Quotes about play
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“We're playing Scrabble. It's a nightmare."

"Scrabble?" He sounds surprised. "Scrabble's great."

"Not when you're playing with a family of geniuses, it's not. They all put words like 'iridiums'. And I put 'pig'.”

Sophie Kinsella book I've Got Your Number

Source: I've Got Your Number

Family

“Do you play football for Pittsburgh? Then why are you such a Steeler?!”

Lisi Harrison (1970) Canadian writer

Source: Boys "R" Us

Football

“The most exciting acting tends to happen in roles you never thought you could play.”

John Lithgow (1945) American character actor, musician, and author

“But rules only work when everyone plays by them. What happens when someone doesn't, and the fallout bleeds right into his life? Whats stronger- the need to uphold the law, or the motive to turn one's back on it?”

Jodi Picoult Perfect Match

Source: Perfect Match

Life, Law, Motivation

“O grant me a house by the beach of a bay,
Where the waves can be surly in winter, and play
With the sea-weed in summer, ye bountiful powers!
And I'd leave all the hurry, the noise, and the fray,
For a house full of books, and a garden of flowers.”

Andrew Lang (1844–1912) Scots poet, novelist and literary critic

Books, Flowers, Winter, Summer

““I am enclosing two tickets to the first night of my new play; bring a friend ... if you have one."
— George Bernard Shaw, playwright (to Winston Churchill)
"Cannot possibly attend first night; will attend second, if there is one."
— Churchill's response”

George Bernard Shaw (1856–1950) Irish playwright

Night

“You're never too old to play. You're only too old for low-rise jeans.”

Ellen DeGeneres (1958) American stand-up comedian, television host, and actress

Source: Seriously... I'm Kidding

“It's a long way from not having enough serotonin to thinking the world is "stale, flat and unprofitable"; even further to writing a play about a man driven by that thought.”

Susanna Kaysen book Girl, Interrupted

Source: Girl, Interrupted

World, Way, Thinking

“Just because I tread heavily on propriety's toes doesn't mean I can't play the game when it's of use to me.”

Patrick Rothfuss book The Wise Man's Fear

Source: The Wise Man's Fear

Game

“The poet…is the man of metaphor: while the philosopher is interested only in the truth of meaning, beyond even signs and names, and the sophist manipulates empty signs…the poet plays on the multiplicity of signifieds.”

Jacques Derrida (1930–2004) French philosopher (1930-2004)

Truth

“You can't outwit fate by standing on the sidelines placing little sidebets about the outcome of life. either you wade in and risk everything you have to play the game or you don't play at all. and if u don't play u can't win.”

Judith McNaught (1944) American writer

Variant: You can't outwit fate by standing on the sidelines placing little side bets about the outcome of life. Either you wade in, risk everything you have to play the game or you don't play at all. And if you can't play, you can't win.
Source: Paradise

Life, Fate, Game

“You want to go play with your new friends back there? The really pale ones with the taste for plasma? --Shane”

Rachel Caine (1962) American writer

Source: Lord of Misrule

“Maybe you should go home and rest," Simon told Meg. Maybe he could go home with her and they could cuddle for a while or play a game. Or she could watch a movie with him and pet him.”

Anne Bishop book Murder of Crows

Source: Murder of Crows

Home, Game

“I didn't have any friends at school, didn't want any. I felt better being alone. I sat on a bench and watched the others play and they looked foolish to me.”

Charles Bukowski (1920–1994) American writer

School

“Man may have discovered fire, but women discovered how to play with it.”

Candace Bushnell book Sex and the City

Source: Sex and the City

Women, Relationship, Cute

“How do you fight someone smarter than yourself?' Rand Whispered. 'The answer is simple. You make her think that you are sitting down across the table from her, ready to play her game. Then you punch her in the face as hard as you can.”

Brandon Sanderson The Wheel of Time

Source: The Gathering Storm

Game, Thinking, Fight

“Do you take pride in your hurt? Does it make you seem large and tragic?… Well, think about it. Maybe you're playing a part on a great stage with only yourself as audience.”

John Steinbeck book East of Eden

Source: East of Eden

Thinking, Parting, Hurt

“Rachel: They asked me a lot of questions about you. I played dumb.
Annabeth: Was it hard?”

Rick Riordan (1964) American writer

Question

“You can con God and get away with it, Granny said, if you do so with charm and wit. If you live your life with imagination and verve, God will play along just to see what outrageously entertaining thing you'll do next.”

Dean Koontz Odd Thomas

Source: Odd Thomas

Life, God, Imagination

“Nervous means you want to play. Scared means you don't want to play.”

Sherman Alexie book The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian

Source: The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian

“I'll string a fiddle with your guts and make you play it while I dance.”

Patrick Rothfuss book The Name of the Wind

Source: The Name of the Wind

Dance

“In life, there are only four kinds of girls:
The girl who played with fire.
The girl who opened Pandora's Box.
The girl who gave Adam the apple.
And the girl whose best friend stole her boyfriend.”

Candace Bushnell book The Carrie Diaries

Variant: In life, there are only four kinds of girls:
The girl who played with fire.
The girl who opened Pandora's Box.
The girl who gave Adam the apple.
And the girl whose best friend stole her boyfriend.
Source: The Carrie Diaries

Life, Girl, Box

“Beautiful music plays, but not everyone with ears can hear it.”

Danielle Trussoni book Angelology

Source: Angelology

Beauty, Music

“I prefer rationalism to atheism. The question of God and other objects-of-faith are outside reason and play no part in rationalism, thus you don't have to waste your time in either attacking or defending.”

Isaac Asimov (1920–1992) American writer and professor of biochemistry at Boston University, known for his works of science fiction …

God, Faith, Question, Time

“Well," I said. "If you need me, I'll be outside, playing with sharp objects.”

Rick Riordan book The Red Pyramid

Source: The Red Pyramid

“She was perfect, pure maddening sex, and she knew it, and she played on it, dripped it, and allowed you to suffer for it.”

Charles Bukowski book Factotum

Source: Factotum

Sex, Suffering, Perfection

“You play, you win, you play, you lose. You play. It’s the playing that’s irresistible. Dicing from one year to the next with the things you love, what you risk reveals what you value.”

Jeanette Winterson book The Passion

Source: The Passion

Love

“who would dare think that, forever? Some idiot girl who wouldn’t know how things played out.”

Daniel Handler book Why We Broke Up

Source: Why We Broke Up

Girl, Thinking

“He played of love and loss and years of silence, words unsaid and vows unspoken, and all the spaces between his heart and theirs…”

Cassandra Clare book Clockwork Princess

Source: Clockwork Princess

Love, Silence, Loss, Heart

“Everybody wants to talk about themselves, and everybody wants to hear everybody else's story, so we take turns playing reporter and celebrity.”

Ryū Murakami (1952) Japanese writer

“You can never know about about your own destiny: are the people you meet there to play a part on your oun destiny, or do you exist just to play a role in theirs?”

Libba Bray Going Bovine

Source: Going Bovine

People, Parting

“No wonder Barrons was so determined to keep me alive, and I had a Fae prince playing lapdog, and the Lord Master hadn't yet launched a full scale attack against me. They allme alive. I was Tigger. I was the only one.”

Karen Marie Moning (1964) author

Source: Faefever

“I learned to play the instruments of war," he said, "and paint in blood.”

Cassandra Clare The City of Lost Souls

Source: City of Lost Souls

War, Learning, Painting

“I really want to play Princess Leia. Stick some big pastries on my head. Now that would be interesting.”

Ewan McGregor (1971) British actor

Princess

“If you play your cards right, the next generation will have so much more than you did.”

David Levithan (1972) American author and editor

Source: Two Boys Kissing

“Games give you a chance to excel, and if you're playing in good company you don't even mind if you lose because you had the enjoyment of the company during the course of the game.”

Gary Gygax (1938–2008) American writer and game designer

GameSpy interview by Allen Rausch, Pt. 1 (15 August 2004) http://pc.gamespy.com/articles/538/538817p2.html

Game, Chance

“People are going deaf because music is played louder and louder, but because they're going deaf, it has to be played louder still.”

Milan Kundera (1929–2023) Czech author of Czech and French literature

People, Music

“Sometimes when she was alone, and she knew she was alone, she permitted her mind to play in a garden, and she smiled.”

John Steinbeck book East of Eden

Source: East of Eden

Smile

“Gambling is not a vice, it is an expression of our humanness. We gamble. Some do it at the gaming table, some do not. You play, you win, you play, you lose, you play.”

Jeanette Winterson book The Passion

Source: The Passion (1987), p.73

Game

“Do you ever do that thing where you lie in bed and you can't sleep so you end up writing out recent conversation you've had? So they look like a play?'

Well you should. It's fun. I keep them. Look through them, sometimes.”

Nick Hornby book How to Be Good

Source: How to Be Good

Lie, Sleep

“The question, O me! so sad, recurring -
What good amid these, O me, O life?
That you are here - that life
exists and identity,
that the powerful play goes on,
and you may contribute a verse.”

Walt Whitman (1819–1892) American poet, essayist and journalist

Source: The Leaves of Grass

Life, Sadness, Question

“Be glad of life because it gives you the chance to love and to work and to play and to look up at the stars.”

Henry Van Dyke (1852–1933) American diplomat

Love, Life, Star, Chance

“I wanted you to thank you for being my friend and letting me play a part in your story.”

Christopher Pike book The Last Vampire

Source: The Last Vampire

Parting

“The roles we play in each other's lives are only as powerful as the trust and connection between us--the protection, safety, and caring we are willing to share.”

Oprah Winfrey (1954) American businesswoman, talk show host, actress, producer, and philanthropist

“My friends are gone and my hair is grey.
I ache in places I used to play.
And I’m crazy for love but I’m not coming on.
I’m just paying my rent every day in the tower of song.”

Leonard Cohen (1934–2016) Canadian poet and singer-songwriter

Source: Dance Me to the End of Love

Love

“There is just no comparison between having a dinner date with a man and staying home playing canasta with the girls.”

Marilyn Monroe (1926–1962) American actress, model, and singer

Home, Girl

“To truly laugh, you must be able to take your pain, and play with it.”

Charlie Chaplin (1889–1977) British comic actor and filmmaker

Pain

“Life's a show and we all play a part
And when the music starts
We open up our hearts”

Joss Whedon (1964) American director, writer, and producer for television and film

Life, Music, Heart, Parting

“They reciprocated the great and saving lie--that our love for things is greater than our lover for our love for things--willfully playing the parts they wrote for themselves, willfully creating and believing fictions necessary for life.”

Jonathan Safran Foer book Everything Is Illuminated

Source: Everything Is Illuminated

Love, Life, Lie, Lovers

“Play on, when you're losing the game. Play on, cuz you're going to make mistakes. It's always worth the sacrifice, even when you think you're wrong.”

Carrie Underwood (1983) American country music singer

Game, Thinking

“The darkness enveloped us. All I could hear was the violin and it was as if Juliek's soul had become the bow. He was playing his life… He played that which he would never play again.”

Elie Wiesel (1928–2016) writer, professor, political activist, Nobel Laureate, and Holocaust survivor

Life, Soul

“Everyone joins a band in this life. And what you play always affects someone. Sometimes, it affects the world.”

Mitch Albom (1958) American author

Source: The Magic Strings of Frankie Presto: A Novel

Life, World

“I'm playing with fire, with something I don't understand.”

L.J. Smith (1965) American author

Source: The Awakening

Understanding

“When he worked, he really worked. But when he played, he really PLAYED.”

Dr. Seuss (1904–1991) American children's writer and illustrator, co-founder of Beginner Books

“Life without playing music is inconceivable for me. I live my daydreams in music. I see my life in terms of music, I get most joy in life out of music.”

Albert Einstein (1879–1955) German-born physicist and founder of the theory of relativity

Life, Music, Joy

“Ralph… would treat the day's decisions as though he were playing chess. The only trouble was that he would never be a very good chess player.”

William Golding book Lord of the Flies

Source: Lord of the Flies

Decision

“Riggedy riggedy white
Come and spend the night
We'll play some games
Some wild some tame
Cause if you will, you might.

By, Laberge”

D.J. MacHale (1955) American television director and producer

Game, Night

“It’s a big raised platform at the end of the square, with steps running up to it.”
Like a stage?” Evanlyn suggested. “Maybe they’re planning to put on a play?”
Or an execution,” Horace said.”

John Flanagan (1873–1938) Irish-American hammer thrower

Source: Erak's Ransom

“Coyote never loses. Because I change the rules of the games my enemies play. What are the rules of your game?”

Patricia Briggs book Frost Burned

Source: Frost Burned

Game, Change

“Are you going to be playing for the pure thrill of unreluctant desire?”

David Levithan (1972) American author and editor

Source: Dash & Lily's Book of Dares

William Carlos Williams (1883–1963) American poet

Beauty, Reality, Parting

“A curse on this game. How can you stick at a game when the rules keep on changing? I shall call myself Alice and play croquet with the flamingos. In Wonderland everyone cheats and love is Wonderland, isn't it?”

Jeanette Winterson (1959) English writer

Source: Written on the Body

Love, Game, Change, Cheating

“Oh, I used to lie all the time as a kid." I didn't think of it as lying, though. I thought of it as playing make-believe. I told Kitty she was adopted and her real family was in a traveling circus. It's why she took up gymnastics.”

Jenny Han book To All the Boys I've Loved Before

Source: To All the Boys I've Loved Before

Lie, Family, Travel, Lying

“We were quiet on the car ride home. I turned on the radio and found a station playing "Hey Jude." It was true, I didn't want to make it bad. I wanted to take the sad song and make it better. It's just that I didn't know how.”

Jonathan Safran Foer book Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close

Source: Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close

Sadness, Cars, Home

“This is a touch game. There are times when you've got to play hurt when you've got to block out the pain.”

Sherry Argov (1977) American writer

Source: Why Men Marry Bitches: A Woman's Guide to Winning Her Man's Heart

Pain, Game, Time, Hurt

“They say the world is a stage. But obviously the play is unrehearsed and everybody is ad-libbing his lines."
"Maybe that’s why it’s hard to tell if we’re living in a tragedy or a farce."
"We need more special effects and dance numbers.”

Bill Watterson (1958) American comic artist

There's Treasure Everywhere

World, Dance

“Time plays tricks between here and home," said Mogget sepulchrally, frightening the life out of the telephone operator.”

Garth Nix book Abhorsen

Source: Abhorsen

Life, Home, Time

“We overlook just how large a role we all play--and by 'we' I mean society--in determining who makes it and who doesn't.”

Malcolm Gladwell (1963) journalist and science writer

Source: Outliers: The Story of Success

“You never know when it will be the last time you'll see your father, or kiss your wife, or play with your little brother, but there's always a last time. If you could remember every last time, you'd never stop grieving.”

Jonathan Tropper (1970) American writer

Source: This is Where I Leave You

Kiss, Time

“Five years of destruction and mayhem, lives lost everywhere, shortages of food and fuel and clothing - and the insane mind behind it just urges us all on and on to more destruction. And we all keep playing.”

Elizabeth Wein book Rose Under Fire

Source: Rose Under Fire

Food, Clothes

“If you want creative workers, give them enough time to play.”

John Cleese (1939) actor from England

As quoted in Best New Games (2002) by Dale N. LeFevre, p. 9

Time

“There was a DJ who stayed up for eleven days straight, the longest recorded period of time anyone has ever gone without sleep, and he started playing nothing by Phil Collins, and that's how they knew it was time to call the ambulance.”

Meg Cabot (1967) Novelist

Sleep, Time

“Combinatory play seems to be the essential feature in productive thought.”

Albert Einstein (1879–1955) German-born physicist and founder of the theory of relativity

“Grammar is a piano I play by ear.”

Joan Didion (1934) American writer

Source: Essays & Conversations

“the gods play no
favorites.”

Charles Bukowski (1920–1994) American writer

Source: You Get So Alone at Times That it Just Makes Sense

God

“If I want to play mind games, I'd buy a Rubik's cube. ~ Acheron, a character.”

Sherrilyn Kenyon (1965) Novelist

Variant: If I wanted to play mind games, I'd buy a Rubik's cube
Source: Acheron

Game

“Endeavour to play easy pieces well and with elegance; that is better than to play difficult pieces badly.”

Robert Schumann (1810–1856) German composer, aesthete and influential music critic

Source: Advice to Young Musicians

“There is no moment more precious than the exact moment they are living. And that exact moment has a lot to do with how future moments play out.”

Obert Skye book Leven Thumps and the Gateway to Foo

Source: Leven Thumps and the Gateway to Foo

Future

“We were playing Rock, Paper, Scissors," she told him once. "I was paper and she was rock so I lived and she died.”

Melina Marchetta book On the Jellicoe Road

Source: On the Jellicoe Road

“No matter what he does, every person on earth plays a central role in the history of the world. And normally he doesn't know it.”

Paulo Coelho book The Alchemist

Source: The Alchemist (1988), p. 158.

World, History, Personality

“Life is a play that does not allow testing. So, sing, cry, dance, laugh and live intensely, before the curtain closes and the piece ends with no applause.”

Charlie Chaplin (1889–1977) British comic actor and filmmaker

Source: Charlie Chaplin: Interviews

Life, Singing, Dance, Cry

“She was alive, and they were dead. She had to try to make her life big. As big as she could. She promised Bailey she would keep playing.”

Ann Brashares The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants

Source: The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants

Life, Dead

“Our story is never written in isolation. We do not act in a one-man play. We can do nothing that does not affect other people, no matter how loudly we say, "It's my own business.”

Madeleine L'Engle (1918–2007) American writer

Source: Walking on Water: Reflections on Faith and Art

People, Business

“The awareness of the damage done by severe mental illness—to the individual himself and to others—and fears that it may return again play a decisive role in many suicides”

Kay Redfield Jamison (1946) American bipolar disorder researcher

Source: Night Falls Fast: Understanding Suicide

Fear, Decision, Suicide

“Simon: Anyone ever tell you your sense of timing really sucks?
Derek: That's why I don't play the drums. Now what's up?”

Kelley Armstrong book The Summoning

Source: The Summoning

Sense, Time

“The Maker of the universe with stars a hundred thousand light-years apart was interested, furious, and very personal about it if a small boy played baseball on Sunday afternoon.”

Sinclair Lewis book Elmer Gantry

Source: Elmer Gantry (1927)

Star, Boy, Light, Universe

“Time and distance have a way of playing tricks with your best intentions.”

Anthony Kiedis book Scar Tissue

Source: Scar Tissue

Way, Time

“Deception is mostly a game we play with ourselves.”

Terry Brooks book The Black Unicorn

Source: The Black Unicorn

Game

“It's me," said Jace. "Watching me play Scrabble is enough to make most women swoon. Imagine if I actually put in some effort.”

Cassandra Clare The City of Lost Souls

Variant: It’s me,” said Jace. “Watching me play Scrabble is enough to make most women swoon. Imagine if I actually put in some effort.
Source: City of Lost Souls

Women, Imagination, Effort

“Mother, who has an absolute belief that it is not the cards that one is dealt in life, it is how one plays them, is, by far, the highest card I was dealt.”

Kay Redfield Jamison (1946) American bipolar disorder researcher

Source: An Unquiet Mind: A Memoir of Moods and Madness

Life

“When Barrons looks at me like that, it rattles me. Lust, in those ancient, obsidian eyes, offers no trace of humanity. Doesn’t even bother trying. Savage Mac wants to invite it to come out and play. I think she’s nuts. Nuts, I tell you.”

Karen Marie Moning (1964) author

Source: Faefever

Thinking

“She was good at playing abstract confusion in the same way that a midget is good at being short.”

Clive James (1939–2019) Australian author, critic, broadcaster, poet, translator and memoirist

Way