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105 Wise Quotes in 11 Categories

(Senior Editor)

Wise quotes can help you with difficult decisions and encourage you during tough times in life. They can make your life feel easier to handle and you might even find an explanation for certain troubles. We have collected 100 great wise quotes for you sorted by topics and occasions.

Wise sayings are many, and there are some for almost every topic and occasion. Wisdom testifies to mental agility and independence.

A wise quote contains knowledge that arises from life experiences. On the one hand, the quotes apply to life generally, but on the other hand, they can be interpreted differently by each person depending on their attitude, mindset, and situation.

Wise Quotes for Every Occasion

Wise Quotes for Every Occasion

Below you will find both short and longer wise quotes about life, happiness, love and friendship, including some famous ones. In addition, we have wise sayings especially for work for you to ponder.

Short Wise Quotes

Short sayings are especially suitable for greetings cards, social media, or messenger apps like WhatsApp. But you can also write them on small pieces of paper to give someone some unexpected joy.

For greetings cards, you can also use the saying as a template and add some words of your own, give good wishes, or explain how you interpret the saying and why you chose it.

A short and concise saying can keep you thinking for just as long as a long one, and maybe it will even stay in your memory for long enough to accompany you as a motto for a while.

  1. "An investment in knowledge pays the best interest."
    (Benjamin Franklin, American politician, 1706-1790)
  2. "Kind words do not cost much. Yet they accomplish much."
    (Blaise Pascal, French philosopher, 1623-1662)
  3. "The only true wisdom is in knowing you know nothing."
    (Socrates, Greek philosopher, 469-399 B.C.)
  4. "Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise."
    (Benjamin Franklin, American politician, 1706-1790)
  5. "The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step."
    (Lao Tzu, Chinese philosopher, 365 B.C.-290 B.C.)
  6. "It’s not what you look at that matters, it’s what you see."
    (Henry David Thoreau, US philosopher, 1817-1862)
  7. "Never interrupt your enemy when he is making a mistake."
    (Napoleon Bonaparte, French statesman, 1769-1821)
  8. "It’s not what happens to you, but how you react to it that matters."
    (Epictetus, Greek philosopher, c. 50-135 A.D.)
  9. "A man should always consider how much he has more than he wants."
    (Joseph Addison, English writer, 1672-1719)
  10. "The ego is not master in its own house."
    (Sigmund Freud, Austrian psychologist, 1856-1939)

Wise Quotes about Life

Wise Quotes about Life

You don’t need a special occasion to read or send wise sayings about life. They are suitable for any situation in life, and after all, wise advice has never hurt anyone.

On the other hand, (one’s) life is probably one of the things people think about most intensively anyway. Everyone has probably thought about their life goals and the meaning of life. After all, we only have one life and we want to make the most of it.

  1. "We are made wise not by the recollection of our past, but by the responsibility for our future."
    (George Bernard Shaw, Irish playwright, 1856-1950)
  2. "All of us, at certain moments of our lives, need to take advice and to receive help from other people."
    (Alexis Carrel, French scientist, 1873-1944)
  3. "In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks."
    (John Muir, American environmentalist, 1838-1914)
  4. "Everything comes to us that belongs to us if we create the capacity to receive it."
    (Rabindranath Tagore, Indian poet, 1861-1941)
  5. "Dost thou love life? Then do not squander time, for that is the stuff life is made of."
    (Benjamin Franklin, American politician, 1706-1790)
  6. "The goal of all life is death."
    (Sigmund Freud, Austrian psychologist, 1856-1939)
  7. "Life isn’t about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself."
    (George Bernard Shaw, Irish playwright, 1856-1950)
  8. "We do not remember days, we remember moments."
    (Cesare Pavese, Italian poet, 1908-1950)
  9. "Life is a dream for the wise, a game for the fool, a comedy for the rich, a tragedy for the poor."
    (Sholom Aleichem, Russian writer, 1859-1916)
  10. "Life is really simple, but we insist on making it complicated."
    (Confucius, Chinese philosopher, 551-479 B.C.)

However, if you feel like you’re not succeeding at anything and you’re starting to doubt yourself, a wise saying can give you a whole new perspective and boost both your self-awareness and your self-esteem.

If you can’t find the right words to help a friend in a difficult situation or to describe your own life situation in a reasonable way, a wise saying is excellent. It can inspire your thoughts or encourage, motivate and spread optimism.

Even if there is nothing particular on your mind at the moment, you’re sure to identify with a wise quote or two about life, and sooner or later you’ll be able to apply its core message to your own life.

Wise Man Quotes

Wise Man Quotes

Nobody wants to hear that they are stupid or a fool. But wisdom comes not only from intelligence, but also from experience and courage.

The following quotations discuss what makes a wise man and how he should best behave. In this context, his behavior is usually compared to that of a fool.

  1. "A hero is born among a hundred, a wise man is found among a thousand, but an accomplished one might not be found even among a hundred thousand men."
    (Plato, Greek philosopher, 427-347 B.C.)
  2. "A fool thinks himself to be wise, but a wise man knows himself to be a fool."
    (William Shakespeare, English playwright, 1564-1616)
  3. "The wise man does at once what the fool does finally."
    (Niccolò Machiavelli, Italian author and philosopher, 1469-1527)
  4. "A single conversation across the table with a wise man is better than ten years mere study of books."
    (Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, American poet, 1807-1882)
  5. "There is only a finger’s difference between a wise man and a fool."
    (Diogenes, Greek philosopher, 412-323 B.C.)
  6. "Think like a wise man but communicate in the language of the people."
    (William Butler Yeats, Irish poet, 1865-1939)
  7. "He is a wise man who does not grieve for the things which he has not, but rejoices for those which he has."
    (Epictetus, Greek philosopher, 50-138)
  8. "A wise man should have money in his head, but not in his heart."
    (Jonathan Swift, Irish writer, 1667-1745)

Wise Quotes to Ponder

Wise Quotes to Ponder

Sayings that make you think don’t necessarily have to be depressing or negative. If you find yourself in a situation that you’re not happy with, brooding a lot and feeling like nothing is working out, these sayings can help you see the positive side.

If you draw strength from the negative situation, at some point you will see the positive side of life again. Often you just need a little nudge to see that you are on the right track, and that life is not as bad as you think.

  1. "The aim of the wise is not to secure pleasure, but to avoid pain."
    (Aristotle, Greek philosopher, 384-322 B.C.)
  2. "By three methods we may learn wisdom: First, by reflection, which is noblest; Second, by imitation, which is easiest; and third by experience, which is the bitterest."
    (Confucius, Chinese philosopher, 551-479 B.C.)
  3. "Wise men speak because they have something to say; fools because they have to say something."
    (Unknown)
  4. "The greater danger for most of us lies not in setting our aim too high and falling short; but in setting our aim too low, and achieving our mark."
    (Michelangelo, Italian sculptor, painter and poet, 1475-1564)
  5. "Use what talents you possess; the woods would be very silent if no birds sang there except those that sang best."
    (Henry van Dyke, American poet, 1852-1933)
  6. "He who lives in harmony with himself lives in harmony with the universe."
    (Marcus Aurelius, Roman emperor, 121-180)
  7. "The higher we are placed, the more humbly we should walk."
    (Marcus Tullius Cicero, Roman orator and statesman, 106-43 B.C)

As the name suggests, these kinds of wise sayings are meant to make you think. Depending on the saying, maybe you can see yourself and something comforting in it and feel understood by it. It doesn’t matter if you are a wise man or a wise woman – everyone understands these quotes.

What’s more, reflection can also lead to positive realizations and new motivation. In any case, reflecting on and interpreting things will help you understand and work through your situation and feelings.

It can be interesting to share these sayings with others. You could be amazed at the insights that your friends or family might share when thinking about a particular saying. Maybe everyone will interpret the quote a little differently, opening up more perspectives for you.

Famous Wise Quotes

Famous Wise Quotes

You may have read or heard the following quotes before, as they are from authors who are quoted often.

This is mainly due to the fact that the quotes are often very easy to understand and many people can identify with what is said.

  1. "Once you label me you negate me."
    (Søren Kierkegaard, Danish philosopher, theologian and writer, 1813-1855)
  2. "Beware of false knowledge; it is more dangerous than ignorance."
    (George Bernard Shaw, Irish playwright, 1856-1950)
  3. "Adopt the pace of nature: her secret is patience."
    (Ralph Waldo Emerson, American philosopher, 1803-1882)
  4. "Obstacles are those frightful things you see when you take your eyes off your goal."
    (Henry Ford, American businessman, 1863-1947)
  5. "Never interrupt someone doing what you said couldn’t be done."
    (Amelia Earhart, American aviator, 1897-1939)
  6. "Start with what is right rather than what is acceptable."
    (Franz Kafka, German-language writer, 1883-1924)
  7. "Being entirely honest with oneself is a good exercise."
    (Sigmund Freud, Austrian psychologist, 1856-1939)
  8. "No one has ever become poor by giving."
    (Anne Frank, German-Jewish writer, 1929-1945)
  9. "No man was ever wise by chance."
    (Lucius Annaeus Seneca, Roman philosopher, c. 4 B.C.-65 A.D.)
  10. "The greatest glory in living lies not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall."
    (Ralph Waldo Emerson, American philosopher, 1803-1882)

Wise Quotes about Love

Wise Quotes about Love

When it comes to love, everyone thinks they know best, and yet no one really does. Love is as difficult to describe as it is to find and hold on to.

Wise sayings about love can help with love woes and make them more bearable, or they can make you believe in the power love when you have just fallen for someone.

  1. "'Tis better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all."
    (Alfred Lord Tennyson, British poet, 1809-1892)
  2. "Love is composed of a single soul inhabiting two bodies."
    (Aristotle, Greek philosopher, 384-322 B.C.)
  3. "Where there is love there is life."
    (Mahatma Gandhi, Indian revolutionary, 1869-1948)
  4. "True love is like ghosts, which everyone talks about and few have seen."
    (François de La Rochefoucauld, French author, 1613-1680)
  5. "True love is eternal, infinite, and always like itself. It is equal and pure, without violent demonstrations: it is seen with white hairs and is always young in the heart."
    (Honoré de Balzac, French novelist, 1799-1850)
  6. "We love life, not because we are used to living but because we are used to loving."
    (Friedrich Nietzsche, German philosopher, 1844-1900)
  7. "Love is space and time measured by the heart."
    (Marcel Proust, French author, 1871-1922)
  8. "I feel that there is nothing more truly artistic than to love people."
    (Vincent van Gogh, Dutch painter and graphic artist, 1853-1890)
  9. "Love does not consist in gazing at each other, but in looking outward together in the same direction."
    (Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, French writer and pilot, 1900-1944)
  10. "Life is the flower for which love is the honey."
    (Victor Hugo, French author, 1802-1885)

If a quote isn’t for yourself, but you want to help a friend through heartbreak, for example, you’ll need a lot of sensitivity and empathy.

Of course, friends will appreciate it if you put effort into the selection and pick out something seemingly appropriate. However, you should be sure that you are close enough to the recipient. Otherwise, a wise saying about love, no matter how well-intentioned, can quickly backfire.

Wise quotes about love are especially nice if you are in love and have a partner with whom you can share a saying or two. Their wisdom gives these sayings something stylish that is sure to please your partner.

Funny Wise Quotes

Funny Wise Quotes

The following funny quotes can make you and your friends smile and are great to send in messages or for your Whatsapp status.

Although the quotes contain small bits of wisdom about everyday life, in some cases they can also be understood somewhat sarcastically.

  1. "Do not take life too seriously. You will never get out of it alive."
    (Elbert Hubbard, American writer, 1856-1915)
  2. "No man has a good enough memory to be a successful liar."
    (Abraham Lincoln, American president, 1809-1865)
  3. "If you could kick the person in the pants responsible for most of your trouble, you wouldn’t sit for a month."
    (Theodore Roosevelt, American president, 1858-1919)
  4. "Laziness is nothing more than the habit of resting before you get tired."
    (Jules Renard, French dramatist, 1864-1910)
  5. "I can resist everything except temptation."
    (Oscar Wilde, Irish poet, 1854-1900)
  6. "Wine is constant proof that God loves us and loves to see us happy."
    (Benjamin Franklin, American politician, 1706-1790)
  7. "A government that robs Peter to pay Paul can always depend on the support of Paul."
    (George Bernard Shaw, Irish playwright, 1856-1950)
  8. Life’s biggest tragedy is that we get old too soon and wise too late.
    (Aurelius Augustinus, Roman bishop, 354-430)
  9. "Procrastination is the art of keeping up with yesterday."
    (Don Marquis, American poet, 1878-1937)
  10. "The first day one is a guest, the second a burden, and the third a pest."
    (Jean de La Bruyère, French philosopher, 1645-1696)

Wise Sayings about Work

Wise Sayings about Work

Whether you’re still in school, just graduated from high school or college, or even already in the workforce, success in a career, education or training are central to most people’s lives.

As with everything else in life, things don’t always go smoothly in this area, and you’ll find yourself in situations where good advice comes at a premium.

Ultimately, while you can talk things over with friends and family, you always have to make the final decision yourself.

  1. "Far and away the best prize that life has to offer is the chance to work hard at work worth doing."
    (Theodore Roosevelt, American president, 1858-1919)
  2. "The best preparation for good work tomorrow is to do good work today."
    (Elbert Hubbard, American writer, 1856-1915)
  3. "Let the beauty of what you love be what you do."
    (Rumi, Persian Sufi mystic, 1207-1273)
  4. "Be regular and orderly in your life, so that you may be violent and original in your work."
    (Gustave Flaubert, French novelist, 1821-1880)
  5. "Laziness may appear attractive, but work gives satisfaction."
    (Anne Frank, German-Jewish writer, 1929-1945)
  6. "All things are difficult before they are easy."
    (Thomas Fuller, English historian, 1608-1661)
  7. "It is the working man who is the happy man. It is the idle man who is the miserable man."
    (Benjamin Franklin, American politician, 1706-1790)
  8. "Work is love made visible. And if you cannot work with love but only with distaste, it is better that you should leave your work and sit at the gate of the temple and take alms of those who work with joy."
    (Khalil Gibran, Lebanese-American poet, philosopher and painter, 1883-1931)
  9. "Life grants nothing to us mortals without hard work."
    (Horace, Roman poet, 65-8 B.C.)
  10. "Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work."
    (Thomas A. Edison, American inventor and businessman, 1847-1931)

Wise quotes about work can inspire you to take a new path or reinforce that your decision was the right one. But they can also motivate you to keep working hard for your goals and remind you that no dream is too big.

Moreover, they can reassure you that if you believe in yourself, you will succeed in your career. However, we have also selected sayings that make it clear that work is not everything in life. If you can, you should choose something that you love and are passionate about.

If you are facing an important career decision or want to help a friend or family member with theirs, you will surely find the right quote here.

If you’re looking for retirement quotes and wishes for saying goodbye, check out this article.

Wise Words for a Good Morning

Wise Words for a Good Morning

To start your day right, it is worth taking some time in the morning to read through some wise quotes that are also motivational.

If you know a person who is rather grumpy in the morning, you can motivate them by sending one of these quotes in a lovely message.

  1. "When you arise in the morning, think of what a precious privilege it is to be alive – to breathe, to think, to enjoy, to love."
    (Marcus Aurelius, Roman Emperor, 121-180)
  2. "Nothing is more beautiful than the loveliness of the woods before sunrise."
    (George Washington Carver, American scientist, 1864-1943)
  3. "Think in the morning. Act in the noon. Eat in the evening. Sleep in the night."
    (William Blake, English poet, 1757-1827)
  4. "An early-morning walk is a blessing for the whole day."
    (Henry David Thoreau, US philosopher, 1817-1862)
  5. "Do not say, 'It is morning,' and dismiss it with a name of yesterday. See it for the first time as a newborn child that has no name."
    (Rabindranath Tagore, Indian poet, 1861-1941)
  6. "The sun is new each day."
    (Heraclitus, Greek philosopher, 544-483 B.C.)
  7. "The most efficient way to live reasonably is every morning to make a plan of one’s day and every night to examine the results obtained."
    (Alexis Carrel, French scientist, 1873-1944)
  8. "Be pleasant until ten o’clock in the morning and the rest of the day will take care of itself."
    (Elbert Hubbard, American writer, 1856-1915)
  9. "He, who every morning plans the transactions of the day, and follows that plan, carries a thread that will guide him through a labyrinth of the most busy life."
    (Victor Hugo, French author, 1802-1885)
  10. "First thing every morning before you arise say out loud, 'I believe,' three times."
    (Publius Ovidius Naso, ancient Roman poet, 43 B.C.-17 A.D.)

You’ll find more quotes for a good morning in this article.

Wise Quotes about Happiness and Luck

Wise Quotes about Happiness and Luck

The pursuit of happiness is arguably the most important element of life. Everyone defines happiness differently and strives for a certain level of happiness in life, but when you ask people what they want from their lives, the answer is often "to be happy."

If you look carefully within yourself, you will realize that while external factors may make you happy in some ways, happiness begins first and foremost with yourself.

  1. "The happiness of your life depends upon the quality of your thoughts: therefore, guard accordingly, and take care that you entertain no notions unsuitable to virtue and reasonable nature."
    (Marcus Aurelius, Roman emperor, 121-180)
  2. "Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony."
    (Mahatma Gandhi, Indian revolutionary, 1869-1948)
  3. "Some cause happiness wherever they go; others whenever they go."
    (Oscar Wilde, Irish poet, 1854-1900)
  4. "Most folks are as happy as they make up their minds to be."
    (Abraham Lincoln, American president, 1809-1865)
  5. "Happiness depends upon ourselves."
    (Aristotle, Greek philosopher, 384-322 B.C.)
  6. "If you want to be happy, be."
    (Leo Tolstoy, Russian novelist, 1828-1910)
  7. "There is only one way to happiness and that is to cease worrying about things which are beyond the power of our will."
    (Epictetus, Greek philosopher, c. 50-135 A.D.)
  8. "Now and then it’s good to pause in our pursuit of happiness and just be happy."
    (Guillaume Apollinaire, French novelist, 1880-1918)
  9. "Diligence is the mother of good luck."
    (Benjamin Franklin, American politician, 1706-1790)
  10. "Luck is not chance, it’s toil; fortune’s expensive smile is earned."
    (Emily Dickinson, American poet, 1830-1886)

You can either use our sayings yourself to draw new strength, or you can send them to someone close to you who feels abandoned by luck. For this, however, you should make sure you know their personal situation well and add a few dear words of your own.

Here you can find even more quotes about happiness and being happy.

Wise Quotes about Friendship

Wise Quotes about Friendship

Friends are a real blessing, the family you can choose. They rejoice with you, they grieve with you, and they help you get back on your feet when you can’t make it on your own.

So a true friend stands by you in all situations and a stable friendship is extremely important. That’s reason enough to thank him every now and then and highlight how special your friendship is with a special saying.

  1. "Let us be grateful to people who make us happy, they are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom."
    (Marcel Proust, French author, 1871-1922)
  2. "In the sweetness of friendship let there be laughter, and sharing of pleasures. For in the dew of little things the heart finds its morning and is refreshed."
    (Khalil Gibran, Lebanese-American poet, philosopher and painter, 1883-1931)
  3. "There is nothing on this earth more to be prized than true friendship."
    (Thomas Aquinas, Italian theologian, 1225-1274)
  4. "There are no strangers here; Only friends you haven’t yet met."
    (William Butler Yeats, Irish poet, 1865-1939)
  5. "One of the most beautiful qualities of true friendship is to understand and to be understood."
    (Lucius Annaeus Seneca, Roman philosopher, c. 4 B.C.-65 A.D.)
  6. "True friendship multiplies the good in life and divides its evils. Strive to have friends, for life without friends is like life on a desert island… to find one real friend in a lifetime is good fortune; to keep him is a blessing."
    (Baltasar Gracián y Morales, Spanish Jesuit, moral philosopher and writer, 1601-1658)
  7. "It is one of the blessings of old friends that you can afford to be stupid with them."
    (Ralph Waldo Emerson, American philosopher, 1803-1882)
  8. "One loyal friend is worth ten thousand relatives."
    (Euripides, Greek poet, 480-406 B.C.)
  9. "A friend to all is a friend to none."
    (Aristotle, Greek philosopher, 384-322 B.C.)
  10. "My best friend is the one who brings out the best in me."
    (Henry Ford, American businessman, 1863-1947)

There are numerous sayings, aphorisms, quotes and life wisdom about friendship. If you want to send a saying to a friend, you should make sure that the saying reflects your friendship.

If you haven’t seen each other for a long time because you’re spending a year abroad, for example, you’ll choose a different saying than if you’ve grown apart or had a fight but you miss the friendship.

A saying about friendship only becomes really special if you add your own words to it and thus make reference to your particular friendship. This way you can show your friends that you have put a lot of thought into it.

Use Our Quotes for More Wisdom in Your Life

Use Our Quotes for More Wisdom in Your Life

Those who are wise possess the ability to act coherently and sensibly, even in the face of challenges and problems. Most wise sayings result from considerations and actions that ignore one’s own emotional world and social norms.

Wise sayings are also always accompanied by warm-heartedness and benevolence and are meant to make you feel good.

Wise sayings lead to serenity and thoughtful actions. Those who are wise can look at everyday things from a different, even higher, point of view and derive wise actions from them.

Even if situations seem difficult or even unsolvable, wise sayings leave no doubt that there is a way out and things will get better. A wise saying also always results in a deep insight.

A life lived consciously with serenity, love, intelligence and life experience leads to wisdom. Whatever the situation, the most common experiences in life such as pain, success, failure, love, joy of life, pleasure, praise and blame can be dealt with.

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