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XIAOQIAN DENG Posted 8 years ago
Grammar

Quite a lot vs a lot

Do these two phrases have the same meaning?

for example

he met a lot of people in London

he met quite a lot of people in London

or

I swim a lot

I swim quite a lot

Do the above sentences mean the same thing?

  

Top answer

I swim a lot This is a strong statement. You spend a lot of time swimming. I swim quite a lot This is a weaker statement.

— Clive

  • I swim a lot This is a strong statement.
  • You spend a lot of time swimming.
  • I swim quite a lot This is a weaker statement.
  • But without context it is hard to interpret, because 'quite is often used to understate something.
  • eg Tom: I swim quite a lot.
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2 Answers
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I swim a lot This is a strong statement. You spend a lot of time swimming.

I swim quite a lot This is a weaker statement. But without context it is hard to interpret, because 'quite is often used to understate something. eg

Tom: I swim quite a lot. I spend 30 minutes in the pool every week.

Bob: I swim quite a lot. I won an Olympic gold medal

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For me, as an American, the second is stronger than the first, but according to Oxford Press's EFL textbook 'New English File' the former is stronger.

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