Emily Dickinson Lexicon

QUICK, a. [Sax. cwic, living, alive; D. kwik; G. quick; Dan. qvik; Sw. qvick. Qu. W. cig, Arm. qicq, flesh. If q is a dialectical prefix, as I suppose, this word coincides with the L. vigeo, vegeo, and vig, veg, radical, coincide with wag. Now the Dutch call a wagtail, kwikstaart.]

1. Primarily, alive; living; opposed to dead or unanimated; as, quick flesh. – Lev. xiii. The Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead. – 2 Tim. iv. [In this sense, the word is obsolete, except in some compounds or in particular phrases.]
2. Swift; hasty; done with celerity; as quick dispatch.
3. Speedy; done or occurring in a short time; as, a quick return of profits. Oft he to her his charge of quick return / Repeated. – Milton.
4. Active; brisk; nimble; prompt; ready. He is remarkably quick in his motions. He is a man of quick parts.
5. Moving with rapidity or celerity; as, quick time in music. Quick with child, pregnant with a living child. – Blackstone.