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Dernbu Posted 10 years ago
Grammar

"quite a..." or "quite the..."

I've just read something, and the author of the novel wrote,"I'm quite a pessimist". I'm quite sure him saying "I'm quite the pessimist" would have been grammatically correct. If so, what are the differences in the meaning between the two sentences?
  

Top answer

The difference in meaning is small to negligible. There is a slight difference in nuance that is hard to precisely explain. "the pessimist" may feel slightly stronger.

— GPY

  • The difference in meaning is small to negligible.
  • There is a slight difference in nuance that is hard to precisely explain.
  • "the pessimist" may feel slightly stronger.
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3 Answers
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The difference in meaning is small to negligible. There is a slight difference in nuance that is hard to precisely explain. "the pessimist" may feel slightly stronger.
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dernbuI'm quite a pessimist
I take this as I'm very pessimistic.
dernbuI'm quite the pessimist
I take this as closer to I'm a very good example of a pessimist.

As already noted, the difference is negligible.

CJ
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CalifJimI take this as closer to I'm a very good example of a pessimist.
Yes, I would agree.
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