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. 1,158,808 quotes Who coined it · How we decide
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Fear
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“When the rich grow afraid, they get nasty. We say: A government for need not greed!”
China Miéville (born 1972) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“There probably are more forces than we know about, but they’re only going to be of direct interest to physicists, I’m afraid. No tractor beams.”
Sean M. Carroll (born 1966) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Healing requires conscious choices… Very few alcoholics want to give up liquor. Obese people don’t want to give up food. Diabetics don’t want to give up sugar. People in toxic relationships don’t want to leave because that’s what they know. It’s change. People are afraid of change.”
Caroline Myss (born 1952) first seen 2003 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: As quoted in "Caroline Myss' Journey" by Terry Loncaric, at Conscious Choice (September 2003)
“It is true that the Arabs were too lowly to do such insolence, this sedition was started by Jewish spies and they created (Islam) with their own hands to overthrow the civilization of Iran and Rome and they achieved their goal, but like the staff of Moses that He turned into a dragon and Moses himself was afraid of him, this seventy-headed dragon is devouring the world”
Sadegh Hedayat (1902–1951) said by 1951 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“As long as you're afraid of intimacy and spiritual partnership, you won't likely experience it. To have it, you have to share it with each other. Just as there's no I in team, there's no it in independence.”
Craig Groeschel (born 1967) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I also have to speak out for people around me who are afraid, who think it is not worth it or who have totally given up hope. So I want to set an example: you can do it and this is okay, to speak out.”
“I don't want to be considered a hero. Imagine young people would grow up with the feeling that you have to be a hero to do your human duty. I am afraid nobody would ever help other people, because who is a hero? I was not. I was just an ordinary housewife and secretary.”
Miep Gies (1909–2010) first seen 2010 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Miep Gies, who helped hide Anne Frank, dies at 100 (January 12, 2010)
“I'm afraid I do believe that all earthly love can die - since man is mortal, why not also his most human feature? - and for me pretensions such as love that dies was never love, etc. belong to schoolgirls' albums.”
Ida Friederike Görres (1901–1971) first seen 1951 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Broken Lights Letters 1951-59.
“Young Ones. Darling we're the Young Ones. Young Ones shouldn't be afraid To live, love, there's a song to be sung, Cause we may not Be the Young Ones very long.”
Sid Tepper (1918–2015) said by 2015 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Love's easy to learn. It's like taking a risk. You set your mind on it and refuse to be afraid, and in no time you feel terrifically exhilarated and all your inhibitions fly out of the window.”
Dick Francis (1920–2010) first seen 1962 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Dead Cert (1962)
“Democracy cannot wield authority, because it cannot enforce its decisions. A party cannot move against itself, against its members who engage in scandalous malfeasance, who rob and steal, because it is afraid of losing its members. Nor can it move against its adversaries, because in so doing it would risk exposure of its own wrongdoings and shady business.”
Corneliu Zelea Codreanu (1899–1938) said by 1938 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Poetry will never win the war on terror But neither will error abetted by error We girly men are not afraid Of uncertainty or reason or interdependence We think before we fight, then think some more Proclaim our faith in listening, in art, in compromise So be a girly man & sing this gurly song Sissies & proud That we would never lie our way to war”
Charles Bernstein (born 1950) first seen 2005 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: The Ballad of the Girlie Man", Milk Magazine, no. 6, 2005. Anthologized in Girlie Man (2006), .
“Mrs. M., you seem to be very sick." " Yes," said she, "I am dying." "And are you ready to die?" "Sir, God knows I have taken Him at His word, and I am not afraid to die.”
Ichabod Spencer (1798–1854) said by 1854 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“The secret of love is in opening up your heart. It's okay to feel afraid, But don't let that stand in your way, no. 'Cause anyone knows that love is the only road. And since we're only here for a while yeah Might as well show some style.”
James Taylor (born 1948) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I'm afraid the referendum resolved nothing and we do have to go back to the people and ask if what is now on offer is what they really voted for. We have got completely different views about what Brexit actually means. What has emerged over the last three years is that the prospectus on which the Leave vote was achieved was based on a tissue of lies to be frank.”
Vince Cable (born 1943) first seen 2019 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: European elections 2019: Remainers are angry too, says Vince Cable, BBC News, 20 May 2019
“Cause I was born lonely down by the riverside Learned to spin fortune wheels, and throw dice And I was just thirteen when I had to leave home Knew I couldn't stick around, I had to roam Ain't good looking, but you know I ain't shy Ain't afraid to look it girl, hear me out So if you need some lovin, and you need it right away Take a little time out, and maybe I'll stay.”
“Yeah, I’m not afraid of him. As far as I remember, he fell off a bike a couple of years ago or last year, so his leg is still a bit unstable, so I can always run away, plus I’m younger, so there are good chances for me.”
Sebastian Vettel (born 1987) first seen 2010 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: http://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/2010/5/10789.html May 15, 2010.
“I'm not afraid to be sexy. A woman who is intelligent and also knows how to weaponize her beauty… there's nothing more dangerous than that. There's nothing more powerful than that.”
Megan Fox (born 1986) first seen 2021 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Megan Fox reveals thoughts on being Hollywood 'sex symbol' at Met Gala: 'I'm not afraid to be sexy' USA Today. (September 13, 2021)
“In the old days, the navigators used magic to make themselves strong, but now, nothing; they just pray. Before they leave and at sea, they pray. But I, I make myself strong by thinking—just by thinking! I make myself strong because I despise cowardice. Too many men are afraid of the sea. But I am a navigator.”
Mau Piailug (1932–2010) first seen 1987 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: The Last Navigator (1987)
“I'm afraid love is just a word.”
Harry Mulisch (1927–2010) first seen 2010 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Interview about the love of his life - magazine Hollands Diep (July/August 2010)
“Doubt can motivate you, so don’t be afraid of it. Confidence and doubt are at two ends of the scale, and you need both. They balance each other out.”
Barbra Streisand (born 1942) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Very high on the I love Rylla, reasons why list was the fact that the girl had a brain and wasn’t afraid to use it.”
H. Beam Piper (1904–1964) said by 1964 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Men see what they are most afraid of.”
Patricia A. McKillip (1948–2022) said by 2022 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Once, when he was applauded by rascals, he remarked, "I am horribly afraid I have done something wrong.”
Antisthenes (445–365 BC) said by 365 BC at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“A one-night-stander is someone who does not dare to explore the full potential of a relationship, just like a child who is afraid to go to the deep part of the pool. The latter does not want to learn how to swim, the former does not want to learn how to live.”
Carlos Gershenson (born 1978) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Jon Ralston: How would you have voted on that bill to extend unemployment benefits? Sharron Angle: I would have voted no, because the truth about it is that they keep extending these unemployment benefits to the point where people are afraid to go out and get a job because the job doesn't pay as much as the unemployment benefit does.”
Sharron Angle (born 1949) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I'll tell them how I survive it. I'll tell them that on bad mornings, it feels impossible to take pleasure in anything because I'm afraid it could be taken away. That's when I make a list in my head of every act of goodness I've seen someone do. It's like a game. Repetitive. Even a little tedious after more than twenty years. But there are much worse games to play.”
Suzanne Collins (born 1962) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“When it's time to die, go ahead and die, and when it's time to live, live. Don't sort-of-maybe live, but live like you're going all out, like you're not afraid.”
Sue Monk Kidd (born 1948) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Comin' close together with a feelin' that I've never known before, in my time. She ain't ashamed to be a woman, or afraid to be a friend. I don't know the answer to the easy way she opened every door in my mind. But dreamin' was as easy as believin' it was never gonna end.And lovin' her was easier than anything I'll ever do again.”
Kris Kristofferson (1936–2024) said by 2024 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I was seventeen years old, a married woman without real responsibilities, miserable about my mixed-up emotions, afraid there was something awfully wrong with me because I didn’t enjoy being a wife. Worst of all, I didn't have enough to do.”
Mary Martin (1913–1990) said by 1990 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“If I were to live to the world's end, and do all the good that man can do, I must still cry, " Mercy!" Why then should I be unwilling or afraid to die this moment, with a sense of God's pardoning love, when I can have no other claim to salvation if I were to live forever?”
Thomas Adam (1701–1784) said by 1784 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I'm afraid you gave up the right to pontificate on social mobility when you abolished educational maintenance allowance [EMA], trebled tuition fees and betrayed a generation of young people.”
Harriet Harman (born 1950) first seen 2011 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: On Nick Clegg's social mobility pledges, during a debate in the House of Commons, 5 April 2011.
“The stage is like a cage of light. People are no longer afraid of you - they are the ones out there in the dark, watching.”
Gérard Depardieu (born 1948) first seen 1991 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Depardieu by Marianne Gray (1991), Ch.3
“We've always been under sanctions. Even under all those sanctions we have made the growth thus far, so I am not afraid.… If you wish to lift the sanctions then lift them, or if you wish to impose sanctions then impose them. I do not care. We will improve our economy even further no matter what.”
Kim Il-sung (1912–1994) first seen 1994 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Remarks to Jimmy Carter (June 1994), as recalled during his final policy meeting and featured in the KCTV documentary The Year 1994 of the Great Career
“Don't be afraid of your past. Learn from it so it can empower your present.”
Steve Maraboli (born 1975) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I am afraid of a new barbarism which is killing man's freedom.”
Karel Appel (1921–2006) said by 2006 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“America is a democracy and has no Hitler, but I am afraid for her future; there are hard times ahead for the American people, troubles will be coming from within and without. America cannot smile away their Negro problem nor Hiroshima and Nagasaki. There are cosmic laws.”
Albert Einstein (1879–1955) said by 1955 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Never before have I written so long a letter. I'm afraid it is much too long to take your precious time. I can assure you that it would have been much shorter if I had been writing from a comfortable desk, but what else can one do when he is alone in a narrow jail cell, other than write long letters, think long thoughts, and pray long prayers?”
Martin Luther King Jr. (1929–1968) said by 1968 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I cannot understand your nature. If my nature had been made to suit your comprehension rather than my own requirements, I am afraid I would have made a very poor figure in the world.”
Oscar Wilde (1854–1900) said by 1900 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“You must be afraid, my son. That is how one becomes an honest citizen.”
Jean-Paul Sartre (1905–1980) said by 1980 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I am afraid that if you look intently at what is moving towards Great Britain, you will see that the only choice open is the old grim choice our forbears had to face, namely, whether we shall submit or whether we shall prepare. Whether we shall submit to the will of a stronger nation or whether we shall prepare to defend our rights, our liberties and indeed our lives.”
Winston Churchill (1874–1965) first seen 1922 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: On German rearmament; BBC broadcast (16 November 1934), quoted in Martin Gilbert, Prophet of Truth: Winston S. Churchill, 1922–1939 (1976), p. 566
“A critic recently described me, with deadly acuteness, as having 'a kindly dislike of my fellow-creatures.' Perhaps dread would have been nearer the mark than dislike; for man is the only animal of which I am thoroughly and cravenly afraid.”
George Bernard Shaw (1856–1950) first seen 1911 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: As quoted in George Bernard Shaw, His Life and Works: a critical biography (authorised), Archibald Henderson, Stewart & Kidd (1911), Chapter VII (The Art Critic), pp. 201-202
“I am afraid we must make the world honest before we can honestly tell our children that honesty is the best policy.”
George Bernard Shaw (1856–1950) first seen 1932 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Rungs of the Ladder", BBC Radio broadcast (11 July 1932)
“It's not that I'm afraid to die, I just don't want to be there when it happens.”
Woody Allen (born 1935) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“As a child, I was more afraid of tetanus shots than, for example, Dracula.”
Dave Barry (born 1947) first seen 1996 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Column, The Miami Herald, 21 January 1996
“I am not ashamed or afraid to say that I wish more sympathy had been shown on both sides towards the Chartists... I am not ashamed to say that I sympathise with millions of my fellow-subjects.”
Benjamin Disraeli (1804–1881) first seen 1804 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Speech in the House of Commons (28 January 1840), quoted in William Flavelle Monypenny and George Earle Buckle, The Life of Benjamin Disraeli, Earl of Beaconsfield. Volume I. 1804–1859 (1929), p. 485
“Nothing is going on, but everybody is afraid of something.”
Benjamin Disraeli (1804–1881) said by 1881 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“The Religion that is afraid of science dishonours God and commits suicide. It acknowledges that it is not equal to the whole of truth, that it legislates, tyrannizes over a village of God's empires but is not the immutable universal law. Every influx of atheism, of skepticism is thus made useful as a mercury pill assaulting and removing a diseased religion and making way for truth.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882) first seen 1831 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: March 4, 1831
“Don't join the book burners. Don't think you are going to conceal faults by concealing evidence that they ever existed. Don't be afraid to go in your library and read every book, as long as that document does not offend our own ideas of decency. That should be the only censorship.”
Dwight D. Eisenhower (1890–1969) first seen 1953 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Remarks at the Dartmouth College Commencement Exercises (14 June 1953)
“Maybe you're afraid of sinking. Don't think about it. If you don't think about it, you won't sink. If you do, you will.”
Mao Zedong (1893–1976) first seen 1966 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Swimming advice to physician Zhisui Li (1966), quoted in The TIME 100 (13 April 1998)