1. The seventeenth letter 
and thirteenth consonant 
in the English alphabet. 
It had a corresponding position 
in the early Greek and in the Latin 
alphabet, as also in the Pheni- 
cian, where it was the nineteenth 
character. Its value in Phenician 
was that of a deeper or more gut- 
tural k; and a like distinction of 
two fr's, less and more guttural 
and qof\ is still made in the Semitic languages gen- 
erally. But in Greek and Latin there was no such dis- 
tinction to Jie maintained ; hence the sign was abandoned 
in Greek (being retained only as an episemon, or sign of 
number, in its old place between IT and p, and called 
koppa) ; while in Latin, on the other hand, it was kept, 
though without a value different from that of k, in the 
combination mi, equivalent to our Jew; and so we have 
it also in English as a superfluous letter, simply because 
it existed in Phenician with a real office. The compara- 
tive table of early forms (as given for the other letters: 
see especially A) is aa follows : 
Pheni- 
cian. 
Hieroglypl 
Egyptian. 
r pnic. Hieratic. 
Early 
Greek and Latin. 
Q occurs in English, as In Latin, only before a that is fol- 
lowed by another vowel. The combination ^Mispronounced 
either aa kw (for example, quinquennial), or, the w being 
silent, aa it simply (for example, pique). The words con- 
taining it are nearly all of Latin or French origin ; but there 
are a few common words (as queen, queer, quench, quick, 
quoth) in which qu has been substituted for the equivalent 
Anglo-Saxon cw or Teutonic kw, and a number of other 
words (Asiatic, African, American, etc.) in which qu rep- 
resents a like combination. In the transliteration of some 
Oriental alphabet6(Arabic, Persian, Turkish, etc.), q repre- 
sents the more guttural form of k. See qu. 
2. As a medieval Roman numeral, 500. 3. 
Au abbreviation : (a) [I. c.] of quadrans (a 
farthing); (b) [J. c.] of query; (c) [I. c.] of ques- 
tion; (d) of queen; (e) [I.e.] in a ship's log- 
book, of squalls; (/) in Bom. lit. and inscrip- 
tions, of Quintus. 4f. A half-f arthing : same 
as cue 2 , 2 (a). 
Rather pray there be no fall of money, for thou wilt then 
go for a q. Lyly, Mother Bombie, iv. 2. (Naret.) 
To mind one's p's and q's. See mindi. 
qabbalah, n. See cabala. 
Q. B. An abbreviation of Queen's Bench. 
Q. C. An abbreviation: (a) of Queen's Coun- 
cil or Queen's Counsel; (b) of Queen's College. 
Q. d., or q. d. An abbreviation of the Latin 
phrase quasi dicat, as if he should say. 
qd. An old contraction for quod or quoth. Hal- 
liwell. 
Q. e., or q. e. An abbreviation of the Latin 
phrase quod est, which is. 
Q. E. D. An abbreviation of the Latin phrase 
quod erat demonstrandum, which was to be 
demonstrated. 
Q. E. T. An abbreviation of the Latin phrase 
quod erat faciendum, which was to be done. 
Q. E. I. An abbreviation of the Latin phrase 
quod erat inveniendum, which was to be found 
out. 
. M. An abbreviation of quartermaster. 
.., or qm. An abbreviation of the Latin word 
'auomodo, by what means. 
Q. M. O. An abbreviation of quartermaster- 
aciieral. 
(jr., or qr. An abbreviation : (a) of quarter (28 
pounds); (b) of quadrans (farthing); (c) of 
quire. 
". S. An abbreviation of quarter-sessions. 
w . S., or q. s. An abbreviation : (a) of quarter- 
section ; (b) of the Latin phrase quantum sufficit. 
Qt., or qt. An abbreviation: (a) of quart; (b) 
of quan li/i/. 
qut, H. An obsolete spelling of queue or cue 1 . 
In 1724 the peruke-makers advertised "full-bottom tyes, 
. . . qu perukes, and bagg wiggs " among the variety of 
artificial head-gear which they supplied. 
Encyc. Brit., XXIV. 580. 
qu. [(1) < ME. qu-, qw-, < OF. qu-, F. qu- = Sp. 
CM- = Pjf. <-, iju- = It. qu-, < L. qu- = Gr. K- (/.F), 
sometimes TT = Skt. AT-, A'-, etc. (2) < ME. tin-, 
307 
qw-, kit)-, ku-, cu-, cic-, < AS. cw- = OS. kir- = 
OFries. fac- = D. kw- = OHG. far-, CM--, MHG. 
kw-, qu-, G. qu- = Icel. AT- = Sw. AT'-, qu- = Dan. 
AT- = Goth, kw- (by Germans often written kv-, 
also rendered by q- or qu-; the Goth, character 
being single, namely, u the resemblance to 
the Roman u being accidental). (3) < ME. qu-, 
qw-, quw-, quh-, wh-, hw-, < AS. hw- = OS. OFries. 
hw- = D. w- = G. w- = Icel. Sw. Dan. hv-, etc. : see 
wh-. (4) Of various origin, ult. due to c- or k- 
orcft-.] 1. An initial and medial sequence in 
words of Latin origin, as in quarrel 1 , quarrel 2 , 
quadrant, query, etc. 2. An initial sequence 
in some words of Anglo-Saxon (or other Teu- 
tonic) origin, properly written kw-, or as origi- 
nally cw-, but altered in the Middle English 
period to qu- in conformity with the spelling of 
French and Latin words with qu- (see 1). It oc- 
curs in quail 1 , quake, qualm, queen, quell, quick, 
etc. It does not occur medially except in com- 
position. 3. An initial sequence in some Mid- 
dle English or modern dialectal (Scotch) vari- 
ants of words regularly spelled with wh-, as in 
qual, qwaylle, quhal, for whale; quhilk for whilk 
(which), quhyp for whip, etc. 4. An initial se- 
quence of various origin other than the above, 
as in quaint, quassia, quay, quince, quip, quire 1 , 
quire 2 , quiver 2 , quoin, quoit, etc. See the ety- 
mology of these words. 
qu. An abbreviation: (a) of queen, quarterly; 
(b) of question, or qusere, query. 
qua 1 !, pron. An old Scotch form of who. 
Qua herd ever a warr auntur, 
That he that noght hadd hot of him 
Agayn him suld becum sua grim ? 
MS. Cott. Vespas. (A), iii. f. 4. (Halliwell.) 
qua 2 (kwa), adv. [L. qud (often written qud), 
as far as, so far as, as, at or in which place, in 
what manner, how, orig. abl. fern, of qui, who, 
which : see who.] As being ; so far as. 
I know what that man's mind, qud mind, is, well enough. 
M. Arnold, Friendship's Garland, vi. 
The flrst thing to notice about this position is, that the 
Darwinian, qud Darwinian, has nothing to do with it. 
Nature, XXXVII. 291. 
qua 3 (kwa), n. [Appar. a var. of quad 2 , quod 2 .] 
A jail ; quod. Tufts's Glossary oj' Thieves' Jar- 
gon, 1798. [Thieves' jargon.] 
quab 1 , quob (kwob), v. i. [Var. of the earlier 
quap, quop: see quap 1 , quop 1 , and cf. quave.] 
To shake; tremble; quiver; throb; flutter. 
After whan the storme ys al ago, 
Yet wol the watir quappe a day or two. 
Chaucer, Good Women, 1. 1767. 
But, zealous sir, what say to a touch at praler ? 
How quops the spirit? In what garb or ayre? 
Fletcher, Poems, p. 203. (Halliwell.) 
O, my eyes grow dim ! my heart quabs, and my back 
acheth. Dryden, Limberham, iii. 2. 
quab 1 , quob (kwob), n. [< quab 1 , v. Cf. quai-e- 
mire.] A bog or quagmire. Halliwell. 
quab 2 t (kwob), n. [Early mod. E. quabbe; < 
MD. quabbe, quappe, D. kwab, kwabbe = OLG. 
quappa, MLG. quappe, LG. quabbe, quappe, an 
eel-pout, = G. quabbe, quappe, an eel-pout, tad- 
pole, = Sw. qvabba = Dan. kvabbe, a burbot; so 
called from its active motions; from the verb 
represented by quab 1 , quap 1 . Cf. quap 2 .] 1. 
A fish, the eel-pout or miller's-thumb. Minsheu. 
2. A gudgeon. Also quabling and quap. 
A qnabling or little quabbe, a fish, . . . gouion. 
quab 3 t (kwob), n. [< quab 1 , v., as squab 2 < 
squab 1 , v.] 1. A squab, or other unfledged 
young bird. See squab 2 . 2. Something im- 
mature or crude. 
A trifle of mine own brain, ... a scholar's fancy, 
A quab 'tis nothing else a very quab. 
Ford, Lover's Melancholy, iii. 3. 
qua-bird (kwii'berd), . [< qua (imitative, like 
equiv. quark, quawk) + bird 1 .] The American 
night-heron, Nyctiardea grisea nsevia. 
4881 
quacha (kwa'cha), n. Same aB quaf/ya. Imp. 
Diet. 
quachi. . Same as coati. 
quachil, n. [Native name.] A large .pocket- 
gopher, Geomys hispidus (formerly Saccophorus 
quachil). It inhabits Central America and some parts 
of Mexico, and is larger than any of the United States 
species, being nearly or quite a foot long, with the tail 
three inches more; the tail and feet are nearly naked; 
the pelage is harsh and lusterless, of a uniform dull choco- 
late-brown, merely paler or grayer below ; the upper in- 
cisors have each one deep furrow lying wholly in the in- 
ner half of the tooth. Its nearest relative is the Mexican 
tucan, G. mexicanus. 
quack 1 (kwak), v. i. [< ME. "quakken (?), queken 
= MD. quacken, queken, croak, quack, cry as a 
frog, goose, or quail, later kwakken, kwaaken, D. 
kwaken, croak, as a frog, = MLG. quaken = G. 
quacken, quaken, quack, croak, babble, quacken, 
quaken, cry, scream, = Icel. kvaka = Sw. qvaka 
= Dan. kvakke, croak, quack ; cf. L. coaxare, 
croak, Gr. Korif, a quacking (see coaxation); all 
imitative words. Hence freq. quackle 1 , and 
ult. quail 3 .] 1. To utter a harsh, flat, croaking 
sound or cry, as a goose or duck ; croak ; now, 
usually, to cry as a duck. 
He toke a gose fast by the nek, 
And the goose thoo begann to quck. 
Rel. Antiq., i. 4. (Halliwell.) 
There were thirteen ducks, and . . . they all quacked 
very movingly. R. D. Blackmore, Lorna Doone, x. 
2. To make an outcry: said of persons. [Prov. 
Eng.] 
He slew the captain where he stood, 
The rest they did quack an' roar. 
Willie Wallace (Child's Ballads, VI. 236). 
quack 1 (kwak), n. [< ME. qtiakke, queke = G. 
quack, quak = Dan. kvak; from the verb.] 1. 
A harsh, croaking sound. 
He speketh thurgh the nose, 
As he were on the quatlce or on the pose. 
Chaucer, Reeve's Tale, 1. 232. 
2. The cry of a duck ; a quacking. 
He gave me a look from his one little eye, . . . and then 
a loud quack to second it. 
R. D. Blackmore, Lorna Doone, x. 
quack 2 (kwak), v. [A particular use of quack 1 , 
now associated with quack 2 , n., which is in 
part an abbr. of quacksalver.] I. intrans. 1. 
To talk noisily and ostentatiously; make vain 
and loud pretensions. 
Seek out for plants with signatures, 
To quack of universal cures. 
S. Butler, Hudibras, III. i. 328. 
2. To play the quack; practise arts of quack- 
ery, as a pretender to medical skill. 
Hitherto I had only quack'd with myself, and the high- 
est I consulted was our apothecary. 
B. Wandemlle, Hypochondrical Disorders (1730), p. 7. 
[(Latham.) 
II. trans. 1. To treat in the manner of a 
quack; play the quack with. 
If he [Monro] has any skill in quacking madmen, his art 
may perhaps be of service now in the Pretender's court. 
Walpole, Letters, II. 6. 
Quackery, and the love of being quacked, are in human 
nature aa weeds are in our fields. 
Dr. J. Brown, Spare Hours, 3d sen, Int., p. 32. 
2. To tamper with dishonestly; use fraudu- 
lently. 
Mallet. My third Son ... has an admirable knack at 
quacking Titles. . . . They tell me, when he gets an old 
good-for-nothing Book, he claps a new Title to it, and sells 
off the whole Impression in a Week. 
Mrs. Centlinre, Gotham Election, L 1. 
quack 2 (kwak), . and a. [Partly < quack 2 , v., 
partly an abbr. of quacksalver, q. v.] I. n. 1. 
An impudent and fraudulent pretender to med- 
ical skill; a mountebank; a knavish practi- 
tioner of medicine. 
Quacks in their Bills, and Poets in the Titles of their 
Plays, do not more dissappoint us than Gallants with their 
Promises. Wycherlcy, Love in a Wood, iii. 
A potent quack, long versed in human ills, 
Who first insults the victim whom he kills. 
Crabbe, Works, I. 14. 
