Top 1200 Wise People Quotes & Sayings

The only real difference between a wise man and a fool, Moore knew, was that the wise man tended to make more serious mistakes—and only because no one trusted a fool with really crucial decisions; only the wise had the opportunity to lose battles, or nations.

All things and all people in life have to sink or swim on their own merits, not their reputation; that just as a wise man can say a foolish thing, a fool can say something wise.

Be wise, because the world needs more wisdom. And if you cannot be wise, pretend to be someone who is wise, and then just behave like they would.

Praise of power leads to weakness; Love of things leads to loss; The wise one leads by filling people's hearts; He destroys illusion and disturbs those who believe they are wise; He does nothing yet everything happens.

Cato used to assert that wise men profited more by fools than fools by wise men; for that wise men avoided the faults of fools, but that fools would not imitate the good examples of wise men.

A wise quote can only change a wise man! Therefore, wise sayings are for the wise men, not for the fools! The sunflowers turn their face toward the Sun, the fools, toward the darkness!

He that will write well in any tongue, must follow this counsel of Aristotle, to speak as the common people do, to think as wise men do: and so should every man understand him, and the judgment of wise men allow him.

Wise kings generally have wise counselors; and he must be a wise man himself who is capable of distinguishing one.

O' youth do not disobey the words of the wise. Its better than fortune if the wise-one gives you advice.

Advice is a dangerous gift, even from the wise to the wise, and all courses may run ill.

Every man wishes to be wise, and they who cannot be wise are almost always cunning.

Wise leaders generally have wise counselors because it takes a wise person themselves to distinguish them.

Almost every wise saying has an opposite one, no less wise, to balance it.

The wise man must be wise before, not after, the event.

In the West the wise are usually thought of as leaders. In the East, the wise are very often though of as followers.

Why did the wise guys always accuse other people of being wise guys?

They're mutually incompatible I feel; being a wise thief and a wise father.

No one in my family had ever done anything acting-wise or entertainment industry-wise.

We have no words for speaking of wisdom to the stupid. He who understands the wise is wise already.

I'm very positive - music-wise, production-wise and life-wise.

The wise are not wise because they make no mistakes. They are wise because they correct their mistakes as soon as they recognize them.

Part of living, part of becoming a wise man or a wise woman, is to get to that point where you can have a friend for whom you are genuinely happy when he or she has a success. That's tough. Very few people get to that point. With writers it's next to impossible. You can't really bless a writer who's as good as yourself.

There is a lot of territory out there still to explore TV-wise, show-wise, movie-wise, everything.

By associating with wise people you will become wise yourself.

Do not have as friends harmful people, the wise person does not associate with the worst of people. Have as friends virtuous people, the wise person associates with the best of people.

When we looked at the life cycle in our 40s, we looked to old people for wisdom. At 80, though, we look at other 80-year-olds to see who got wise and who not. Lots of old people don't get wise, but you don't get wise unless you age.

I would not say that old men grow wise, for men never grow wise; and many old men retain a very attractive childishness and cheerful innocence. Elderly people are often much more romantic than younger people, and sometimes even more adventurous, having begun to realize how many things they do not know.

Remember, you cannot be both young and wise. Young people who pretend to be wise to the ways of the world are mostly just cynics.

I find that with period pieces, you're sort of able to really take advantage of what's around you because prop-wise, wardrobe-wise and location-wise, it's all so specific due to that time.

Many would be wise if they did not think themselves wise.

People always fancy that we must become old to become wise; but, in truth, as years advance, it is hard to keep ourselves as wise as we were.

We are the wise. Do not envy us— We who are too wise to draw near the fire Lest we get burned; We who are too wise to love Lest love should vanish and we be hurt. We are the wise. Do not envy us our wisdom— We who are too wise to live Lest we should die.

To the wise man, to the wise nation, the mistakes of the past are the torches of the present.

Much has seen said of the wisdom of old age. Old age is wise, I grant, for itself, but not wise for the community. It is wise in declining new enterprises, for it has not the power nor the time to execute them; wise in shrinking from difficulty, for it has not the strength to overcome it; wise in avoiding danger, for it lacks the faculty of ready and swift action, by which dangers are parried and converted into advantages. But this is not wisdom for mankind at large, by whom new enterprises must be undertaken, dangers met, and difficulties surmounted.

Knowledge is indivisible. When people grow wise in one direction, they are sure to make it easier for themselves to grow wise in other directions as well. On the other hand, when they split up knowledge, concentrate on their own field, and scorn and ignore other fields, they grow less wise - even in their own field.

The difference between a 'wise guy' and a wise man is plenty!

In New Mexico, my local church did a nativity play, and I was cast as Wise Man #3. Of course, Wise Man #3 had no damn lines. Wise Man #1 had all the lines! I stood there thinking, 'I could do that role so much better!' From that moment on, I knew I wanted to be an actor.

We can learn much from wise words, little from wisecracks, and less from wise guys.

If you young fellows were wise, the devil couldn't do anything to you, but since you aren't wise, you need us who are old.

Friendship of the wise is good; a wise enemy is better than a foolish friend.

Where wise actions are the fruit of life, wise discourse is the pollination.

The man who walks with wise men becomes wise himself.

Let men be wise by instinct if they can, but when this fails be wise by good advice.

Lots of old people don't become wise, but you don't get wise unless you age.

It is ignorance that is at times incomprehensible to the wise; for instance, he may not see 'the positive person' or 'the negative person' in a black and white way as many people do. A wise man may not understand it because, as a catalyst of wisdom, but not wise in his own eyes, even he can learn from and give back to fools. To think that an individual has absolutely nothing to offer to the table is counter-intuitively what the wise man considers to be 'the ignorance of hopelessness'.

The wise people are in New York because the foolish went there first, that's the way the wise men make a living.

Wise men profit more from fools than fools from wise men; for the wise men shun the mistakes of fools, but fools do not imitate the successes of the wise.

He who walks with the wise grows wise, but a companion of fools suffers harm.

I'm going forward with my plans for life. I'm looking at things not only basketball-wise, but personal-wise.

The wise man is wise in vain who cannot be wise to his own advantage. [Lat., Nequicquam sapere sapientem, qui ipse sibi prodesse non quiret.]

One is more apt to become wise by doing fool things than by reading wise sayings.

If thou desire to be held wise, be so wise as to hold thy tongue.

Yes, as an oppressed people, American Indians have this epic burden, but first and foremost, they're human: sometimes a mess, sometimes funny or sad, at times very wise, and other times not wise at all - a lot like me.

Wise people listen to wise instruction, especially instruction from the Word of God.

Being a senior doesn't automatically make one wise but the wise & foolish alike have things to teach us.

I was born wise. Street-wise, people-wise, self-wise. This wisdom was my birthright.

Far best is he who is himself all-wise, and he, too, good who listens to wise words; But whoso is not wise or lays to hear another's wisdom is a useless man.

To be wise doesn't always mean to have a wrinkled face and sparkly eyes. To be wise means to be still inside.

Obviously there are not too many people who get a chance to play in the Olympics in their hometown. That would be something special, but going into the summer you have to be realistic with yourself, and health-wise and motivation-wise you have to be willing to do what it takes.

None of us was born knowing or wise; but men become wise by consideration, observation, experience.