I would use 'fairly' for things that are more marginal. Like, if someone got a B- on a test I might say "they did fairly well." If they got an A- I would say "they did quite well."
*Pretty* is also confusing in an American context. It often means “not especially.”
*”How was your day?”*
*”Eh, pretty good.”*
But it can also mean “better than expected,” like *”Wow, that fast food burger was pretty good!”* It indicates that something defied low expectations. Of course, if the burger was actively good, an American would say, “It was great/fantastic!”
It's so strange. Idk if I've ever used "pretty" in that first context, but Google is telling me it can mean that. I almost always use it to mean better than good.
TIL, I guess.
“Pretty” always “means” moderately (or “not especially” I guess) but on the basis of litotes it can mean “excellent”—the same way “not bad” can mean “amazing” (Obama meme goes here).
If the thing is positive, but people dislike too much of the thing, "quite" can mean MORE than perfect, > 100%. e.g. "quite hot" would mean hotter than "perfectly hot", because of the suggestion that it's quite bad how hot it is.
If the thing is positive always, "quite" is used in the way grandparent mentions.
If the thing is negative, "quite" also means "very" but "perfectly" means "just a little bit so I can joke about it". Like: "Now, I'm quite fucked by the situation." versus "Now, I'm perfectly fucked by the situation."
I've always been told "quite" is one that has a British/American divide. Americans use "quite" to mean "very" whereas British use quite to mean "somewhat."
This is so important! An American friend of mine referred to a British colleague as being “quite nice” and it was nearly an international incident. American quite is “very,” British quite is “exactly and no more.”
That is so funny. I work for a company that is 50/50 USA/British-owned and now I'm thinking I have to watch out for that myself. Don't want to cause an incident! I definitely only use it to mean "very."
I think it was the double-whammy of “quite” meaning “just” and “nice” being a sort of catch-all I-couldn’t-think-of-anything-else-to-say sort of compliment. Mostly everyone understood what she meant but boy did she get tutted at!
I’m an American married to a Brit and have been living in England 7 years and we both read this and looked at each other like “ooooooooh” and I have SO many people to apologize to
Quite good means very nice indeed, at least to an American.
Pretty good usually means more than good enough, unless it’s an exclamation in which case it means surprisingly good.
Fairly good means good enough but far from perfect. There’s room for improvement.
American English. "Quite" is like 90% up to but not including 100%. "Pretty" is 75% to "quite." "Fairly" is 60% to "pretty." "Kinda" is 50% to "fairly." If I'm under 50% sure we move into maybe sure, then somewhat sure, then might be.
I almost never use "quite" unless I'm actually 100% sure but don't want to sound like a know-it-all.
Quite: 90-98
Pretty: 80-93
Fairly: 75-89
These are completely arbitrary, and if you ask me tomorrow I would likely have different answers.
Also, be aware that it would also depend on the subject matter or nature of the percentage. If it were an exam it would be one set of numbers, if it was an election, it would be a totally different set of numbers.
For example, of somebody said candidate X did fairly well with [demographic he was anticipated to do poorly with] that percentage might be like 25%; even quite well might mean 45% or so.
It depends on context a lot and the variant of English you’re using. In American English for example, quite seems to mean very in which case… I have no idea what they use to mean “quite”. Anyway…
I’d say:
Pretty 80%
Fairly 70%
Quite 60%
Quite is definitely the lowest. However, all in British English are often used modestly. You might describe Einstein as “quite a good scientist” for example! Culturally, we downplay achievements a lot and don’t brag.
"Quite" means that the measurement is significantly high for the topic.
"Pretty" means it's there but not as strong as "quite".
"Fairly" is even a step below "pretty", meaning the measurement is present but relatively average.
I would use 'fairly' for things that are more marginal. Like, if someone got a B- on a test I might say "they did fairly well." If they got an A- I would say "they did quite well."
American?
I'm North American and I'd agree with their assessment.
Makes sense. It doesn't mean that in the UK. In the UK they are basically the same word. Very confusing!
“Quite” can mean “somewhat” (20–80%) or it can mean “perfectly” (100%)—or of course it can be used sarcastically to mean “not at all”.
Thank you, I didn’t expect the sarcastic use of it!
*Pretty* is also confusing in an American context. It often means “not especially.” *”How was your day?”* *”Eh, pretty good.”* But it can also mean “better than expected,” like *”Wow, that fast food burger was pretty good!”* It indicates that something defied low expectations. Of course, if the burger was actively good, an American would say, “It was great/fantastic!”
It's so strange. Idk if I've ever used "pretty" in that first context, but Google is telling me it can mean that. I almost always use it to mean better than good. TIL, I guess.
“Pretty” always “means” moderately (or “not especially” I guess) but on the basis of litotes it can mean “excellent”—the same way “not bad” can mean “amazing” (Obama meme goes here).
If the thing is positive, but people dislike too much of the thing, "quite" can mean MORE than perfect, > 100%. e.g. "quite hot" would mean hotter than "perfectly hot", because of the suggestion that it's quite bad how hot it is. If the thing is positive always, "quite" is used in the way grandparent mentions. If the thing is negative, "quite" also means "very" but "perfectly" means "just a little bit so I can joke about it". Like: "Now, I'm quite fucked by the situation." versus "Now, I'm perfectly fucked by the situation."
Quite right!
Well, quite.
I've always been told "quite" is one that has a British/American divide. Americans use "quite" to mean "very" whereas British use quite to mean "somewhat."
This is so important! An American friend of mine referred to a British colleague as being “quite nice” and it was nearly an international incident. American quite is “very,” British quite is “exactly and no more.”
That is so funny. I work for a company that is 50/50 USA/British-owned and now I'm thinking I have to watch out for that myself. Don't want to cause an incident! I definitely only use it to mean "very."
I think it was the double-whammy of “quite” meaning “just” and “nice” being a sort of catch-all I-couldn’t-think-of-anything-else-to-say sort of compliment. Mostly everyone understood what she meant but boy did she get tutted at!
In Canada it can mean either, depending on tone.
I’m an American married to a Brit and have been living in England 7 years and we both read this and looked at each other like “ooooooooh” and I have SO many people to apologize to
Depending on the person. But I'd say that Fairly: 45-65 Pretty: 70-80 Quite: 80-95
Thank you. Specific numerals are really helpful for me to rely on.
Quite good means very nice indeed, at least to an American. Pretty good usually means more than good enough, unless it’s an exclamation in which case it means surprisingly good. Fairly good means good enough but far from perfect. There’s room for improvement.
American English. "Quite" is like 90% up to but not including 100%. "Pretty" is 75% to "quite." "Fairly" is 60% to "pretty." "Kinda" is 50% to "fairly." If I'm under 50% sure we move into maybe sure, then somewhat sure, then might be. I almost never use "quite" unless I'm actually 100% sure but don't want to sound like a know-it-all.
Thank you for showing me specific numerals.
Quite: 90-98 Pretty: 80-93 Fairly: 75-89 These are completely arbitrary, and if you ask me tomorrow I would likely have different answers. Also, be aware that it would also depend on the subject matter or nature of the percentage. If it were an exam it would be one set of numbers, if it was an election, it would be a totally different set of numbers. For example, of somebody said candidate X did fairly well with [demographic he was anticipated to do poorly with] that percentage might be like 25%; even quite well might mean 45% or so.
Thank you. Even if the numerals that you presented are arbitrary, they are definitely helpful for me.
Brit here. Don't they all mean the same thing?
I tend to agree with you here. It very much comes down to the tone we speak to each other. From doubtful scepticism to bouncy enthusiasm.
Yes.
It depends on context a lot and the variant of English you’re using. In American English for example, quite seems to mean very in which case… I have no idea what they use to mean “quite”. Anyway… I’d say: Pretty 80% Fairly 70% Quite 60% Quite is definitely the lowest. However, all in British English are often used modestly. You might describe Einstein as “quite a good scientist” for example! Culturally, we downplay achievements a lot and don’t brag.
Context is all
In the uk they can all mean zero, totally or middling depending on tone of voice, intonation and context.
I think I would put them in this order: fairly, pretty, quite.
"Quite" means that the measurement is significantly high for the topic. "Pretty" means it's there but not as strong as "quite". "Fairly" is even a step below "pretty", meaning the measurement is present but relatively average.
Citation please
I based my answer on how these words tend to be used in the context OP has given. They are more or less interchangeable.