Explore well-known and useful English quotes, phrases and sayings. Quotes in English with translations.
“The sadness will last forever.”
Vincent Van Gogh (1853–1890) Dutch post-Impressionist painter (1853-1890)
Attributed to Vincent, as quoted by Theo van gogh in his letter from Paris, to Elisabeth van Gogh, 5 August 1890 http://www.webexhibits.org/vangogh/letter/21/etc-Theo-Lies.htm <br class="br">Some of the last words Vincent said to Theo, while dying <br class="br">1890s
“I believe that if you focus on what you should do, the road ahead will open up naturally.”
Yuzuru Hanyu (1994) Japanese figure skater (1994-)
Other quotes, 2016 <br class="br">Original: (ja) 自分がすべきことを集中してやっていけば、自ずと道は開かれてくると信じているので。 <br class="br">Source: Interview at the arrival in Marseille ahead of the Grand Prix Final 2016, published 7 December 2016 by テレビ朝日 フィギュアスケート https://twitter.com/figureskate5ch/status/806400507698876416 (TV Asahi Figure Skate on Twitter). (Retrieved 11 September 2020)
“Communication is an essential factor in any type of relationship; friend, romantic, or business.”
Paul J. Alessi (1968) Actor / Producer
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/communication-is-an-essential-factor-in-any-type-of-relationship-friend-romantic-or-business-paul-j-alessi-q--10696117851703955/?mt=login
Source: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1568493/bio?ref_=nm_dyk_qt_sm#quotes
“The first true love is always the last one.”
Andrzej Majewski (1966) Polish writer and photographer
Aphorisms. Magnum in Parvo (2000)
“Breathe. It’s only a bad day, not a bad life.”
Johnny Depp (1963) American actor, film producer, and musician
“We all have two lives. The second begins when you realize you only have one.”
Tom Hiddleston (1981) English actor, producer and musical performer
“The noblest art is that of making others happy”
P.T. Barnum (1810–1891) American showman and businessman
“I am a hard person to love but when I love, I love really hard.”
Tupac Shakur (1971–1996) rapper and actor
“Don't live to fight, fight to live.”
Tupac Shakur (1971–1996) rapper and actor
Source: Resurrection, 1971-1996
“If you are receptive and humble, mathematics will lead you by the hand.”
Paul Dirac (1902–1984) theoretical physicist
As quoted in The Strangest Man: The Hidden Life of Paul Dirac, Mystic of the Atom (2009) by Graham Farmelo, p. 435
Context: If you are receptive and humble, mathematics will lead you by the hand. Again and again, when I have been at a loss how to proceed, I have just had to wait until I have felt the mathematics led me by the hand. It has led me along an unexpected path, a path where new vistas open up, a path leading to new territory, where one can set up a base of operations, from which one can survey the surroundings and plan future progress.
“Women love only those whom they do not know!”
Mikhail Lermontov book A Hero of Our Time
A Hero of Our Time (1840; rev. 1841)
“Truth alone will endure, all the rest will be swept away before the tide of time.”
Mahatma Gandhi (1869–1948) pre-eminent leader of Indian nationalism during British-ruled India
Basic Education (1951) p. 89
Posthumous publications (1950s and later)
Context: Truth alone will endure, all the rest will be swept away before the tide of time. I must continue to bear testimony to truth even if I am forsaken by all. Mine may today be a voice in the wilderness, but it will be heard when all other voices are silenced, if it is the voice of Truth.
Jean Cocteau (1889–1963) French poet, novelist, dramatist, designer, boxing manager and filmmaker
Opium (1929)
“A man who can laugh, if only at himself, is never really miserable.”
H.L. Mencken (1880–1956) American journalist and writer
15
1940s–present, Minority Report : H.L. Mencken's Notebooks (1956)
Context: Human life is basically a comedy. Even its tragedies often seem comic to the spectator, and not infrequently they actually have comic touches to the victim. Happiness probably consists largely in the capacity to detect and relish them. A man who can laugh, if only at himself, is never really miserable.
“Better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all. ”
Alfred, Lord Tennyson (1809–1892) British poet laureate
“Example is not the main thing in influencing others. It is the only thing.”
Albert Schweitzer (1875–1965) French-German physician, theologian, musician and philosopher
“Most people die at 25 and aren’t buried until they’re 75.”
Benjamin Franklin (1706–1790) American author, printer, political theorist, politician, postmaster, scientist, inventor, civic activist, …
“You have to have a dream so you can get up in the morning.”
Billy Wilder (1906–2002) American filmmaker
“I think pressure’s healthy, and very few can handle it.”
Gordon Ramsay (1966) British chef, writer and TV presenter
Jacque Fresco (1916–2017) American futurist and self-described social engineer
Designing the Future (2007)
“Truth never triumphs—its opponents just die out.”
Max Planck (1858–1947) German theoretical physicist
Variant: Science advances one funeral at a time.
“Never apologize for showing feeling. When you do so, you apologize for truth.”
Benjamin Disraeli (1804–1881) British Conservative politician, writer, aristocrat and Prime Minister
“The heart has its reasons which reason knows not of.”
Blaise Pascal (1623–1662) French mathematician, physicist, inventor, writer, and Christian philosopher
“True friendship ought never to conceal what it thinks.”
Jerome (345–420) Catholic saint and Doctor of the Church
“Beware of missing chances; otherwise it may be altogether too late some day.”
Franz Liszt (1811–1886) Hungarian romantic composer and virtuoso pianist
“Truth is powerful and it prevails.”
Sojourner Truth (1797–1883) African-American abolitionist and women's rights activist
“A day of worry is more exhausting than a day of work.”
John Lubbock, 1st Baron Avebury (1834–1913) British banker, Liberal politician, philanthropist, scientist and polymath
“If you can't explain it simply, you don't understand it well enough.”
Albert Einstein (1879–1955) German-born physicist and founder of the theory of relativity
“Give whatever you are doing and whoever you are with the gift of your attention.”
Jim Rohn (1930–2009) American motivational speaker
“We make our own fortunes and we call them fate.”
Benjamin Disraeli (1804–1881) British Conservative politician, writer, aristocrat and Prime Minister
“Growth is possible only if there is imperfection.”
Rajneesh (1931–1990) Godman and leader of the Rajneesh movement
George Orwell (1903–1950) English author and journalist
Source: "As I Please," Tribune (4 August 1944)
http://alexpeak.com/twr/orwell/quotes/
“But it takes a war to make map-reading popular.”
George Orwell (1903–1950) English author and journalist
Source: "As I Please," Tribune (11 February 1944)
Pavel Durov (1984) Russian entrepreneur
" Why WhatsApp Will Never Be Secure https://telegra.ph/Why-WhatsApp-Will-Never-Be-Secure-05-15" 2019-05-15 <br class="br">In reference to his expatriation from Russia after refusing to breach the privacy of VK users for the government
“Truth and expansion go hand in hand. Truth creates growth. Lies and illusion prevent it.”
Teal Swan (1984) American spiritual teacher
“Every saint has a past, and every sinner has a future.”
Oscar Wilde (1854–1900) Irish writer and poet
“Don't worry that children never listen to you; worry that they are always watching you.”
Robert Fulghum (1937) American writer
As quoted in Reflections for Tending the Sacred Garden (2003) by Bonita Jean Zimmer, p. 182
“In ancient times cats were worshiped as gods; they have not forgotten this.”
Terry Pratchett (1948–2015) English author
Pratchett is credited as author of this, as quoted in Ghost Cats : Human Encounters with Feline Spirits (2007) by Dusty Rainbolt, p. 7, and in Chicken Soup for the Soul : What I Learned from the Cat (2009) by Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen, and Amy Newmark
Quote attributed to unknown author, in Chicken Soup for the Soul Celebrates Cats : And the People Who Love Them (2004) by Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen, and Sharon J. Wohlmuth, p. 1
General sources
Variant: In ancient times, cats were worshiped as gods. They have never forgotten this.
“To hell with circumstances; I create opportunities.”
Bruce Lee (1940–1973) Hong Kong-American actor, martial artist, philosopher and filmmaker
“Poetry is to prose as dancing is to walking.”
Paul Valéry (1871–1945) French poet, essayist, and philosopher
“Though the road's been rocky it sure feels good to me.”
Bob Marley (1945–1981) Jamaican singer, songwriter, musician
“We cannot tear a single page from our life, but we can throw the whole book into the fire.”
George Sand book Mauprat
Nous ne pouvons arracher une seule page de notre vie, mais nous pouvons jeter le livre au feu.
Source: Mauprat, ch. 11 (1837); Matilda M. Hays (trans.) Mauprat (London: E. Churton, 1847) p. 121
“Knowing is not enough, we must apply. Willing is not enough, we must do.”
Bruce Lee (1940–1973) Hong Kong-American actor, martial artist, philosopher and filmmaker
C.G. Jung book Memories, Dreams, Reflections
Variant: "... the sole purpose of human existence is to kindle a light in the darkness of mere being.
Source: Memories, Dreams, Reflections (1963), p. 326
Oscar Wilde book The Picture of Dorian Gray
Variant: I wish you would tell me your secret. To get back my youth I would do anything in the world, except take exercise, get up early, or be respectable.
Source: The Picture of Dorian Gray
Terry Pratchett (1948–2015) English author
Source: Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch
“Our perfect companions never have fewer than four feet.”
Colette (1873–1954) 1873-1954 French novelist: wrote Gigi
Charles Darwin (1809–1882) British naturalist, author of "On the origin of species, by means of natural selection"
Source: The Autobiography of Charles Darwin, 1809–82
“if you want to shine like sun first you have to burn like it.”
Adolf Hitler (1889–1945) Führer and Reich Chancellor of Germany, Leader of the Nazi Party
“You never know what life is like, until you have lived it.”
Marilyn Monroe (1926–1962) American actress, model, and singer
“I like men who have a future and women who have a past.”
Oscar Wilde (1854–1900) Irish writer and poet
George Carlin (1937–2008) American stand-up comedian
Books, When Will Jesus Bring the Pork Chops? (2004)
Source: When Will Jesus Bring The Pork Chops?
“Behind every beautiful thing there's been some kind of pain”
Bob Dylan (1941) American singer-songwriter, musician, author, and artist
Song lyrics, Time Out of Mind (1997), Not Dark Yet
“Our minds sometimes see what our hearts wish were true.”
Dan Brown book Angels & Demons
Source: Angels & Demons
Georgia O'Keeffe (1887–1986) American artist
O'Keeffe's contribution (1939) to the exhibition catalogue of the show An American place (1944)
1930 - 1950
Source: Georgia O'Keeffe
Context: A flower is relatively small. Everyone has many associations with a flower - the idea of flowers. You put out your hand to touch the flower — lean forward to smell it — maybe touch it with your lips almost without thinking — or give it to someone to please them. Still — in a way — nobody sees a flower — really — it is so small — we haven't time — and to see takes time, like to have a friend takes time... So I said to myself — I'll paint what I see — what the flower is to me but I'll paint it big and they will be surprised into taking time to look at it — I will make even busy New-Yorkers take time to see what I see of flowers... Well — I made you take time to look at what I saw and when you took time to really notice my flower, you hung all your own associations with flowers on my flower and you write about my flower as if I think and see what you think and see of the flower — and I don't.
“She loved to walk down the street with a book under her arm. It differentiated her from the others”
Milan Kundera book The Unbearable Lightness of Being
Source: The Unbearable Lightness of Being
“Never confuse movement with action.”
Ernest Hemingway (1899–1961) American author and journalist
As quoted by Marlene Dietrich, who added "In those five words he gave me a whole philosophy." Pt. 1, Ch. 1
Papa Hemingway (1966)
Variant: Never mistake motion for action.
“The worst loneliness is to not be comfortable with yourself.”
Mark Twain (1835–1910) American author and humorist
“We could never learn to be brave and patient if there were only joy in the world”
Helen Keller (1880–1968) American author and political activist
“I would believe only in a God that knows how to dance.”
Friedrich Nietzsche book Thus Spoke Zarathustra
Variant: I would only believe in a god who could dance.
Source: Thus Spoke Zarathustra
“The antidote for fifty enemies is one friend.”
Aristotle (-384–-321 BC) Classical Greek philosopher, student of Plato and founder of Western philosophy
“If we are not ashamed to think it, we should not be ashamed to say it.”
Marcus Tullius Cicero (-106–-43 BC) Roman philosopher and statesman
“You go to Heaven once you've been to Hell”
Leonard Cohen (1934–2016) Canadian poet and singer-songwriter
Source: Song Paper Thin Hotel
Margaret Mead (1901–1978) American anthropologist
Source: Kabir, Hajara Muhammad (2010). Northern women development. [Nigeria]. ISBN 978-978-906-469-4. OCLC 890820657 note: 1940s, Male and Female (1949)
“I'm sure the universe is full of intelligent life. It's just been too intelligent to come here.”
Arthur C. Clarke (1917–2008) British science fiction writer, science writer, inventor, undersea explorer, and television series host
IRC discussion at Scifi.com (1 November 1996) http://web.archive.org/web/20021201214228/http://www.scifi.com/transcripts/aclarke.txt with Clarke and Gentry Lee <br class="br">1990s
Emile Zola (1840–1902) French writer (1840-1902)
As quoted in Writers on Writing (1986) by Jon Winokur.
Variant: If you ask me what I came into this life to do, I will tell you: I came to live out loud.
“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, therefore, is not an act, but a habit.”
Will Durant book The Story of Philosophy
Variant: We are what we repeatedly do. Greatness then, is not an act, but a habit
Source: The Story of Philosophy (1926), p. 87. The quoted phrases within the quotation are from the Nicomachean Ethics, Book II, 4; Book I, 7.
Context: Excellence is an art won by training and habituation: we do not act rightly because we have virtue or excellence, but we rather have these because we have acted rightly; 'these virtues are formed in man by his doing the actions'; we are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act but a habit: 'the good of man is a working of the soul in the way of excellence in a complete life... for as it is not one swallow or one fine day that makes a spring, so it is not one day or a short time that makes a man blessed and happy'.
“Everything we hear is an opinion, not a fact. Everything we see is a perspective, not the truth.”
Marcus Aurelius book Meditations
Misattributed
Source: Cited as being from The Meditations. This quote does not exist there; although there are several other statements about everything being an opinion, none of these are connected to a sentence about perspectives.
“A fool sees not the same tree that a wise man sees.”
William Blake (1757–1827) English Romantic poet and artist
“Tact: the ability to describe others as they see themselves.”
Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865) 16th President of the United States
John Steinbeck book East of Eden
Variant: My father said she was a strong woman, and I believe a strong woman may be stronger than a man, particularly if she happens to have love in her heart. I guess a loving woman is almost indestructible.
Source: East of Eden
“To weep is to make less the depth of grief.”
William Shakespeare (1564–1616) English playwright and poet
Source: King Henry VI, Part 3
“Trust only movement. Life happens at the level of events, not of words. Trust movement.”
Alfred Adler (1870–1937) Medical Doctor, Psychologist, Psychiatrist, Psychotherapist, Personality Theorist
“Beautiful young people are accidents of nature, but beautiful old people are works of art.”
Eleanor Roosevelt (1884–1962) American politician, diplomat, and activist, and First Lady of the United States
