quick
Americanadjective
-
quicker,
comparative
-
quickest
superlative
-
done, proceeding, or occurring with promptness or rapidity, as an action, process, etc.; prompt; immediate.
a quick response.
- Synonyms:
- expeditious, fleet
- Antonyms:
- slow
-
that is over or completed within a short interval of time.
a quick shower.
-
moving, or able to move, with speed.
a quick fox; a quick train.
-
swift or rapid, as motion.
a quick flick of the wrist.
-
easily provoked or excited; hasty.
a quick temper.
- Synonyms:
- precipitate, short, curt, abrupt
-
keenly responsive; lively; acute.
a quick wit.
-
acting with swiftness or rapidity.
a quick worker.
-
prompt or swift to do something.
quick to respond.
-
prompt to perceive; sensitive.
a quick eye.
-
prompt to understand, learn, etc.; of ready intelligence.
a quick student.
- Antonyms:
- slow
-
(of a bend or curve) sharp.
a quick bend in the road.
-
consisting of living plants.
a quick pot of flowers.
-
brisk, as fire, flames, heat, etc.
-
Archaic.
-
endowed with life.
-
having a high degree of vigor, energy, or activity.
-
noun
-
living persons.
the quick and the dead.
-
the tender, sensitive flesh of the living body, especially that under the nails.
nails bitten down to the quick.
-
the vital or most important part.
-
Chiefly British.
-
a line of shrubs or plants, especially of hawthorn, forming a hedge.
-
a single shrub or plant in such a hedge.
-
adverb
idioms
adjective
-
(of an action, movement, etc) performed or occurring during a comparatively short time
a quick move
-
lasting a comparatively short time; brief
a quick flight
-
accomplishing something in a time that is shorter than normal
a quick worker
-
characterized by rapidity of movement; swift or fast
a quick walker
-
immediate or prompt
a quick reply
-
(postpositive) eager or ready to perform (an action)
quick to criticize
-
responsive to stimulation; perceptive or alert; lively
a quick eye
-
eager or enthusiastic for learning
a quick intelligence
-
easily excited or aroused
a quick temper
-
skilfully swift or nimble in one's movements or actions; deft
quick fingers
-
archaic
-
alive; living
-
(as noun) living people (esp in the phrase the quick and the dead )
-
-
archaic lively or eager
a quick dog
-
(of a fire) burning briskly
-
composed of living plants
a quick hedge
-
dialect (of sand) lacking firmness through being wet
-
archaic pregnant, esp being in an advanced state of pregnancy, when the movements of the fetus can be felt
noun
-
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
-
the vital or most important part (of a thing)
-
short for quickset
-
to hurt someone's feelings deeply; offend gravely
adverb
-
in a rapid or speedy manner; swiftly
-
soon
I hope he comes quick
interjection
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.
Synonym Usage
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
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Adjectives
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 vÄ«vus “living” ( see vital), Sanskrit jivas “living,” Greek bĂos “life” ( see bio-), zoḗ “animal life” ( see zoo-)
Explanation
If you are quick, you move with speed. You may be a quick runner or "a quick study" — if you tend to learn things quickly. The adjective quick can also mean brief and fleeting — as in a quick visit or a quick trip to the store. Quick also means without delay: "You'll need to jot a quick reply to the party invitation." The noun quick is a whole other story; it's a highly sensitive bit of skin, especially the skin under the fingernails or toe nails. Be careful not to chew your nails down to the quick — especially your toe nails.
Vocabulary lists containing quick
Scrabble: Words that Begin with Q
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Fast
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Fast
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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.
See Examples For:
This was achieved using many of the same methods, including quick and organised starts, having equipment ready for use and clear communication across the team.
From BBC â—Ź Oct. 15, 2026
With hundreds of millions of dollars being pumped into the ecosystem at once, and ad-makers earning astounding sums of cash for their quick work, you’re going to get a lot of slop.
From Slate â—Ź Oct. 15, 2026
Rates have “just gone up so quick, it’s really just kind of sucked the air it seems out of the market,” he said.
From The Wall Street Journal â—Ź Oct. 13, 2026
He is still quick to mention that he has never won an Emmy, though now with more humor than bitterness.
From Los Angeles Times â—Ź Oct. 13, 2026
A quick look at my phone tells me it’s nine thirty.
From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam
"Markets too had all but priced out a hike later this month but repriced for the Fed to move a bit quicker after US inflation came in a little hotter than expected."
From Barron's â—Ź Oct. 15, 2026
“Tariffs are lower than the levels we saw earlier this year and last, giving importers more certainty on cost and allowing them to replenish inventories at a quicker rate.”
From Los Angeles Times â—Ź Oct. 12, 2026
Wolff said: "We don't know which one is going to be quicker."
From BBC â—Ź Oct. 9, 2026
“This week was indicative of some restiveness and a desire among the base to see concrete policy for Palestinian liberation and quicker progress on some policing promises,” said Gordillo.
From The Wall Street Journal â—Ź Oct. 9, 2026
It meant a quicker exit, and that was the only hope Moss allowed himself.
From "Anger Is a Gift" by Mark Oshiro
This is by no means the fastest or quickest PWC you can buy.
From The Wall Street Journal â—Ź Oct. 10, 2026
It was Khachanov who settled quickest into the tie-break, opening up a lead and creating two set points - both of which were saved by Zverev.
From BBC â—Ź Sep. 11, 2026
And the Italian, who leads Hamilton and Russell in the championship by 59 points, was the quickest on the race-simulation runs towards the end of the session.
From BBC â—Ź Sep. 4, 2026
The quickest way to lose control is to believe artificial intelligence is human.
From The Wall Street Journal â—Ź Sep. 1, 2026
“Yes, Butler. Cover. I thought speaking in primal terms would be the quickest route to your cognitive functions. Obviously I was mistaken.”
From "Artemis Fowl" by Eoin Colfer
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
