Rather good vs. quite good

[Tamara]

Just to add…

@Van Khanh

Rather + a/an +noun = rather + noun + a/an
Ex: It was a rather difficult question.
= It was rather a difficult question.
= This question was rather difficult.

rather a
a rather

Before an unmodified noun only rather a is used: It was rather a disaster. When the noun is preceded by an adjective, however, both rather a and a rather ( :shock:) are found: It was rather a boring party. It was a rather boring party. When a rather is used in this construction, rather qualifies only the adjective, whereas with rather a it qualifies either the adjective or the entire noun phrase. Thus a rather long ordeal can mean only “an ordeal that is rather long,” whereas rather a long ordeal can also mean roughly “a long process that is something of an ordeal.” Rather a is the only possible choice when the adjective itself does not permit modification. Thus we say The horse was rather a long shot but not The horse was a rather long shot.

to be continued…

[Conchita]

To complicate matters a bit more, stress can alter the meaning of ‘quite’:

I found the novel quite captivating => I found the novel captivating, but not too captivating.

I found the novel quite captivating => I found the novel really very captivating.