“Quarter” usually means “one of four equal parts,” but it has several common uses in everyday English.

Main meanings of “quarter”

  • A fourth part of something: a quarter of a cake, a quarter of the class.
  • A period of three months in a year, especially in business and bills (Q1, Q2, etc.).
  • A coin worth 25 cents in the US (one quarter of a dollar).
  • A fraction in math: 14\tfrac{1}{4}41​ of a whole.
  • A part of a town or city , like “the old quarter” or “student quarter.”

Simple examples

  • “Cut the pizza into quarters” → 4 equal slices.
  • “Profits fell in the second quarter of 2025” → the 3‑month period April–June (if using calendar quarters).
  • “I need a quarter for the vending machine” → 25‑cent coin.

Mini table of core uses

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Use What it means Example
Fraction One of four equal parts (1/4) “A quarter of the cake is left.”
Time period Three months of a year “Sales rose in the first quarter.”
Money U.S. coin worth 25 cents “I have two quarters in my pocket.”
Place District or part of a town “They live in the historic quarter.”

Quick storytelling-style illustration

Imagine you’re in a café at the end of the first quarter of the year, looking over your company’s quarterly results while eating a pie cut into quarters and paying with a quarter coin. In that tiny scene, the same word quietly covers time, math, money, and everyday life all at once.

TL;DR: “Quarter” almost always means “one fourth,” but depending on context it can be a fraction, a 3‑month period, a coin, or a part of a place.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.