Quit1, v. t.
(kwĭt), v. t. [imp. & p. p. QUIT or QUITTED; p. pr. & vb. n. QUITTING.] [Fr. quitter, O. Fr. quiter, quitter, cuitter, Pr., Sp., & Pg. quitar, It. quitare, chitare, L. Lat. quitare, quittare, quietare, to dismiss, leave, cede, from Lat. quietus, quiet. See QUIET, and cf. ACQUIT.]
Sense 1. To set at rest; to free, as from any thing harmful or oppressive; to relieve; to clear; to liberate. [Rare.]
To quit you of this fear, you have already looked Death in the face. Wake.
Sense 2. To release from obligation, accusation, penalty, or the like; to absolve; to acquit.
God will relent, and quit thee all his debt. Milton.
Sense 3. To meet the claims upon, or expectations entertained of; to conduct; to acquit; — used reflexively.
Samson hath quit himself Like Samson. Milton.
Sense 4. To discharge, as an obligation or duty; to meet and satisfy, as a claim or debt; to make payment for or of; to requite; to repay.
Enkindle all the sparks of nature To quit this horrid act. Shak.
Before that Judge that quits each soul his hire. Fairfax.
In a moment quit The debt immense of endless gratitude. Milton.
Sense 5. To have done with; hence, especially, to depart from; to leave; to forsake; to give up; as, to quit work.
Such a superficial way of examining is to quit truth for appearance. Locke.
Sense 6. To carry through; to do or perform to the end, so that nothing remains; to discharge or perform completely.
Never a worthy prince a day did quit With greater hazard and with more renown. Daniel.
To quit cost, to pay; to reimburse; as, the cultivation of barren land will not always quit cost. — To quit scores, to make even; to clear mutually from demands.
Does not the earth quit scores with all the elements in her noble fruits? South.
Synonyms— To leave; relinquish; resign; surrender; discharge; requite. — QUIT, LEAVE. Leave is the generic term; quit is more specific and distinctive. Being from the Low Latin quietare, to leave quiet or undisturbed, it denotes that we go from a place either with the intention of never returning, or, at least, with no formed design of so doing. Hence, to say that a man has left a place or employment, decides nothing as to his returning or resuming it; but to say that he has quit the town or the business, is to say that this was considered and understood, at the time, to be a final act.
Leave not the faithful side That gave thee being, still shades thee and protects. Milton.
Then wilt thou not be loth To quit this paradise: but shalt possess A paradise within thee, happier far. Milton.