quick

[ kwik ]
/ kwɪk /
SEE SYNONYMS FOR quick ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective, quick·er, quick·est.

noun

adverb, quick·er, quick·est.

quickly.

Idioms for quick

    cut to the quick, to injure deeply; hurt the feelings of: Their callous treatment cut her to the quick.

Origin of quick

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 (see vital), Sanskrit jivas living, Greek bíos life (see bio-), zoḗ animal life (see zoo-)

SYNONYMS FOR quick

1 fleet, expeditious. 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.
5 abrupt, curt, short, precipitate.
7 nimble, agile, brisk.
10 See sharp.
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ANTONYMS FOR quick

1, 10 slow.
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usage note for quick

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.

OTHER WORDS FROM quick

quick·ness, noun un·quick, adjective un·quick·ly, adverb un·quick·ness, noun

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH quick

fast quick rapid swift (see synonym study at the current entry) quick quickly (see usage note at the current entry)

Words nearby quick

quiberon, quiche, quiche lorraine, quichua, quiché, quick, quick and the dead, quick as a wink, quick assets, quick bread, quick draw

Words related to cut to the quick

annoy, curse, taunt, ridicule, irritate, slander, libel, outrage, provoke, mock, humiliate, offend, revile, persecute, insult, criticize, decry, squelch, discredit, deride

British Dictionary definitions for cut to the quick

Derived forms of quick

quickly, adverb quickness, noun

Word Origin for quick

Old English cwicu living; related to Old Saxon quik, Old High German queck, Old Norse kvikr alive, Latin vīvus alive, Greek bios life

Medical definitions for cut to the quick

quick
[ kwĭk ]

n.

Sensitive or raw exposed flesh, as under the fingernails.

adj.

Pregnant.
Alive.

Idioms and Phrases with cut to the quick (1 of 2)

cut to the quick

Deeply wound or distress, as in His criticism cut her to the quick. This phrase uses the quick in the sense of a vital or a very sensitive part of the body, such as under the fingernails. It also appeared in such older locutions as touched to the quick, for “deeply affected,” and stung to the quick, for “wounded, distressed,” both dating from the early 1500s. The current expression was considered a cliché from about 1850 on.

Idioms and Phrases with cut to the quick (2 of 2)

quick