Quite a good lesson to learn

[girlyswot]

Among the many linguistic differences between the US and the UK, the use of the word 'quite' is one of the most subtle and least known, I think.

In the US, 'quite' means 'very, completely'. Merriam-Webster has, 'wholly, completely, positively.'

In the UK, 'quite' can have this sense, though often in the negative. 'I'm not quite done yet' = 'I'm not completely done yet.'

However, in the UK 'quite' is much more often used to indicate something completely different. The online Cambridge dictionary gives as the first definition of 'quite', 'Not very.' I'm not sure that's exactly right. I'd say that 'quite' means 'fairly', 'nearly', or 'moderately'. But it is very often used with a negative, deprecating overtone, which means that it does end up meaning something more like 'Not very'.

So a school report in the UK that said a child was 'quite good' at something, should not be taken as glowing praise but as a slightly pointed put down. Similarly if we say that something is 'quite interesting' we're really saying 'Shut up and get to the point.'

Obviously, this information is quite interesting in its own right, but I really mention it here because I've had a number of reviews and comments which I've had to do a double take on. When someone I knew, who had previously told me how much they enjoyed my work, first left a comment on a story of mine to say that it was 'quite good' or 'quite clever', I was slightly taken aback. It wasn't until months later that I realised she meant it quite differently(!) from the way I had understood it. And I'm guessing that there will be others who have had similar experiences and may have been unintentionally discouraged.



Separated by a common language? Quite.

Comments

[girlyswot.livejournal.com]

You might read 'quite' as meaning 'moderately' but when I was writing school reports, that wasn't necessarily what I intended...

But even so, 'moderately' is not 'wholly' or 'very', which is, I think, the only meaning the word takes in the 'US'.

[coughingbear]

In UK English I suppose we might get near the US meaning by saying 'quite quite brilliant' (if we were in a 1920s novel, anyway).

[girlyswot.livejournal.com]

I say that all the time. Maybe I should be in a 1920's novel.

[sam-t.livejournal.com]

Definitely agree about the UK and US meanings being different, but I still think that the UK meaning in the absence of other information is usually 'moderately'. The trouble is that, at least in the examples I can think of offhand, it seems to be enormously sensitive to context. For example:

"I'm quite worried about my exams" = "I'm very worried about my exams", but only because the listener expects emotional descriptions to be understated.
"I think that film is quite good" = "It brightened a dull afternoon but I wouldn't necessarily buy the DVD."
"I think that film is quite good, actually" = "Say that about my favourite film again, why don't you?"
"What do you think of the cake I made you, dear?" "Quite good." = Depends entirely on tone of voice; it may be a put-down of the 'least positive comment I can get away with' type.
"You say that quite a lot, don't you?" = Row tactics on the order of 'you always...' and 'you never...'.

When were the school reports written, and for what sort of academic expectations? I'd honestly be surprised if I was the only person to have a scale going 'could do better' < 'competent' < 'quite good' < 'good' < 'excellent'.

[girlyswot.livejournal.com]

Definitely agree about the UK and US meanings being different, but I still think that the UK meaning in the absence of other information is usually 'moderately'. The trouble is that, at least in the examples I can think of offhand, it seems to be enormously sensitive to context.

Yes, I think this was what I was trying to say. I think the basic definition is something like 'fairly, nearly or moderately'. But it is so often dependent on things like tone and context and is very often used with negative connotations.

The school where I wrote reports had a policy of having to say at least one positive thing about each student. Sometimes that was quite(!) difficult, and the word 'quite' with its natural ambiguity came in very handy. 'X is quite good at algebra but...'

[sam-t.livejournal.com]

Ah. That makes it much clearer. If it's the one positive thing in a report, it's not too hard to spot "The best thing I can say about you is that you're not absolutely incompetent at algebra, and I had to have my arm twisted to say that". People who aren't familiar with the 'one positive thing' strategy would still spot that as a consolation prize, I think.