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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“Supposing I was to tell you that it's just Beauty that's calling me, the beauty of the far off and unknown, the mystery and spell of the East which lures me in the books I've read, the need of the freedom of great wide spaces, the joy of wandering on and on — in quest of the secret which is hidden over there, beyond the horizon?”
Eugene O'Neill (1888–1953) said by 1953 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“It is a great joy to admire someone without reserve; love which is founded upon admiration of the mind as well as the body of the chosen person undoubtedly affords the keenest delight.”
André Maurois (1885–1967) said by 1967 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Respect was mingled with surprise, And the stern joy which warriors feel In foeman worthy of their steel.”
Walter Scott (1771–1832) said by 1832 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“A mother's pride, a father's joy.”
Walter Scott (1771–1832) said by 1832 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Also quoted by: Sir Walter Scott
“The more we are oppressed by the cross, the fuller will be our spiritual joy.”
John Calvin (1509–1564) said by 1564 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Beauty often fades, but seldom so swiftly as the joy it gives us.”
Mignon McLaughlin (1913–1983) said by 1983 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“It isn't foolish or wicked to enjoy. Wickedness is hurting people on purpose. I love what you are and who you are and how you are. You give me great joy. And you make horrible coffee.”
John D. MacDonald (1916–1986) said by 1986 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Be prepared for either wisdom through joy, or wisdom through grief. Enough that, looking only through the mechanism by which this mortal world is impelled and improved, you know that cruelty is impossible to wisdom.”
Edward Bulwer-Lytton (1803–1873) said by 1873 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“We made our entrance into Paris. As for honors, we received all that we could possibly imagine; but they, though very well in their way, were not what touched me most. What was really affecting was the tenderness and earnestness of the poor people, who, in spite of the taxes with which they are overwhelmed, were transported with joy at seeing us.”
Marie Antoinette (1755–1793) said by 1793 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“This warrior says you must fight him for the leadership," said Bran, and Kull, eyes glittering with growing battle-joy, nodded: "I guessed as much. Give us space." "A shield and a helmet!" shouted Bran, but Kull shook his head. "I need none," he growled. "Back and give us room to swing our steel!”
Robert E. Howard (1906–1936) said by 1936 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Courage is the price that Life exacts for granting peace. The soul that knows it not, knows no release From little things: Knows not the livid loneliness of fear, Nor mountain heights where bitter joy can hear The sound of wings.”
Amelia Earhart (1897–1939) first seen 1928 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Poetry written around the time of the breaking of her "tenuous engagement" to Samuel Chapman (c. 1928), published in Amelia, My Courageous Sister : Biography of Amelia Earhart (1987) by Muriel Earhart Morrissey and Caro…
“In soloing—as in other activities—it is far easier to start something than it is to finish it. Almost every beginner hops off with a whoop of joy, though he is likely to end his flight with something akin to the D.T.'s.”
Amelia Earhart (1897–1939) first seen 1928 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: 20 Hrs., 40 Min. (1928), p. 16
“The right-minded man, ever inclined to righteous and lawful deeds, is joyous day and night, and strong, and free from care. But if a man take no heed of the right, and leave undone the things he ought to do, then will the recollection of no one of all his transgressions bring him any joy, but only anxiety and self-reproaching.”
Democritus (461–361 BC) said by 361 BC at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“The pleasures that give most joy are the ones that most rarely come.”
Democritus (461–361 BC) said by 361 BC at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“. . . dost thou seek for thyself rest and joy? Thou art wrong, thou art wrong, if thou seekest aught but to suffer tribulations, for this whole mortal life is full of miseries, and set round with crosses.”
Thomas à Kempis (1379–1471) said by 1471 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“This entire opus is respectfully dedicated to all those who have loved unconditionally only to have their hearts unanaesthetically ripped out: Base not your joy on the deeds of others, for what is given can be taken away. No hope = No fear.”
Peter Steele (1962–2010) said by 2010 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“The masterpiece should appear as the flower to the painter—perfect in its bud as in its bloom - with no reason to explain it's presence - no mission to fulfill - a joy to the artist, a delusion to the philanthropist - a puzzle to the botanist - an accident of sentiment and alliteration to the literary man.”
James McNeill Whistler (1834–1903) said by 1903 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Interviewer: "So Jeff, what are your main musical influences?" Jeff (after a long pause): "Love, anger, depression, joy and dreams. ...And Zeppelin. Totally.”
Jeff Buckley (1966–1997) said by 1997 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“who let themselves be fucked in the ass by saintly motorcyclists, and screamed with joy, who blew and were blown by those human seraphim, the sailors, caresses of Atlantic and Caribbean love, who balled in the morning in the evenings in rosegardens and the grass of public parks and cemeteries scattering their semen freely to whomever come who may.”
Allen Ginsberg (1926–1997) said by 1997 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“The Body melts into the universe The universe melts into the soundless voice The sound melts into the all-shining light And the light enters the bosom of infinite joy.”
Paramahansa Yogananda (1893–1952) said by 1952 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Fire is the reuniting of matter with oxygen. If one bears that in mind, every blaze may be seen as a reunion, an occasion of chemical joy.”
Tom Robbins (1932–2025) said by 2025 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Things. Cosas. Things attach themselves like leeches to the human soul, then they bleed out the sweetness and the music and the primordial joy of being unencumbered upon the land.”
Tom Robbins (1932–2025) said by 2025 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Joy is the best makeup.”
Anne Lamott (born 1954) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“The world was all forgot, the struggle o’er, Desperate the joy.— That day they read no more.”
Leigh Hunt (1784–1859) said by 1859 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“The sharing of joy, whether physical, emotional, psychic, or intellectual, forms a bridge between the sharers which can be the basis for understanding much of what is not shared between them, and lessens the threat of their difference.”
Audre Lorde (1934–1992) said by 1992 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“The Christmas story is at the heart of the … Christian faith. But the message of hope, love, peace, and joy — they’re also universal. It speaks to all of us, whether we’re Christian, Jewish, Hindu, Muslim, Buddhist, or any other faith, or no faith at all. It speaks to all of us as human beings who are here on this Earth to care for one another, to look out for one another, to love one another.”
“Joy is the simplest form of gratitude.”
Karl Barth (1886–1968) said by 1968 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: As quoted in Finding the Magnificent in Lower Mundane : Extraordinary Stories About An Ordinary Place (1994) by Bob Stromberg, p. 69.
“My joy, my grief, my hope, my love, Did all within this circle move!”
Edmund Waller (1606–1687) first seen 1664 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: On a Girdle (1664), st. 2.
“The conscience of an artist worthy of the name is like an incurable disease which causes him endless torment but occasionally fills him with silent joy …”
Georges Rouault (1871–1958) said by 1958 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Grigory Petrovitch, let us weep, let us weep with joy!" he said in a thin voice, and then at once burst out laughing in a loud bass guffaw. "Ho-ho-ho! This is a fine daughter-in-law for you too! Everything is in its place in her; all runs smoothly, no creaking, the mechanism works well, lots of screws in it.”
Anton Chekhov (1860–1904) said by 1904 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“'You think,' he persisted, 'that my life is shameful because my encounters are. And they are. But you should ask yourself why they are.' 'Why are they — shameful?' I asked him. 'Because there is no affection in them, and no joy. It's like putting an electric plug in a dead socket. Touch, but no contact. All touch, but no contact and no light.'”
James Baldwin (1924–1987) said by 1987 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“It is not merely that the rain falls differently on each of you, for that can be a wonder and a joy: it is that what is rain for the one is not rain for the other.”
James Baldwin (1924–1987) said by 1987 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“My father has asked me to be the fourth corner at the Joy Luck Club. I am to replace my mother, whose seat at the mah jong table has been empty since she died two months ago. My father thinks she was killed by her own thoughts.”
“It is because I had so much joy that I came to have so much hate.”
“There’s a cool web of language winds us in, Retreat from too much joy or too much fear: We grow sea-green at last and coldly die In brininess and volubility.”
Robert Graves (1895–1985) first seen 1914 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: The Cool Web," lines 9–12, from Poems 1914-1926 (1927)
“Tutor'd by thee, hence Poetry exalts Her voice to ages; and informs the page With music, image, sentiment, and thought, Never to die! the treasure of mankind! Their highest honour, and their truest joy!”
James Thomson (poet, born 1700) first seen 1752 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: l. 1752
“Base Envy withers at another’s joy, And hates that excellence it cannot reach.”
James Thomson (poet, born 1700) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Also quoted by: James Thomson
“Home is the resort Of love, of joy, of peace, and plenty; where Supporting and supported, polished friends And dear relations mingle into bliss.”
James Thomson (poet, born 1700) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Now they are rising together in calm swells Of halcyon feeling, filling whatever they wear With the deep joy of their impersonal breathing...”
Richard Wilbur (1921–2017) said by 2017 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“This short book, where joy and sadness are twins, like the ears of Platero, was written for … I have no idea for whom! … For whomever lyric poets write …”
Juan Ramón Jiménez (1881–1958) said by 1958 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: A NOTE TO THOSE GROWNUPS WHO MIGHT READ THIS BOOK TO CHILDREN", as translated by Antonio T. de Nicolas (1985), p. xv.
“Act is the blossom of thought, and joy and suffering are its fruits.”
James Allen (1864–1912) said by 1912 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“We have become accustomed to living our life with joy amidst pain and challenges.”
Dana Reeve (1961–2006) first seen 2005 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Access Hollywood Interview (May 2005)
“Be brave. Be open-minded. Be kind. Be forgiving. Be generous. Be optimistic. Be grateful for the many unexpected lessons you will learn. Find the joy inside the hardship. It’s there. I assure you. And, too, be open to inspiration from unlikely sources.”
Dana Reeve (1961–2006) said by 2006 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“To desire friendship is a great fault. Friendship should be a gratuitous joy like those afforded by art or life. We must refuse it so that we may be worthy to receive it; it is of the order of grace.”
Simone Weil (1909–1943) said by 1943 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“The most wonderful of all things in life, I believe, is the discovery of another human being with whom one's relationship has a glowing depth, beauty, and joy as the years increase. This inner progressiveness of love between two human beings is a most marvelous thing, it cannot be found by looking for it or by passionately wishing for it. It is a sort of Divine accident.”
Hugh Walpole (1884–1941) said by 1941 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: As quoted in Wisdom for the Soul : Five Millennia of Prescriptions for Spiritual Healing (2006) by Larry Chang, p. 597
“What potent spirit guides the raptur'd eye To pierce the shades of dim futurity? Can Wisdom lend, with all her heav'nly pow'r, The pledge of Joy's anticipated hour? Ah, no! she darkly sees the fate of man— Her dim horizon bounded to a span; Or, if she hold an image to the view, Tis nature pictur'd too severely true.”
Thomas Campbell (poet) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Cease, every joy, to glimmer on my mind, But leave, oh! leave the light of Hope behind!”
Thomas Campbell (poet) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“But your wights that take no pride to wield A massy spear and well-made shield, Nor joy to draw the sword: Oh, I bring those heartless, hapless drones, Down in a trice on their marrow-bones, To call me King and Lord.”
Thomas Campbell (poet) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Oh stay! oh stay! Joy so seldom weaves a chain Like this to-night, that oh 't is pain To break its links so soon.”
Thomas Moore (1779–1852) said by 1852 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“This world is all a fleeting show, For man's illusion given; The smiles of joy, the tears of woe, Deceitful shine, deceitful flow,— There's nothing true but Heaven.”
Thomas Moore (1779–1852) said by 1852 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source