“But, perhaps, the excellence of aphorisms consists not so much in the expression of some rare or abstruse sentiment, as in the comprehension of some obvious and useful truth in few words.”
No. 175 (19 November 1751)
The Rambler (1750–1752)
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Samuel Johnson 362
English writer 1709–1784Related quotes
“A gaffe is when a politician tells the truth - some obvious truth he isn't supposed to say.”
As quoted in Commentary: The gaffer speaks, The Times, April 23, 1988.

The Early Journals and Letters of Fanny Burney, vol. 1, p. 8, journal entry, 1768.
Letters

“The truth always carries the ambiguity of the words used to express it.”
Source: God Emperor of Dune

Character
1880s, Lectures and Biographical Sketches (1883)