--- title: "2 Dictionary Quotes By William Safire" description: "2 Dictionary quotes by William Safire. Plus more from William Safire and more Dictionary sayings from other authors." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b2b/william-safire-5116_dictionary_when-i-need-to-know-the-meaning-of-a-wor_282745.png" --- > [When I need to know the meaning of a word, I look it up in a dictionary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-safire/when-i-need-to-know-the-meaning-of-a-word-i-look-it-up-in-a-dictionary/) [William Safire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-safire/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b2b/william-safire-5116_dictionary_when-i-need-to-know-the-meaning-of-a-wor_282745.png) > [On the analogy of 'Dictionary Johnson,' we call Fred R. Shapiro, editor of the just-published Yale Book of Quotations (well worth the $50 price), 'Quotationeer Shapiro.' . . . Shapiro does original research, earning his 1,067-page volume a place on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-safire/on-the-analogy-of-dictionary-johnson-we-call-fred-r-shapiro-editor-of/) [William Safire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-safire/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cb4/william-safire-5116_analogies_on-the-analogy-of-dictionary-johnson-we_441800.png) ## Other authors on Dictionary - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b003/author-alice-childress-11455.jpg) Kory Stamper 11 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dictionary/kory-stamper/) - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b004/author-ambrose-bierce-12239.jpg) Ambrose Bierce 8 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dictionary/ambrose-bierce/) - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b009/author-erin-mckean-33737.jpg) Erin McKean 7 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dictionary/erin-mckean/) - [Shion Miura 5 quotes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dictionary/shion-miura/) ## More by William Safire > [The Republicans do not look on the Democrats as the evil empire.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-safire/the-republicans-do-not-look-on-the-democrats-as-the-evil-empire/) [William Safire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-safire/) > [Last, but not least, avoid cliches like the plague.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-safire/last-but-not-least-avoid-cliches-like-the-plague/) [William Safire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-safire/) > [Decide on some imperfect Somebody and you will win, because the truest truism in politics is: You can't beat Somebody with Nobody.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-safire/decide-on-some-imperfect-somebody-and-you-will-win-because-the-truest/) [William Safire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-safire/) > [Knowing how things work is the basis for appreciation, and is thus a source of civilized delight.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-safire/knowing-how-things-work-is-the-basis-for-appreciation-and-is-thus-a/) [William Safire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-safire/) > [What a joy it is to see really professional media manipulation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-safire/what-a-joy-it-is-to-see-really-professional-media-manipulation/) [William Safire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-safire/) > [What do you call a co-worker these days? Neither teammate nor confederate will do, and partner is too legalistic. The answer brought from academia…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-safire/what-do-you-call-a-co-worker-these-days-neither-teammate-nor/) [William Safire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-safire/) > [This is what it's all about. From what I could see, you could get a bunch of people together, whip up the press and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-safire/this-is-what-it-s-all-about-from-what-i-could-see-you-could-get-a/) [William Safire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-safire/) > [When I need to know the meaning of a word, I look it up in a dictionary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-safire/when-i-need-to-know-the-meaning-of-a-word-i-look-it-up-in-a-dictionary/) [William Safire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-safire/) > [A man who lies, thinking it is the truth, is an honest man, and a man who tells the truth, believing it to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-safire/a-man-who-lies-thinking-it-is-the-truth-is-an-honest-man-and-a-man/) [William Safire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-safire/) > [The Latin motto over Poindexter's new Pentagon office reads Scientia Est Potentia - "knowledge is power." Exactly: the government's infinite knowledge about you is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-safire/the-latin-motto-over-poindexter-s-new-pentagon-office-reads-scientia/) [William Safire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-safire/) > [English is a stretch language; one size fits all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-safire/english-is-a-stretch-language-one-size-fits-all/) [William Safire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-safire/) > [Today, war of necessity is used by critics of military action to describe unavoidable response to an attack like that on Pearl Harbor that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-safire/today-war-of-necessity-is-used-by-critics-of-military-action-to/) [William Safire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-safire/) > [To communicate, put your words in order; give them a purpose; use them to persuade, to instruct, to discover, to seduce.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-safire/to-communicate-put-your-words-in-order-give-them-a-purpose-use-them/) [William Safire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-safire/) > [“Chandler’s “She was blonde enough to make a bishop kick a hole through a stained-glass window”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-safire/chandler-s-she-was-blonde-enough-to-make-a-bishop-kick-a-hole-through/) [William Safire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-safire/) > [You don't overturn a previous court's decisions lightly and I think most Americans are somewhere in the middle on abortion and there's not going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-safire/you-don-t-overturn-a-previous-court-s-decisions-lightly-and-i-think/) [William Safire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-safire/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "ItemList", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dictionary/william-safire/#itemlist", "name": "2 Dictionary Quotes By William Safire", "numberOfItems": 2, "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "When I need to know the meaning of a word, I look it up in a dictionary.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "William Safire" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-safire/when-i-need-to-know-the-meaning-of-a-word-i-look-it-up-in-a-dictionary/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b2b/william-safire-5116_dictionary_when-i-need-to-know-the-meaning-of-a-wor_282745.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b2b/william-safire-5116_dictionary_when-i-need-to-know-the-meaning-of-a-wor_282745.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b2b/william-safire-5116_dictionary_when-i-need-to-know-the-meaning-of-a-wor_282745.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“When I need to know the meaning of a word, I look it up in a dictionary.” — William Safire", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "On the analogy of 'Dictionary Johnson,' we call Fred R. 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