quantity
noun
Simple meaning
A fundamental, generic term used when referring to the measurement of a scalar.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
kwahntuhteeSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ˈkwɑntəti
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
A fundamental, generic term used when referring to the measurement (count, amount) of a scalar, vector, number of items or to some other way of denominating the value of a collection or group of items.
An indefinite amount of something.
A considerable measure or amount.
A specific measured amount.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- A1 · Beginner (estimated)
- Frequency
- Common
- Typical Use
- Varies by meaning
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: A fundamental, generic term used when referring to the measurement (count, amount) of a scalar, vector, number of items or to some other way of denominating the value of a collection or group of items.
Used this way, quantity is a specialist word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. This is a mathematical use: it is defined precisely and belongs to working with figures and calculations rather than to ordinary conversation.
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Specialist/technical
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Specialized
- Connotation
- Clinical and technical
- Usage feel
- Technical and specialized
Where it naturally appears
- Mathematics
- Geometry
- Academic writing
- Education/classroom
Usage note
In general conversation this sense usually needs explaining — outside its field, people reach for a plainer word.
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
More ways to use quantity
- “He had a quantity of ammunition.”noun
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
Other combinations
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Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Word family
Words built from the same root.
Of or relating to a quantum or capable of existing in only one of two states.
Compound terms
Established multiword terms.
A measure of the quantity of electricity (determined by the amount of an electric current and the time for which it flows).
A quantity that does not vary.
A specific measure of amount.
One of the four quantities that are the basis of systems of measurement.
An estimated quantity.
An indefinite quantity that is above the average in size or magnitude.
Related words
Connected by subject or meaning, not by word formation.
Expressible as a quantity or relating to or susceptible of measurement.
Related Words
Connected to the same idea, not synonyms.
- probabilitynoun
- measurementnoun
- entropynoun
- measuredadjective
- pricenoun
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.