quick

American  

[kwik] / kwɪk /

adjective

quicker, quickest

1. done, proceeding, or occurring with promptness or rapidity, as an action, process, etc.; prompt; immediate.

   a quick response.

   Synonyms:

   expeditious, fleet

   Antonyms:

   slow

2. that is over or completed within a short interval of time.

   a quick shower.

3. moving, or able to move, with speed.

   a quick fox; a quick train.

4. swift or rapid, as motion.

   a quick flick of the wrist.

5. easily provoked or excited; hasty.

   a quick temper.

   Synonyms:

   precipitate, short, curt, abrupt

6. keenly responsive; lively; acute.

   a quick wit.

7. acting with swiftness or rapidity.

   a quick worker.

   Synonyms:

   brisk, agile, nimble

8. prompt or swift to do something.

   quick to respond.

9. prompt to perceive; sensitive.

   a quick eye.

10. prompt to understand, learn, etc.; of ready intelligence.

    a quick student.

    Antonyms:

    slow

11. (of a bend or curve) sharp.

    a quick bend in the road.

12. consisting of living plants.

    a quick pot of flowers.

13. brisk, as fire, flames, heat, etc.

14. Archaic.

    1. endowed with life.

    2. having a high degree of vigor, energy, or activity.

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noun

1. living persons.

   the quick and the dead.

2. the tender, sensitive flesh of the living body, especially that under the nails.

   nails bitten down to the quick.

3. the vital or most important part.

4. Chiefly British.

   1. a line of shrubs or plants, especially of hawthorn, forming a hedge.

   2. a single shrub or plant in such a hedge.

adverb

quicker, quickest

1. quickly.

idioms

1. cut to the quick, to injure deeply; hurt the feelings of.

   Their callous treatment cut her to the quick.

quick British  

/ kwɪk /

adjective

1. (of an action, movement, etc) performed or occurring during a comparatively short time

   a quick move

2. lasting a comparatively short time; brief

   a quick flight

3. accomplishing something in a time that is shorter than normal

   a quick worker

4. characterized by rapidity of movement; swift or fast

   a quick walker

5. immediate or prompt

   a quick reply

6. (postpositive) eager or ready to perform (an action)

   quick to criticize

7. responsive to stimulation; perceptive or alert; lively

   a quick eye

8. eager or enthusiastic for learning

   a quick intelligence

9. easily excited or aroused

   a quick temper

10. skilfully swift or nimble in one's movements or actions; deft

    quick fingers

11. archaic

    1. alive; living

    2. (as noun) living people (esp in the phrase the quick and the dead )

12. archaic lively or eager

    a quick dog

13. (of a fire) burning briskly

14. composed of living plants

    a quick hedge

15. dialect (of sand) lacking firmness through being wet

16. archaic pregnant, esp being in an advanced state of pregnancy, when the movements of the fetus can be felt

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noun

1. any area of living flesh that is highly sensitive to pain or touch, esp that under a toenail or fingernail or around a healing wound

2. the vital or most important part (of a thing)

3. short for quickset

4. to hurt someone's feelings deeply; offend gravely

adverb

1. in a rapid or speedy manner; swiftly

2. soon

   I hope he comes quick

interjection

1. a command requiring the hearer to perform an action immediately or in as short a time as possible

quick More Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing quick

• (quick) on the uptake
• cut to the quick

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Commonly Confused

The difference between the adverbial forms quick and quickly is frequently stylistic. Quick is more often used in short spoken sentences, especially imperative ones: Come quick! The chimney is on fire. Quickly is the usual form in writing, both in the preverb position ( We quickly realized that attempts to negotiate would be futile ) and following verbs other than imperatives ( She turned quickly and left ). See also slow, sure.

Related Words

Quick, fast, swift, rapid describe speedy tempo. Quick applies particularly to something practically instantaneous, an action or reaction, perhaps, of very brief duration: to give a quick look around; to take a quick walk. Fast and swift refer to actions, movements, etc., that continue for a time, and usually to those that are uninterrupted; when used of communication, transportation, and the like, they suggest a definite goal and a continuous trip. Swift, the more formal word, suggests the greater speed: a fast train; a swift message. Rapid, less speedy than the others, applies to a rate of movement or action, and usually to a series of actions or movements, related or unrelated: rapid calculation; a rapid walker. See sharp.

Other Word Forms

• quickly adverb
• quickness noun
• unquick adjective
• unquickly adverb
• unquickness noun

Etymology

Origin of quick

First recorded before 900; Middle English quik “lively, moving, swift”; Old English cwic, cwicu “living”; cognate with Old Saxon quik, German queck, keck, Old Norse kvikr; akin to Latin vīvus “living” ( vital ), Sanskrit jivas “living,” Greek bíos “life” ( bio- ), zoḗ “animal life” ( zoo- )

Example Sentences

There was no doubt that his Red Bull wasn’t as quick as the otherwise dominant McLaren, but McLaren’s was facing an issue more tactical than mechanical.

From The Wall Street Journal

Some users praised its capabilities for quick tasks but said they still rely on bigger AI models like those from Anthropic for more complex work.

From The Wall Street Journal

During a game, competitors are given files of jumbled data and scenarios or 'cases' that require sorting, based on a question, within the quickest time.

From BBC

Production swung into expansion in November, though employment fell at a quicker pace.

From The Wall Street Journal

"I went in quicker but not massively different. A shame to lose the place because it would have been two more points."

From BBC

Related Words

• abrupt
• active
• agile
• brief
• brisk
• cursory
• energetic
• expeditious
• hasty
• hurried
• immediate
• instantaneous
• keen
• nimble
• rapid
• sudden
• swift