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Webster 1913 Edition

Quarter

Quar′ter

(kwär′tẽr)
,
Noun.
[F.
quartier
, L.
quartarius
a fourth part, fr.
quartus
the fourth. See
Quart
.]
1.
One of four equal parts into which anything is divided, or is regarded as divided; a fourth part or portion;
as, a
quarter
of a dollar, of a pound, of a yard, of an hour, etc.
Hence, specifically:
(a)
The fourth of a hundred-weight, being 25 or 28 pounds, according as the hundredweight is reckoned at 100 or 112 pounds.
(b)
The fourth of a ton in weight, or eight bushels of grain;
as, a
quarter
of wheat
; also, the fourth part of a chaldron of coal.
Hutton.
(c)
(Astron.)
The fourth part of the moon’s period, or monthly revolution;
as, the first
quarter
after the change or full
.
(d)
One limb of a quadruped with the adjacent parts; one fourth part of the carcass of a slaughtered animal, including a leg;
as, the fore
quarters
; the hind
quarters
.
(e)
That part of a boot or shoe which forms the side, from the heel to the vamp.
(f)
(Far.)
That part on either side of a horse's hoof between the toe and heel, being the side of the coffin.
(g)
A term of study in a seminary, college, etc, etc.; properly, a fourth part of the year, but often longer or shorter.
(h)
pl.
(Mil.)
The encampment on one of the principal passages round a place besieged, to prevent relief and intercept convoys.
(i)
(Naut.)
The after-part of a vessel's side, generally corresponding in extent with the quarter-deck; also, the part of the yardarm outside of the slings.
(j)
(Her.)
One of the divisions of an escutcheon when it is divided into four portions by a horizontal and a perpendicular line meeting in the fess point.
☞ When two coats of arms are united upon one escutcheon, as in case of marriage, the first and fourth quarters display one shield, the second and third the other. See
Quarter
,
Verb.
T.
, 5.
(k)
One of the four parts into which the horizon is regarded as divided; a cardinal point; a direction' principal division; a region; a territory.
Scouts each coast light-armed scour,
Each
quarter
, to descry the distant foe.
Milton.
(l)
A division of a town, city, or county; a particular district; a locality;
as, the Latin
quarter
in Paris
.
(m)
(Arch.)
A small upright timber post, used in partitions; – in the United States more commonly called
stud
.
(n)
(Naut.)
The fourth part of the distance from one point of the compass to another, being the fourth part of 11° 15´, that is, about 2° 49´; – called also
quarter point
.
2.
Proper station; specific place; assigned position; special location.
Swift to their several
quarters
hasted then
The cumbrous elements.
Milton.
Hence, specifically:
(a)
(Naut.)
A station at which officers and men are posted in battle; – usually in the plural.
(b)
Place of lodging or temporary residence; shelter; entertainment; – usually in the plural.
The banter turned as to what
quarters
each would find.
W. Irving.
(c)
pl.
(Mil.)
A station or encampment occupied by troops; a place of lodging for soldiers or officers;
as, winter
quarters
.
(d)
Treatment shown by an enemy; mercy; especially, the act of sparing the life a conquered enemy; a refraining from pushing one's advantage to extremes.
He magnified his own clemency, now they were at his mercy, to offer them
quarter
for their lives.
Clarendon.
Cocks and lambs . . . at the mercy of cats and wolves . . . must never expect better
quarter
.
L'Estrange.
3.
Friendship; amity; concord.
[Obs.]
To keep quarter, to keep one's proper place, and so be on good terms with another.
[Obs.]
In
quarter
, and in terms like bride and groom.
Shakespeare
I knew two that were competitors for the secretary's place, . . . and yet
kept
good
quarter
between themselves.
Bacon.
False quarter
,
a cleft in the quarter of a horse's foot.
–
Fifth quarter
,
the hide and fat; – a butcher's term.
–
On the quarter
(Naut.)
,
in a direction between abeam and astern; opposite, or nearly opposite, a vessel's quarter.
–
Quarter aspect
.
(Astrol.)
Same as
Quadrate
.
–
Quarter back
(Football)
,
the player who has position next behind center rush, and receives the ball on the snap back.
–
Quarter badge
(Naut.)
,
an ornament on the side of a vessel near, the stern.
Mar. Dict.
–
Quarter bill
(Naut.)
,
a list specifying the different stations to be taken by the officers and crew in time of action, and the names of the men assigned to each.
–
Quarter block
(Naut.)
,
a block fitted under the quarters of a yard on each side of the slings, through which the clew lines and sheets are reeved.
R. H. Dana, Jr.
–
Quarter boat
(Naut.)
,
a boat hung at a vessel's quarter.
–
Quarter cloths
(Naut.)
,
long pieces of painted canvas, used to cover the quarter netting.
–
Quarter day
,
a day regarded as terminating a quarter of the year; hence, one on which any payment, especially rent, becomes due. In matters influenced by United States statutes, quarter days are the first days of January, April, July, and October. In New York and many other places, as between landlord and tenant, they are the first days of May, August, November, and February. The quarter days usually recognized in England are 25th of March (Lady Day), the 24th of June (Midsummer Day), the 29th of September (Michaelmas Day), and the 25th of December (Christmas Day).
–
Quarter face
,
in fine arts, portrait painting, etc., a face turned away so that but one quarter is visible.
–
Quarter gallery
(Naut.)
,
a balcony on the quarter of a ship. See
Gallery
, 4.
–
Quarter gunner
(Naut.)
,
a petty officer who assists the gunner.
–
Quarter look
,
a side glance.
[Obs.]
B. Jonson.
–
Quarter nettings
(Naut.)
,
hammock nettings along the quarter rails.
–
Quarter note
(Mus.)
,
a note equal in duration to half a minim or a fourth of semibreve; a crochet.
–
Quarter pieces
(Naut.)
,
several pieces of timber at the after-part of the quarter gallery, near the taffrail.
Totten.
–
Quarter point
.
(Naut.)
See
Quarter
,
Noun.
, 1
(n)
.
–
Quarter railing
, or
Quarter rails
(Naut.)
,
narrow molded planks reaching from the top of the stern to the gangway, serving as a fence to the quarter-deck.
–
Quarter sessions
(Eng. Law)
,
a general court of criminal jurisdiction held quarterly by the justices of peace in counties and by the recorders in boroughs.
–
Quarter square
(Math.)
,
the fourth part of the square of a number. Tables of quarter squares have been devised to save labor in multiplying numbers.
–
Quarter turn
,
Quarter turn belt
(Mach.)
,
an arrangement in which a belt transmits motion between two shafts which are at right angles with each other.
–
Quarter watch
(Naut.)
,
a subdivision of the full watch (one fourth of the crew) on a man-of- war.
–
To give quarter
, or
To show quarter
(Mil.)
,
to accept as prisoner, on submission in battle; to forbear to kill, as a vanquished enemy.
–
To keep quarter
.
See
Quarter
,
Noun.
, 3.

Quar′ter

(kwär′tẽr)
,
Verb.
T.
[
imp. & p. p.
Quartered
;
p. pr. & vb. n.
Quartering
.]
1.
To divide into four equal parts.
2.
To divide; to separate into parts or regions.
Then sailors
quartered
heaven.
Dryden.
3.
To furnish with shelter or entertainment; to supply with the means of living for a time; especially, to furnish shelter to;
as, to
quarter
soldiers
.
They mean this night in Sardis to be
quartered
.
Shakespeare
4.
To furnish as a portion; to allot.
[R.]
This isle . . .
He
quarters
to his blue-haired deities.
Milton.
5.
(Her.)
To arrange (different coats of arms) upon one escutcheon, as when a man inherits from both father and mother the right to bear arms.
☞ When only two coats of arms are so combined they are arranged in four compartments. See
Quarter
,
Noun.
, 1
(f)
.

Quar′ter

(kwär′tẽr)
,
Verb.
I.
To lodge; to have a temporary residence.

Quar′ter

,
Verb.
I.
[F.
cartayer
.]
To drive a carriage so as to prevent the wheels from going into the ruts, or so that a rut shall be between the wheels.
Every creature that met us would rely on us for
quartering
.
De Quincey.

Webster 1828 Edition

Quarter

QUARTER

,
Noun.
quort'er. [L. quartus, the fourth part.]
1.
The fourth part; as the quarter of an hour or of a mile; one quarter of the expense. Living is a quarter dearer in the city than in the country.
2.
In weight, the fourth part of a hundred pounds avoirdupois, or of 112lb., that is, 28lb.; as a quarter of sugar.
3.
In dry measure, the fourth of a ton in weight, or eight bushels; as a quarter of wheat.
4.
In astronomy, the fourth part of the moon's period or monthly revolution; as the first quarter after the change or full.
5.
A region in the hemisphere or great circle; primarily, one of the four cardinal points; as the four quarters of the globe; but used indifferently for any region or point of compass. From what quarter does the wind blow? Hence,
6.
A particular region of a town, city or country; as all quarters of the city; in every quarter of the country or of the continent. Hence.
7.
Usually in the plural, quarters, the place of lodging or temporary residence; appropriately, the place where officers and soldiers lodge, but applied to the lodgings of any temporary resident. He called on the general at his quarters; the place furnished good winter quarters for the troops. I saw the stranger at his quarters.
8.
Proper station.
Swift to their several quarters hasten then -
Bacon uses the word in the singular. 'Make love keep quarter.'
9.
On board of ships, quarters signifies the stations or places where the officers and men are posted in action. Pipe all hands to quarters.
10.
In military affairs, the remission or sparing of the life of a captive or an enemy when in one's power; mercy granted by a conqueror to his enemy, when no longer able to defend himself. In desperate encounters, men will sometimes neither ask nor give quarter. The barbarous practice of giving no quarter to soldiers in a fortress taken by assault, is nearly obsolete.
He magnified his own clemency, now they were at his mercy, to offer them quarter for their lives, if they would give up the castle.
Lambs at the mercy of wolves much expect no quarter.
11.
Treatment shown to an enemy; indulgence.
To the young, if you give tolerable quarter, you indulge them in idleness and ruin them. [Rarely used.]
12.
Friendship; amity; concord. [Not in use.]
13.
In the slaughter house, one limb of a quadruped with the adjoining parts; or one fourth part of the carcase of a quadruped, including a limb; as a fore quarter, or hind quarter.
14.
In the menage, the quarters of a horse's foot are the sides of the coffin, between the toe and the heel. False quarters are a cleft in the horn of the hoof, extending from the coronet to the shoe, or from top to bottom. When for any disorder, one of the quarters is cut, the horse is said to be quarter-cast.
15.
In a siege, quarters are the encampment on one of the principal passages round the place besieged, to prevent relief and intercept convoys.
16.
In seminaries of learning, a fourth part of the year, or three months. Tuition and board at twenty five dollars the quarter. This is a moderate quarter bill.
17.
The quarter of a ship, is the part of a ship's side which lies towards the stern, or the part between the aftmost end of the main-chains and the sides of the stern, where it is terminated by the quarter-pieces.
18.
In heraldry, one of the parts or members of the first division of a coat that is divided into four parts.
On the quarter, in seamen's language, is a point in the horizon considerably abaft the beam, but not in the direction of the stern.
Quarter-bill, among seamen, is a list containing the different stations where the officers and crew are to take post in time of action, and the names of the men assigned to each.
Quarter-cloths, long pieces of painted canvas, extended on the outside of the quarter-netting from the upper part of the gallery to the gangway.
Quarter-deck, that part of the deck of a ship which extends from the stern to the mainmast. But in some kinds of vessels, the quarter-deck does not extend to the mainmast, but is raised above the main deck.
Quarter-gallery, a sort of balcony on the quarters of a ship.
Quarter-railing, narrow molded planks, reaching from the top of the stern to the gangway, serving as a fence to the quarter-deck.
Quarter-master, in an army, an officer whose business is to attend to the quarters for the soldiers, their provisions, fuel, forage, &c.; in the navy, an officer who assists the mates in their duties, in stowing the hold, coiling the cables, attending the steerage, and keeping time by the watch glasses.
Quarter-master-general, in military affairs, is an officer whose duty is to mark the marches and encampments of an army, the head-quarters, the place for the artillery, and procure supplies of provisions and forage, &c.
1.
Quarter-staff, a long staff borne by foresters and park-keepers, as a badge of office and a weapon.
2.
A staff of defense.
Quarter-sessions, in England, a general court held quarterly by the justices of peace of each county, with jurisdiction to try and determine felonies and trespasses; but capital offenses are seldom or never tried in this court.
Quarter-round, in architecture, the echinus or ovolo.
Head-quarters, the tent or mansion of the commander in chief of an army.

Definition 2024

quarter

quarter

See also: quarter-

English

A US quarter, 25 cent coin.

Adjective

quarter ‎(not comparable)

  1. Pertaining to an aspect of a quarter.
  2. (chiefly) Consisting of a fourth part, a quarter (1/4, 25%).
    a quarter hour; a quarter century; a quarter note; a quarter pound‎
  3. (chiefly) Related to a three-month term, a quarter of a year.
    A quarter day is one terminating a quarter of the year.‎
    A quarter session is one held quarterly at the end of a quarter.‎
Derived terms
Usage notes

Often used in a combining form quarter-.

Noun

quarter ‎(countable and uncountable, plural quarters)

  1. Any fourth of something, particularly:
    1. A quarter-dollar, divided into 25 cents; the coin of that value minted in the United States or Canada.
    2. (now chiefly financial) A quarter of the year, 3 months; a season.
    3. (historical) The quarter-ton or tun, divided into 8 bushels, the medieval English unit of volume and weight named by the Magna Carta as the basis for measures of wine, ale, and grain
      • 1882, James Edwin Thorold Rogers, A History of Agriculture and Prices in England, volume 4, page 204:
        One of these is 1 Hen. V, cap. 10, defining the quarter of corn [i.e., grain] to be eight struck bushels, and putting fines on purveyors who take more.
    4. (historical) The quarter-yard, divided into 4 nails, an obsolete English unit of length long used in the cloth trade
    5. (historical) The watch: A quarter of the night, nominally 3 hours but varying over the year.
      • 1526, William Tyndale, trans. Bible, Mark VI:
        And aboute the fourth quartre of the nyght, he cam unto them, walkinge apon the see [...].
    6. (heraldry) A charge occupying a fourth of a coat of arms, larger than a canton and normally on the upper dexter side, formed by a perpendicular line from the top meeting a horizontal line from the side.
    7. (basketball) A period into which a game is divided. (usually 8, 10 or 12 minutes according to the rules).
    8. quarterfinal
  2. Any substantial fraction of something less than half, particularly:
    1. A division or section of a town or other area, whether or not it constituted a fourth of the whole.
    2. (usually plural) A living place, from which:
      1. (military slang, now rare) A quartermaster; a quartermaster sergeant.
        • 1925, Ford Madox Ford, “Parade's End”, in No More Parades, Penguin, published 2012, page 360:
          Tietjens said: ‘Send the Canadian sergeant-major to me at the double….’ to the quarter.
      2. (uncountable, obsolete except in phrase no quarter) Amity, friendship, concord; (now) accommodation given to a defeated opponent, mercy.
        • (Can we date this quote?), Shakespeare, (Please provide the title of the work):
          In quarter, and in terms like bride and groom.
        • (Can we date this quote?), Francis Bacon, (Please provide the title of the work):
          I knew two that were competitors for the secretary's place, […] and yet kept good quarter between themselves.
        • 1955, J.R.R. Tolkien, The Return of the King, page 1110:
          Hard fighting and long labour they had still; for the Southrons were bold men and grim, and fierce in despair, and the Easterlings were strong and war-hardened and asked for no quarter.
    3. The part on either side of a horse's hoof between the toe and heel, the side of its coffin.
      • 1877, Anna Sewell, chapter 23, in Black Beauty:
        […] at last she kicked right over the carriage pole and fell down, after giving me a severe blow on my near quarter.
    4. (nautical) The aftmost part of a vessel's side, roughly from the last mast to the stern.
Synonyms
Derived terms
Related terms
Translations

Verb

quarter ‎(third-person singular simple present quarters, present participle quartering, simple past and past participle quartered)

  1. (transitive) To divide into quarters.
  2. (transitive) To provide housing for military personnel or other equipment.
    Quarter the horses in the third stable.‎
  3. (intransitive) To lodge; to have a temporary residence.
  4. (transitive) To quartersaw.
    • 1758, Thomas Hale, A Compleat Body Of Husbandry, page 333:
      But there is, as in other woods, a great deal of difference between this and the quartered timber.
Translations

References

Adjective
  • "quarter" at Merriam-Webster
  • "quarter" in Harrap's Shorter, 2006, p. 761

Etymology 2

Borrowing from French cartayer.

Verb

quarter ‎(third-person singular simple present quarters, present participle quartering, simple past and past participle quartered)

  1. (obsolete) To drive a carriage so as to prevent the wheels from going into the ruts, or so that a rut shall be between the wheels.
    • (Can we date this quote?) De Quincey.:
      Every creature that met us would rely on us for quartering

Catalan

Etymology

From Latin quartus

Noun

quarter m ‎(plural quarters)

  1. fourth

Synonyms

French

Etymology

From English

Noun

quarter m ‎(plural quarters)

  1. quarter (old measure of corn)

Anagrams

Old French

Alternative forms

Noun

quarter m ‎(oblique plural quarters, nominative singular quarters, nominative plural quarter)

  1. (chiefly Anglo-Norman) quarter (one fourth)

References

Etymology

Via French quartier, from Latin quartarius, from quartus.

Pronunciation

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