| A |
You can use quite/pretty/rather/fairly + adjectives or adverbs. So you can say:
- It's quite cold.
- It's pretty cold.
- It's rather cold.
- It's fairly cold.
Quite/pretty/rather/fairly = less than 'very' but more than 'a little'.
|
| B |
Quite and pretty are similar in meaning:
- I'm surprised you haven't heard of her. She's quite famous / pretty famous. (= less than 'very famous', but more than 'a little famous')
- Anna lives quite near me, so we see each other pretty often.
Pretty is an informal word and is used mainly in spoken English.
Quite goes before a/an:
- We live in quite an old house. (not a quite old house)
Compare:
- Sarah has quite a good job.
Sarah has a pretty good job.
You can also use quite (but not pretty) in the following ways:
quite a/an + noun (without an adjective):
- I didn't expect to see them. It was quite a surprise. (= quite a big surprise)
quite a lot (of ... ):
- There were quite a lot of people at the meeting.
quite + verb, especially like and enjoy:
- I quite like tennis, but it's not my favourite sport.
|
| C |
Rather is similar to quite and pretty. We often use rather for negative ideas (things we think are not good):
- The weather isn't so good. It's rather cloudy.
- Paul is rather shy. He doesn't talk very much.
Quite and pretty are also possible in these examples.
When we use rather for positive ideas (good/nice etc.), it means 'unusually' or 'surprisingly':
- These oranges are rather good. Where did you get them?
|
| D |
Fairly is weaker than quite/rather/pretty. For example, if something is fairly good, it is not very good and it could be better:
- My room is fairly big, but I'd prefer a bigger one.
- We see each other fairly often, but not as often as we used to.
|
| E |
Quite also means 'completely'. For example:
- 'Are you sure?' 'Yes, quite sure.' (= completely sure)
Quite means 'completely' with a number of adjectives, especially:
sure certain right wrong true safe clear obvious different unnecessary incredible amazing extraordinary impossible
- She was quite different from what I expected. (= completely different)
- Everything t hey said was quite true. (= completely true)
We also use quite (= completely) with some verbs. For example:
- I quite agree with you. (= I completely agree)
Not quite = not completely:
- They haven't quite finished eating yet.
- I don't quite understand what you mean.
- 'Are you ready yet?' 'Not quite.' (= not completely)
|
