Quitters

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. People who choose to discontinue their involvement or abandon their attempts during difficult times
2. Individuals who cease their efforts or withdraw from a task or challenge before completion
3. Persons who decide to end their participation or abandon their pursuits when facing obstacles

Etymology: The most surprising part is that "quitter" once meant a burn mark. In Anglo-Norman, "quiture" referred to a scorch or burning, from the participle stem of "cuire", meaning "to cook." Middle English borrowed the form as "quitter," and the sense of a mark left by fire was the original one. The modern sense of someone who gives up comes from the Latin "quiēscere," meaning "to rest" or "become quiet," which passed through Medieval Latin "quiētus" and Anglo-Norman before reaching English. Nothing in those older meanings points toward abandoning a task, so the shift from "scorch" to "one who gives up" is one of the more unexpected routes a word can take. In English, "quit" meant to set free, release, or leave, and "quitter" was formed by adding the suffix "-er" to that verb, giving a word for someone who leaves or stops. Since the question asks for the plural, "quitters" simply refers to more than one such person.

Synonyms: resigners, dropouts, deserters, defectors, abandoners

Antonyms: perseverers, stayers, continuers, completers, endurers