quit

[kwit]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR quit ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object), quit or quit·ted, quit·ting.

to stop, cease, or discontinue: She quit what she was doing to help me paint the house.

to depart from; leave (a place or person): They quit the city for the seashore every summer.

to give up or resign; let go; relinquish: He quit his claim to the throne. She quit her job.

to release one's hold of (something grasped).

to acquit or conduct (oneself).

to free or rid (oneself): to quit oneself of doubts.

to clear (a debt); repay.

verb (used without object), quit or quit·ted, quit·ting.

to cease from doing something; stop.

to give up or resign one's job or position: He keeps threatening to quit.

to depart or leave.

to stop trying, struggling, or the like; accept or acknowledge defeat.

adjective

released from obligation, penalty, etc.; free, clear, or rid (usually followed by of): quit of all further responsibilities.

Origin of quit

1175–1225; (adj.) Middle English quit(te) exempt, freed, acquitted of (< Old French quite) < Medieval Latin quittus, by-form of quītus (≫ Middle English quit(e); see quite), for Latin quiētus quiet¹; (v.) Middle English quit(t)en to pay, acquit oneself < Old French quit(t)er < Medieval Latin quittāre, quiētāre to release, discharge, Late Latin quiētare to put to rest, quiet¹

Related formsquit·ta·ble, adjectiveun·quit·ted, adjective

Can be confusedquiet quit quite

Synonyms for quit

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR quit ON THESAURUS.COM

3. surrender, release. 12. acquitted, discharged.

Antonyms for quit

1, 8. start. 2. enter.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for quitting

relinquish, surrender, depart, renounce, retire, go, withdraw, vacate, drop, suspend, halt, conclude, discontinue, terminate, leave, cease, abandon, blow, evacuate, abdicate

Examples from the Web for quitting

Contemporary Examples of quitting

Editors were apoplectic, and they showed it by quitting en masse, leaving Mays to pick up the pieces.
It Was All a Dream: Drama, Bullshit, and the Rebirth of The Source Magazine
Alex Suskind
October 14, 2014
Back in 2005, those two factors contributed to him quitting his television program and leaving behind $50 million.
Dave Chappelle’s Triumphant Return to New York City
Alex Suskind
June 19, 2014
Old times, where Ramirez was often accused of quitting on his team, sulking and not putting out his full effort, were forgotten.
Why Do We Forgive Manny Ramirez for Being Manny?
Allen Barra
June 11, 2014
Yet five years ago, Herman reveals, he had had enough and thought about quitting.
Exclusive: ‘X-Men’ Sex Abuse Lawyer Says He Was Assaulted, Too
Tim Teeman
May 6, 2014
Robinson sat down with The Daily Beast on Thursday for his first major interview since quitting the EDL.
Exclusive: Tommy Robinson, a Prominent British Voice of Hate, Apologizes
Nico Hines
October 11, 2013

Historical Examples of quitting

I felt more, in quitting this ship, than I did in quitting Halifax.
Ned Myers
James Fenimore Cooper
After quitting the light, we made the best of our way for the town.
Ned Myers
James Fenimore Cooper
The idea of remaining in the brig was unpleasant to me, and I had thought of quitting her for some days.
Ned Myers
James Fenimore Cooper
I cannot give any reason but caprice for quitting this ship.
Ned Myers
James Fenimore Cooper
The men did not relish the idea of quitting the spot; but, after some talk, they came into my plan.
Ned Myers
James Fenimore Cooper

British Dictionary definitions for quitting

quit

verb quits or quitting or quitted or mainly US quit

(tr) to depart from; leavehe quitted the place hastily

to resign; give up (a job)he quitted his job today

(intr) (of a tenant) to give up occupancy of premises and leave themthey received notice to quit

to desist or cease from (something or doing something); break offquit laughing

(tr) to pay off (a debt); discharge or settle

(tr) archaic to conduct or acquit (oneself); comport (oneself)he quits himself with great dignity

adjective

(usually predicative foll by of) free (from); released (from)he was quit of all responsibility for their safety

Word Origin for quit

C13: from Old French quitter, from Latin quiētus quiet; see quietus

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for quitting

quit

adj.

c.1200, "free, clear" (of debt, etc.), from Old French quite, quitte "free, clear, entire, at liberty; discharged; unmarried," from Medieval Latin quitus, quittus, from Latin quietus "free" (in Medieval Latin "free from war, debts, etc."), also "calm, resting" (see quiet (adj.)).

quit

c.1200, "to repay, discharge" (a debt, etc.), from Old French quiter "clear, establish one's innocence;" also transitive, "release, let go, relinquish, abandon" (12c.), from quite (see quit (adj.)).

Meaning "to reward, give reward" is mid-13c., that of "take revenge; to answer, retort" and "to acquit oneself" are late 14c. From c.1300 as "to acquit (of a charge), declare not guilty." Sense of "leave, depart" is attested from c.1400; that of "stop" (doing something) is from 1640s. Meaning "to give up, relinquish" is from mid-15c. Related: Quitted; quitting. Quitting time is from 1835.

Idioms and Phrases with quitting

quit

In addition to the idiom beginning with quit

quite a bit
quit while one's ahead

also see:

call it quits