quickly
- 01 A1 Beginner
at a fast speed.
at a high rate of speed; rapidly.
Simple“She walked quickly to the bus stop because she was late for work.”
In context“The emergency services responded quickly to the call, arriving at the scene within minutes of the initial report.”
UsageTypically follows the verb it modifies, though it can precede it for emphasis.
PitfallHe ran quick to the station. He ran quickly to the station.In formal writing, use the adverb 'quickly' to describe an action rather than the adjective 'quick'.
- 02 A2 Elementary
after a very short time.
within a short space of time; soon.
Simple“The doctor said the medicine would work quickly to stop the pain.”
In context“The initial excitement surrounding the product launch faded quickly once consumers realised the software was still in its beta phase.”
Antonyms
Usage quickly became · quickly spread · quickly enough
From Middle English quykly, quikliche, quicliche, cwikliche, cwickliche, from Old English cwiculīċe. By surface analysis, quick + -ly.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.