army, your quarters might be a dorm-like space that you share with many other people. You can use this word to mean "housing" generally, although it's most common for soldiers and servants to live in quarters. A wealthy family with maids and a butler who live in their house might set aside servants' quarters on the top floor, for example. During the period of slavery in the US, slaves also lived in quarters. If you and your brother live in "close quarters," it means the two of you share a fairly small room.
Vocabulary lists containing quarters
I Survived the Sinking of the Titanic, 1912
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The Lion of Mars
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Three Keys
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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.
Many of the companies that report semiannually also give some update to investors on the off quarters, sometimes in the form of sales or revenue updates.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 17, 2026
They mix in large numbers at close quarters, while sharing kitchens, accommodation and going on nights out.
From BBC ● Jul. 17, 2026
Canada entered a technical recession earlier this year, after reporting two consecutive quarters of economic contraction.
From Barron's ● Jul. 15, 2026
The property includes a stable with 35-foot ceilings, eight stalls, and an upstairs grooms’ quarters.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 13, 2026
We found quarters in her coat pocket, a dollar in an old purse, and pennies in the tray in the living room.
From "The Tenth Mistake of Hank Hooperman" by Gennifer Choldenko
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.
