26984 words

quarter

22 definitions • 24 examples
1
one of four equal or almost equal parts of something; ¼:

Examples:

He cut the orange into quarters.
Under a quarter of people questioned said that they were happily married.
My house is situated a mile and three-quarters from here.
2
15 minutes:

Examples:

I waited a quarter of an hour and then went home.
3
15 minutes before two, three, etc.:

Examples:

It was a quarter to six when I left.
4
15 minutes after two, three, etc.:

Examples:

I'll meet you at a quarter past five.
5
one of four periods of time into which a year is divided for financial calculations, such as for profits or taxes:

Examples:

There was a fall in unemployment in the second quarter of the year.
I get an electricity bill every quarter.
6
one of four periods in a game of American football and other ball sports
7
in the US and Canada, a coin worth 25 cents
8
an area of a town where a particular group of people live or work or where a particular activity happens:

Examples:

This is the bustling commercial quarter of the city.
9
one or more people who provide help, information, or a particular reaction to something but who are not usually named:

Examples:

Help came from an unexpected quarter.
There is a feeling in certain/some quarters (= some people consider) that a change is needed.
10
a room or house that has been provided, especially for servants or soldiers and their families, to live in:

Examples:

married quarters The army's married quarters are just outside the town.
11
a house or other place to live that has been provided by a company for an employee
12
the fact of being kind towards or forgiving an enemy or opponent:

Examples:

We can expect no quarter from our enemies.
He gave no quarter to anyone that disappointed him.
13
to cut something into four parts
14
to send someone, especially soldiers, to live in a place:

Examples:

The soldiers were quartered with (= they lived with) local people during the war.
15
one of four equal or almost equal parts of something:

Examples:

My house is one and three-quarter miles/a mile and three-quarters from here.
16
A quarter of/to the hour means 15 minutes before the stated hour:

Examples:

It’s a quarter to three.
17
A quarter past/after the hour means 15 minutes after the stated hour:

Examples:

I’ll meet you at a quarter past five.
18
A quarter is one of four equal or nearly equal periods of time into which an activity is divided:

Examples:

Many universities divide the school year into quarters rather than two semesters.
19
in the US and Canada, a coin worth 25 cents
20
an area of a city or place having a special history or character:

Examples:

We stayed in the French Quarter in New Orleans.
21
to divide something into four pieces of approximately the same size:

Examples:

Peel and quarter the tomatoes and put them in the stew.
22
a period of three months in a company's financial year:

Examples:

Sales have climbed significantly each quarter.
Unquoted companies accounted for 23% of assets at the end of the last quarter.
first/second/third quarter The fall was 8% in the first quarter and only 2% in the second.

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