Quick
/kwɪk/noun
Moving or happening with great speed; also, alive or lively.
Did you know?In Old English, quick could mean “living,” which is why the phrase “the quick and the dead” originally meant the living and the dead, not just speed versus stillness.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*gʷeyh₃-
“to live, be alive”
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
*kwikwaz
“alive, living”
Old English
OE
cwic
“alive, living; active, vigorous”
Middle English
ME
quik
“alive; moving rapidly, brisk”
Modern English
English
quick
“fast; lively; alive in set phrases”
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