Fast is about the speed of movement or work: a fast car, a fast runner, fast internet. Quick is about something that takes little time: a quick question, a quick lunch, a quick look. They seem to mean the same, but English separates something that moves at speed from something that will simply be over soon.
fast or quick — can you pick the right one?
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fast + car/train/runner/internet; quick + question/look/call/break/coffee; verb + fast (fast is also an adverb); verb + quickly
- We need a fast laptop for video editing, not just for email.
- Can we have a quick call at three? It'll take ten minutes at most.
- She learns fast, so after a week she was already training new colleagues.
What changed
First versionCan I ask you a fast question about the report?
RevisionCan I ask you a quick question about the report?
Fast is the first word for speed that comes to mind, so it gets used with question too. But a question doesn't move at speed; it just takes a minute, and that's quick. Only fast was changed to quick.
Fast is both an adjective and an adverb: drive fast, learn fast. There's no word fastly in English. Quick has a regular adverb, quickly: Please reply quickly. In speech you'll also hear Come here quick!, but in writing quickly is the safe choice.
Your turn
Let's grab a ___ coffee before the lecture starts.
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quick — The coffee will be drunk in a few minutes before the lecture, so it's about a short time: quick. Fast describes speed, and a native speaker wouldn't say a fast coffee.
Write a short request for help to a colleague. Say how long it will take and by what time you need a reply.
Could you take a quick look at my slides? It'll take five minutes, and I need your comments by 4 pm.
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