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Quiet or Quite?

Quiet

The noun quiet denotes a lack of or very little noise. It can also be used as an adjective.

Examples:

• I like fishing. I like the peace and quiet of being at sea. (Rafael Nadal)
(Here, quiet is a noun.)
• All men's miseries derive from not being able to sit in a quiet room alone. (Blaise Pascal)
(Here, the word quiet is an adjective.)
• Religion is excellent stuff for keeping common people quiet. (Napoleon Bonaparte)

Quite

The word quite is an adverb that most often means to the utmost extent. However, somewhat unusually, it can also mean fairly or to a significant extent, which is nearly the opposite. (The meaning is determined by context.)

Examples:

• How inappropriate to call this planet Earth when it is quite clearly ocean. (Arthur C. Clarke)
(Here, quite means to the utmost extent.)

• It is quite cold outside.
(Here, quite means to a significant extent.)

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