Famous quotes
Quotes by famous people, credited to who said them. Your own quotes must not match any of these. More are added all the time. 1,158,269 quotes Who coined it · How we decide
EnglishItalianoPolskiעבריתFrançaisPortuguêsفارسیEspañol中文РусскийDeutschالعربيةहिन्दी日本語ΕλληνικάLatina
Laughter
LoveFriendshipHappinessHopeFearCourageDeathLifeTimeWarPeaceFreedomTruthWisdomKnowledgeScienceArtMusicNatureMoneyWorkPowerGodBeautyLaughterFamilySuccess and failureChangeDreamsBooks and reading
“You tend to behave yourself in her company. Make even a small joke about her songs and she gets angry. And she does have a peculiar effect on men. I've watched normally sane journalists waxing metaphysical when they meet her.”
“A college joke to cure the dumps.”
Jonathan Swift (1667–1745) said by 1745 at the latest bartlett, Public domain source
“And gentle Dulness ever loves a joke.”
Alexander Pope (1688–1744) said by 1744 at the latest bartlett, Public domain source
“Laughter shall drown the raucous shout; And, though these shelt’ring walls are thin, May they be strong to keep hate out And hold love in.”
Louis Untermeyer (1885–1977) said by 1977 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“On this hapless earth There ’s small sincerity of mirth, And laughter oft is but an art To drown the outcry of the heart.”
Hartley Coleridge (1796–1849) said by 1849 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Old homes! old hearts! Upon my soul forever Their peace and gladness lie like tears and laughter.”
Madison Cawein (1865–1914) said by 1914 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Like the East Side tenement, our house was seldom without the sound of music or laughter or questions being asked or stories being told.”
Harpo Marx (1888–1964) said by 1964 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“There is no rose without a thorn No rain without the storm There is no laughter without tears No wisdom without years In a world gone crazy Torn between the roads that we must choose Win or lose.”
“Low gurgling laughter, as sweet As the swallow's song i' the South, And a ripple of dimples that, dancing, meet By the curves of a perfect mouth”
Paul Hamilton Hayne (1830–1886) said by 1886 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Grunthor replaced his helmet and turned to Rhapsody. He took one look at the expression on her face and roared with laughter. "'Allo, darlin'. Oi'm so glad to see it's love at first sight for you, too. Come along." He walked away into the night.”
Elizabeth Haydon (born 1965) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“My sword is Strength, my spear is Song; With these upon a stubborn field I challenge Falsehood, Fear and Wrong; But Laughter is my shield.”
Arthur Guiterman (1871–1943) said by 1943 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“A trembling and some laughter, / a squirt of pee, a spit, / whispers of the heart, / a smell, / the drift to sleep, / pursuit by Gods, / exposure of the bum, / mathematics ...”
Peter Greenaway (born 1942) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“If I woke up tomorrow morning and it was just a dream, it would be the best dream I've ever had, and I would be ― I would not be happy to be waking up! [laughter]”
Leona Lewis (born 1985) first seen 2006 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: The Xtra Factor: Winner's Story 2006
“The Abbey always reminds me of that old toast, 'Above lofty timbers, the walls around are bare, echoing to our laughter, as though the dead were there.'”
Garrett Fort (1900–1945) said by 1945 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Fierce for the right, he bore his part In strife with many a valiant foe; But Laughter winged his polished dart, And kindness tempered every blow.”
William Winter (author) first seen 1919 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: I. H. Bromley, reported in Bartlett's Familiar Quotations, 10th ed. (1919).
“We meet neath the sounding rafter, And the walls around are bare; As they shout back our peals of laughter It seems that the dead are there. Ho! stand to your glasses steady! 'T is all we have left to prize. A cup to the dead already,— Hurrah for the next that dies!”
Bartholomew Dowling (1823–1863) said by 1863 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: The Revel: Time of the Famine and Plague in India, reported in Bartlett's Familiar Quotations, 10th ed. (1919); alternately attributed to Alfred Domett.
“The average person has one Fallopian tube. [pause for laughter] The average penis length is 5.5 inches, and finally, the average penis length of a man who googles "average penis length" is 3.5 inches.”
Bo Burnham (born 1990) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Huebner observes that my use of laugher is my attempt to practice theology in a manner that refuses the attempt to manage the world. In short, my use of laughter is “an appropriate theological antidote to the Constantinian desire for control.”
Stanley Hauerwas (born 1940) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Everyone broke up in laughter, as Lacy watched. Alex, she realized, could fit anywhere. Here, or with Lacy’s family at dinner, or in a courtroom, or probably at tea with the queen. She was a chameleon.”
Jodi Picoult (born 1966) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I thought I knew where I was going, until I heard your laughter flowingAnd came upon the wisdom in your eyes”
Jackson Browne (born 1948) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I'm going to find myself a girl Who can show me what laughter means. And we'll fill in the missing colors In each other's paint-by-number dreams.”
Jackson Browne (born 1948) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“He was born with a gift of laughter and a sense that the world was mad.”
Rafael Sabatini (1875–1950) said by 1950 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Although I have always loved the noise of laughter, I really can't fear the coming of quiet. As for funerals, I rather like them. Such nice things are always said about the deceased, I feel sad that they had to miss hearing it all by just a few days.”
Bob Monkhouse (1928–2003) said by 2003 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“[On striking public sector workers.] I would have them all shot. (laughter) I would take them outside and execute them in front of their families. I mean how dare they go on strike when they have these gilt-edged pensions that are going to be guaranteed, while the rest of us have to work for a living.”
Jeremy Clarkson (born 1960) first seen 2011 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: On The One Show (BBC One), cited in "Jeremy Clarkson's One Show strike outburst - full text" The Guardian (1 December 2011)
“Peg o' my heart I'll love you don't let us part. I love you I always knew it would be you Since I heard your lilting laughter It's your Irish heart I'm after Peg o' my heart.”
Fred Fisher (1875–1942) first seen 1913 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Song Peg o' My Heart (1913)
“There'll be bluebirds over The white cliffs of Dover Tomorrow Just you wait and see. There'll be love and laughter And peace ever after Tomorrow When the world is free.”
Nat Burton (1901–1945) said by 1945 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Jazz today can be spiritual, cerebral, motivating or moving. It can evoke tension, relaxation, laughter, tears. Surely jazz is truly the music of the era, combining stature, dignity and emotion with the highest musical ideals.”
John Dankworth (1927–2010) first seen 1998 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Jazz in Revolution (1998), concluding words.
“The laughter came When the tears stopped falling. Now all I do is just call your name (When I say lover) You walked in and my heart discovered That my life would never be the same. Oh, you are my destiny. You are my one and only. You gave that joy to me When my whole life was lonely.”
Lionel Richie (born 1949) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Laughter, ridicule, opposition, persecution, are often the only reward which Christ's followers get from the world.”
J. C. Ryle (1816–1900) said by 1900 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Sometimes tears make more good than laughter.”
Pedro Muñoz Seca (1879–1936) said by 1936 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“We made the mountains shake With laughter as we played, Hiding in our corner of the world. Then we did the demon dance And rushed to nevermore, Threw away the key and locked the door.”
Ronnie James Dio (1942–2010) first seen 1980 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Children of the Sea" on Heaven and Hell (1980)
“She's a good-hearted woman in love with a good-timin' man. She loves him in spite of his ways she don't understand. With teardrops and laughter they pass through this world hand in hand, A good-hearted woman, lovin' a good-timin' man.”
Waylon Jennings (1937–2002) first seen 1972 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Good Hearted Woman, title track from Good Hearted Woman, written with Willie Nelson (1972).
“Whoever undertakes to set himself up as a judge of Truth and Knowledge is shipwrecked by the laughter of the gods.”
Albert Einstein (1879–1955) said by 1955 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Laughter, n. An interior convulsion, producing a distortion of the features and accompanied by inarticulate noises. It is infectious and, though intermittent, incurable.”
Ambrose Bierce (1842–1914) said by 1914 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“The salvation of the world depends on the men who will not take evil good-humouredly, and whose laughter destroys the fool instead of encouraging him.”
George Bernard Shaw (1856–1950) said by 1950 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“This leads to the paradox, that because the disease is only in the poor countries, there is not much investment. For example, there is more money put into baldness drugs, than are put into malaria. Now, baldness, it is a terrible thing [audience laughter] and rich men are afflicted, so that is why that priority is set.”
Bill Gates (born 1955) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“She was listening to his proposals, and continually refusing them with shakes of the head, and that temptress's laughter which is peculiar to a voluptuous blonde.”
Émile Zola (1840–1902) first seen 1895 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Ch. 4 (tr. Victor Plarr, 1895)
“And, then, if only there were some truth in what the priests say, if only the poor of this world were rich in the next!" These words were greeted with a burst of laughter, and even the children shrugged their shoulders, for the hard wind blowing from the outer world had taken away all their belief. They harbored a secret fear of ghosts down in the mine, but scoffed at the empty heavens.”
Émile Zola (1840–1902) said by 1902 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Pt. 3, ch. 3 (tr. L. W. Tancock, 1954)
“Perfection, of a kind, was what he was after, And the poetry he invented was easy to understand; He knew human folly like the back of his hand, And was greatly interested in armies and fleets; When he laughed, respectable senators burst with laughter, And when he cried the little children died in the streets.”
W. H. Auden (1907–1973) said by 1973 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“This notion that the United States is getting ready to attack Iran is simply ridiculous. (Short pause) And having said that, all options are on the table. (Laughter) (25 February 2005)”
George W. Bush (born 1946) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“His laughter tinkled among the teacups.”
T. S. Eliot (1888–1965) said by 1965 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“We look before and after, And pine for what is not: Our sincerest laughter With some pain is fraught; Our sweetest songs are those that tell of saddest thought.”
Percy Bysshe Shelley (1792–1822) said by 1822 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“But as he warmed and glowed, in his simple and eloquent language, Quite forgetful of self, and full of the praise of his rival, Archly the maiden smiled, and, with eyes over-running with laughter, Said, in a tremulous voice, "Why don't you speak for yourself, John?”
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807–1882) said by 1882 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Sport, that wrinkled Care derides, And Laughter, holding both his sides. Come, and trip it, as you go. On the light fantastic toe.”
John Milton (1608–1674) said by 1674 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“The house of laughter makes a house of woe.”
Edward Young (1683–1765) said by 1765 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“If we may believe our logicians, man is distinguished from all other creatures by the faculty of laughter.”
Joseph Addison (1672–1719) first seen 1712 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: No. 494 (26 September 1712)
“I simultaneously believe that languages are wonderful and awful. You have to hold both of those. Ugly things can be beautiful. And beautiful can get ugly very fast. You know, take Lisp. You know, it's the most beautiful language in the world. At least up until Haskell came along. (laughter) But, you know, every program in Lisp is just ugly. I don't figure how that works.”
Larry Wall (born 1954) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I learned a lot from the stories my uncle, aunts, and grandparents told me: that no one is perfect but most people are good; that people can't be judged only by their worst or weakest moments; that harsh judgements make hypocrites of us all; that a lot of life is just showing up and hanging on; that laughter is often the best, and sometimes only response to pain.”
Bill Clinton (born 1946) first seen 2004 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: My Life (2004), page 15
“The geometry of innocent flesh on the bone Causes Galileo's math book to get thrown At Delilah's who sitting worthlessly alone But the tears on her cheeks are from laughter”
“Can there be joy and laughter When always the world is ablaze? Enshrouded in darkness Should you not seek a light?”
Gautama Buddha (501–501 BC) said by 501 BC at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source