discontinue

Compared meaning: to stop doing something (verb).

比较义项：停止（做某事）（动词）。

• quit

  Informal and common in speech; usually describes giving up a habit, job, or effort, often implying a firm personal decision to stop for good.

  非正式，口语中常用；通常指放弃某种习惯、工作或某项努力，往往暗示个人下定决心从此彻底停止。

  She finally quit biting her nails after years of trying.

  经过多年尝试，她终于戒掉了咬指甲的习惯。

• stop

  The most neutral, everyday word for ending an action or movement; used in all registers and does not imply formality or a personal struggle.

  最中性、最常用的日常用词，指动作或活动的终止；适用于各种场合，不带正式或个人挣扎的含义。

  Please stop talking during the movie; it's distracting everyone.

  看电影时请停止说话，这样会分散大家的注意力。

• cease

  Formal and often written; describes a process, activity, or phenomenon coming to an end, common in official, legal, or literary contexts rather than casual speech.

  正式且多用于书面语；指某个过程、活动或现象终止，常见于官方、法律或文学语境，而非日常口语。

  The old factory finally ceased operations after seventy years.

  这家老工厂在运营了七十年后终于停止了生产。

• discontinue 本词

  Formal and business-oriented; specifically means to stop making, selling, or offering a product or service, rarely used for personal habits or actions.

  正式，多用于商业语境；特指停止生产、销售或提供某种产品或服务，很少用于个人习惯或行为。

  The company plans to discontinue its oldest smartphone model.

  这家公司计划停产其最老的智能手机型号。

Quit, stop, cease, and discontinue all mean to stop doing something, but their tone differs. Quit is informal, about giving up a habit or job. Stop is the neutral, common word. Cease is formal. Discontinue is formal, used for stopping a product or service.

这四个词都表示“停止做某事”，但语气和使用场合不同：quit 口语化，常指戒掉习惯或辞去工作；stop 最中性、最常用；cease 正式、多用于书面语；discontinue 正式，多用于商业语境中停止产品或服务。