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Glite Dictionary
not quite myself

not quite myself

3 6.5
Feeling a little unwell and not your usual self
  • idiom
translation icon : no estar del todo bien
  • So why is it you aren't quite yourself at the moment?
  • not quite myself today

Examples

Synonyms

under the weather
vsnot quite myself
  • Informal
21 5.3

Feeling slightly ill and not your usual self

describes a wider change in usual health or mental state
unwell
vsnot quite myself
18 1.0

Feeling slightly sick or uncomfortable

includes mental unease as well as physical sickness
out of sorts
vsnot quite myself
  • Informal
13 5.9

Feeling slightly unwell, upset, or irritable

covers broader change in health or mood beyond brief irritation
cruddy
vsnot quite myself
  • Informal
1 8.2

Feeling slightly sick or not well

uses neutral language for illness without informal harshness
all-overish
vsnot quite myself
  • UK
9.9

Feeling tired, uneasy, and unable to focus

refers more broadly to change in health or mind, not only disorganization

How Well

well
142 1.0
not quite myself
3 6.5
unwell
18 1.0
sick
∞ 1.0

Surface Forms

not quite myself positive

Morphology

not + quite + myself

The pieces 'not' (negation) + 'quite' (degree modifier) + 'myself' (reflexive referring to one's usual self) combine to signal 'not completely one's usual self', so a learner who knows the words can plausibly infer the basic sense. However, using 'myself' as a nominalized concept of one’s usual state and mapping that to 'feeling unwell or out of sorts' is somewhat idiomatic and requires pragmatic inference beyond literal composition. Because the parts give strong clues but the exact evaluative meaning is not fully predictable without exposure, this is best seen as semi-transparent.

Etymology

Not quite myself comes from the simple image that you are not fully myself, as if a part of you is missing or hidden so you act and feel different. That's why it means 'feeling unwell or out of sorts'.