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
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“I don't mean to be so uptight But my heart's been hurt a couple times By a couple guys that didn't treat me right I ain't gon' lie, ain't gon' lie 'Cause I'm tired of the fake love Show me what you're made of Boy, make me believe”
Bebe Rexha (born 1989) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“A lie is a lie;it is not politics.”
Udom Gabriel Emmanuel (born 1966) first seen 2019 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: https://punchng.com/pdpll-ensure-it-produces-credible-presidential-candidate-for-2019-election-udom-emmanuel/Responding to questions about rumours of political disagreements, Emmanuel rejected the idea that dishonesty i…
“Warm summer sun, shine kindly here; Warm southern wind, blow softly here; Green sod above, lie light, lie light — Good-night, dear heart, good-night, good-night.”
Mark Twain (misattributed) first seen 1896 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Epitaph for his daughter, Olivia Susan Clemens (1896), this is actually a slight adaptation of the poem "Annette" by Robert Richardson; more details are available at "The Poem on Susy Clemens' Headstone
“Fascists are never content to merely lie; they must transform their lie into a new reality, and they must persuade people to believe in the unreality they’ve created. And if you get people to do that, you can convince them to do anything.”
Hannah Arendt (misattributed) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“The Retort Courteous; . . . the Quip Modest; . . . the Reply Churlish; . . . the Reproof Valiant; . . . the Countercheck Quarrelsome; . . . the Lie with Circumstance; . . . the Lie Direct.”
William Shakespeare (1564–1616) said by 1616 at the latest bartlett, Public domain source
“Soon it will be achieved. The lie of television has been that there are contexts to which television will grant an access. Since lies last, usually, no more than one generation, television will re-form around the idea that television itself is a context to which television will grant an access.”
George W. S. Trow (1943–2006) said by 2006 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“On the chessboard, lies and hypocrisy do not survive long. The creative combination lays bare the presumption of a lie; the merciless fact, culminating in the checkmate, contradicts the hypocrite.”
Emanuel Lasker (1868–1941) said by 1941 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: p. 235 in the 1960 Dover edition; p. 183 in the 2008 edition
“An old dissembler who lived out his lie Lies here as if he did not fear to die.”
J. V. Cunningham (1911–1985) said by 1985 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Well, my faith--if there is any, because I am an agnostic--I have faith in good people which I think is all that one can do. The principle I tried to follow is: Try not to lie, because then you tie yourself up in knots; you have to follow it up with other lies. The only religion I subscribe to is the one word--ahimsa--try not to hurt.”
Khushwant Singh (1915–2014) said by 2014 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I have been young, but now am old. I have spent a whole life-time in battling against infidelity with the weapons of apologetic science; but I have become ever more and more convinced that the way to the heart does not lie through the head; and that the only way to the conversion of the head lies through a converted heart which already tastes the living fruits of the gospel.”
Friedrich Tholuck (1799–1877) said by 1877 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Reported in Josiah Hotchkiss Gilbert, Dictionary of Burning Words of Brilliant Writers (1895), p. 137.
“Men are liars. We'll lie about lying if we have to. I'm an algebra liar. I figure two good lies make a positive.”
Tim Allen (born 1953) first seen 2007 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: As quoted in Land Your Dream Job : High-Performance Techniques to Get Noticed, Get Hired, and Get Ahead (2007) by John Middleton, Ken Langdon, and Nikki Cartwright
“Government is the thing. Law is the thing. Not brotherhood, not international cooperation, not security councils that can stop war only by waging it... Where does security lie, anyway — security against the thief, a bad man, the murderer? In brotherly love? Not at all. It lies in government.”
E. B. White (1899–1985) first seen 1947 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: As quoted in Common Cause: A Monthly Report of the Committee to Frame a World Constitution Vol. I, No. 2 (August 1947)
“Under the wide and starry sky, Dig the grave and let me lie. Glad did I live and gladly die, And I laid me down with a will.This be the verse you grave for me: Here he lies where he longed to be; Home is the sailor, home from sea, And the hunter home from the hill.”
Robert Louis Stevenson (1850–1894) said by 1894 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Here lies my wife: here let her lie! Now she's at rest, and so am I.”
John Dryden (1631–1700) said by 1700 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“This war [in Vietnam] has been marked by so many lies and evasions... that it is not right to have the war end with one last lie.”
Donald Rumsfeld (1932–2021) first seen 1975 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: In April 1975, as quoted in "How 'Vice' Explains Trump's Appeal" (6 January 2019), by Matt Latimer, POLITICO
“Oh, about beer I never lie. A man who lies about beer makes enemies.”
Stephen King (born 1947) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“How is the world ruled and led to war? Diplomats lie to journalists and believe these lies when they see them in print.”
Karl Kraus (writer) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“All governments lie, but disaster lies in wait for countries whose officials smoke the same hashish they give out.”
I. F. Stone (1907–1989) first seen 1961 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: In a Time of Torment, 1961-1967 (1967), p. 317
“Responsibility does not only lie with the leaders of our countries or with those who have been appointed or elected to do a particular job. It lies with each one of us individually.”
Tenzin Gyatso, 14th Dalai Lama (born 1935) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“[An attorney] can find it consistent with his dignity to turn wrong into right, and right into wrong, to abet a lie, nay to create, disseminate, and with all the play of his wit, give strength to the basest of lies, on behalf of the basest of scoundrels.”
Anthony Trollope (1815–1882) first seen 1855 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: The New Zealander (1965), p. 63; written 1855-6, published posthumously 1965
“Capitalism does not lie some of the time, it lies all of the time.”
Stokely Carmichael (1941–1998) said by 1998 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“And upon those three lies was Elric’s destiny to be built, for it is only about things which concern us most profoundly that we lie clearly and with profound conviction.”
Michael Moorcock (born 1939) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“The Party uses the lies up to the last moment as a cover-up. Thus it intimidates the political opponents and provides its Party comrades with sedatives. It is so unbelievably simple for the current gang to lie to this German people and to lead these fools around by the nose.”
Friedrich Kellner (1885–1970) first seen 1945 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: March 26, 1945; p. 399.
“It is said that behind every great man lies a great woman. This is because women lie.”
Simon Munnery (born 1967) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“You've done well to say all that! Yes, it is always easy to lie for a moment. You might have lied, but it would have been worse when we woke up from the lies. It's a reward to talk. Perhaps it's the only reward there is." She said that profoundly, right to the bottom of my heart.”
Henri Barbusse (1873–1935) said by 1935 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“He who permits himself to tell a lie once, finds it much easier to do it a second and third time, till at length it becomes habitual; he tells lies without attending to it, and truths without the world's believing him. This falsehood of tongue leads to that of the heart, and in time depraves all its good dispositions.”
Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826) said by 1826 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“He who died at Azan sends This to comfort all his friends:— Faithful friends! It lies I know Pale and white and cold as snow; And ye say, 'Abdallah’s dead!' Weeping at the feet and head. I can see your falling tears, I can hear your sighs and prayers; Yet I smile and whisper this: I am not the thing you kiss. Cease your tears and let it lie; It was mine—it is not I.”
Edwin Arnold (1832–1904) said by 1904 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“No matter the lie, even if I was on my own, I'd have to play it. I can hear my dad saying: 'Play the ball as it lies.' Because of the way I was taught, I would feel awful about it. I don't know if that makes me dead honest or dead stupid.”
Alex Salmond (1954–2024) first seen 2008 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Alex Salmond: The new king of Scotland, (9 August 2008)
“One month later a trembling Reichstag, one hundred of whose members had been arrested and imprisoned, voted the law conferring full powers on the government, which law lies at the root of all the arbitrary acts committed by the regime since 1933. Thus began a series of revolutionary acts which theoretically observed the forms of legality, but were in fact based upon a crime and a lie.”
Friedrich Thyssen (1804–1877) said by 1877 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Virginia [Giuffre] is an absolute liar and everything she has said is a lie. Therefore, based on those lies I cannot speculate on what anybody else did or didn’t do … everything she said is false.”
Ghislaine Maxwell (born 1961) first seen 2020 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Quoted in "Ghislaine Maxwell arrest sends tremors through Epstein’s celebrity circle, Tom McCarthy and Daniel Strauss", The Guardian (2 July 2020)
“It is an old rule, only not sufficiently obeyed, but a good rule: If you do not wish to be lied to, do not ask questions! The only real defense civilized man has against anybody who bothers him is to lie. There would be no lies if there were no questions.”
B. Traven (1882–1969) said by 1969 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Your power must lie in the degree to which everybody feels represented.your power lies in you having authority over everybody and bullying you’re not really powerful. You’re a bully.”
Naledi Pandor (born 1953) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“...this is very nice, cozy. You got a nice cozy place, Lublin." "Cramped," Rosa said. "I work from a different theory. For everything, there's a bad way of describing, also a good way. You pick the good way, you go along better." "I don't like to give myself lies," Rosa said. "Life is short, we all got to lie.”
Cynthia Ozick (born 1928) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“They boast that a towering tyrannical wave has blocked the path to every outlet and escape But they lie, for my verses fill the mouth of time endlessly traversing from the east to the west Tearing them from their youth and dropping them to their fate, destroying their grand palace of lies For I am their death, bringing their houses upon them, inciting even doormen and babies to curse their name!”
Muhammad Mahdi al-Jawahiri (1899–1997) said by 1997 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Wisdom does not lie in accepting what the illusion shows us. It lies in trying to change the illusion in favor of what is real.”
John G. Hemry (born 1956) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“The left wing party has always told lies, starting with the invasion of Hungary and continuing through the Popular Front campaign. All parties lie, but some more than others. The Italian Communist Party, however, has always lied.”
Giampaolo Pansa (1935–2020) first seen 2006 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: «Ora la teppaglia è dentro Rifondazione», il Giornale.it, 22 October 2006.
“I like to say that the greatest handicap of deafness does not lie in the ear, it lies in the mind. I hope that through my example, such as my role on 'The West Wing,' I can help change attitudes on deafness and prove we can really do everything... except hear.”
Marlee Matlin (born 1965) first seen 2001 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: An Interview with Marlee Matlin 5/23/2001
“Surely this voice meant our Teacher; for it is he that can collect the indications which lie scattered on all sides. A singular light kindles in his looks, when at length the high Rune lies before us, and he watches in our eyes whether the star has yet risen upon us, which is to make the Figure visible and intelligible.”
Novalis (attributed) first seen 1840 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Critical and Miscellaneous Essays (1840) vol. 2, p. 228
“The lover is a monarch; two worlds lie at his feet; The king pays no heed to what lies at his feet; 'Tis love and the lover that live to all eternity Set not thy heart on aught else; 'tis only borrowed.”
Rumi (attributed) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I shall not be deterred by people who don't see where the future of Africa lies. It is the short-sighted people who put their opinions in writing. They don't understand that the future of all countries lies in processing.”
Yoweri Museveni (born 1944) first seen 2007 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Defending the allocation of forest land to a sugar company (13 April 2007), as quoted in "Uganda leader defends forest plan" (13 April 2007), BBC News, United Kingdom: British Broadcasting Corporation
“There are no harmless political lies about a war. The more such lies citizens tolerate, the more wars they will get.”
James Bovard (born 1956) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“What it lies in our power to do, it lies in our power not to do.”
Aristotle (384–322 BC) said by 322 BC at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“And from the point of view of art there are no concrete or abstract forms, but only forms which are more or less convincing lies. That those lies are necessary to our mental selves is beyond any doubt, as it is through them that we form our aesthetic point of view of life. (Paris 1923)”
Pablo Picasso (1881–1973) said by 1973 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Our grand business undoubtedly is, not to see what lies dimly at a distance, but to do what lies clearly at hand.”
Thomas Carlyle (1795–1881) said by 1881 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“The unique and supreme pleasure of love lies in the certainty of doing evil–and men and women know from birth that all pleasure lies in evil.”
Charles Baudelaire (1821–1867) said by 1867 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Wherever the real power in a Government lies, there is the danger of oppression. In our Governments, the real power lies in the majority of the Community, and the invasion of private rights is chiefly to be apprehended, not from the acts of Government contrary to the sense of its constituents, but from acts in which the Government is the mere instrument of the major number of the constituents.”
James Madison (1751–1836) first seen 1787 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Letter to Thomas Jefferson (17 October 1788), as quoted in James Madison : The Writings, 1787-1790 Vol. 5 (1904)]
“No desire of the body, but for what lies in there, what lies in the flesh, the world, the thought, the creation, the illumination.”
Anaïs Nin (1903–1977) first seen 1936 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: March 2, 1936 Fire
“Happiness lies not in the mere possession of money; it lies in the joy of achievement, in the thrill of creative effort.”
Franklin D. Roosevelt (1882–1945) said by 1945 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I change my story by changing what I believe about myself. When I clean up the lies I believe about myself, the lies I believe about other people change. Every time I change myself, my whole story changes to adapt to the new main character.”
Miguel Ángel Ruiz (born 1952) first seen 2011 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Facebook remarks (21 April 2011)
“Never mind that the story had turned out to be lies and foolishness—there was always folks stupid enough to say, “Where there’s smoke there’s fire,” when the saying should have been, “Where there’s scandalous lies there’s always malicious believers and spreaders-around, regardless of evidence.”
Orson Scott Card (born 1951) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source