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Anonymous Posted 16 years ago
Grammar

Quick time

Is 'quick time' used in place of 'quickly? He went there quickly. He went there in quick time. He got the job done in quick time. Is it normally used this way?
  

Top answer

" You'd both know what he meant. But if it took longer than fifteen seconds to complete one unit, I don't think the expression would be appropriate. I'm taking "quick time" here as a compound noun.

  • " You'd both know what he meant.
  • But if it took longer than fifteen seconds to complete one unit, I don't think the expression would be appropriate.
  • I'm taking "quick time" here as a compound noun.
  • "He went there in quick time" meaning "short time" is possible, but unlikely.
  • "He got there in short order" is a common expression in AmE, but perhaps a bit dated.
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25 Answers
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I would say, "No."

I've always understood "quick time" to describe a style of marching, similar to "double time."

If you're doing a short, rhythmic, repetitive operation, the boss might walk by and say, "Quick time!" You'd both know what he meant.
But if it took longer than fifteen seconds to complete one unit, I don't think the expression would be appropriate.

I'm
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"in quick time" is a common English idiom.

"He got the job done in quick time." is a perfectly acceptable construction. In such contexts "quick time" means "quickly". The idiom is most often used to describe an action that has been completed quickly, or to order the rapid completion of something, e.g.: I need you to plug that oil well in quick time.

Avangi's notion that you need
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Hi, Futurist,
I wonder if this could be a BrE usage. I honestly don't hear it in AmE, not to take anything away from my imagination.
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In American English the answer is a resounding 'yes'.

Need proof? Here's a headline from the http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9501E7DB163EE433A25750C2A9639C946996D6CF.
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No, I don't need proof.

Do you happen to have a sentence?
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He gained a preeminent role by virtue of his sheer ability to turn out a draft of something in quick time. (Washington Post 24/6/07)
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Here's some contemporary headlines from the British press:
The Guardian
http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/media/article2971241.ece
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Thanks, Futurist. [Y]

Do you see "quick time" as a compound noun, or as adjective plus noun?

- A.
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No problem.

We've all had those moments when we discover a word or idiom that our friends can't believe we've never heard.

Only yesterday I discovered that I'd been mispronouncing gauche my entire life. I wouldn't give ground until I'd been proven wrong by two dictionaries. He he.
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As I slide down the wall, digging in with my fingernails, I have to note that Barton Gillman was a Rhodes Scholar at Oxford, and Jerusalem bureau chief for the Washington Post.

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