# quit

/ˈkwɪt/ (US) · /kwˈɪt/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/quit
Updated: 2026-06-19

## Senses

### 1. to stop an activity

verb · CEFR B1

to stop doing something, especially a habit or a difficult task.

For teachers: to cease a particular action or habit. Often used with a gerund or as an intransitive verb.

- He decided to quit smoking for the sake of his health.
- After years of frustration with the project's lack of progress, the lead researcher finally decided to quit and pursue other interests.

### 2. to leave a job

verb · CEFR B1

to tell your employer that you are leaving your job.

For teachers: to resign from a position of employment or office.

- She quit her job because she wanted to travel the world.
- The CEO unexpectedly quit following the board's decision to restructure the entire international division.

### 3. to close a program

verb · CEFR B1

to close a computer application or software.

For teachers: to terminate a running software application or process.

- Make sure you save your work before you quit the program.
- If the application becomes unresponsive, you may need to force the system to quit the process manually.

### 4. to leave a place

verb · CEFR C1 · Formal · Literary

to leave a place permanently.

For teachers: to depart from or leave a location. Often carries a formal or literary tone in modern usage.

- The soldiers were ordered to quit the fort by midnight.
- The tenant was served a formal notice to quit the premises within thirty days due to unpaid rent.

### 5. free from something

adjective · CEFR C2 · British English · Formal

to be finished with or free from something annoying.

For teachers: released from an obligation, debt, or unpleasant situation; typically used in the phrase 'be quit of'.

- I am glad to be quit of that troublesome business at last.
- Having settled the final accounts, the executor was finally quit of his responsibilities to the estate.

Usage: Usually follows the verb 'to be' and takes the preposition 'of'.

## Examples

- I decided to quit my job and travel the world.
- You should save your work before you quit the application to avoid losing any data.
- The lead developer chose to quit the project after a series of disagreements regarding the software's architecture, leaving the team to find a replacement mid-cycle.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.