--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A doubtful friend is worse than a certain…" description: "\"A doubtful friend is worse than a certain enemy. Let a man be one thing or the other, and we then know how to meet him.\" — Aesop" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4da/aesop-1073_enemy_a-doubtful-friend-is-worse-than-a-certai_257427.jpg" --- # A doubtful friend is worse than a certain enemy. Let a man… ![“A doubtful friend is worse than a certain enemy. Let a man be one thing or the other, and we then know how to meet him.” quote by Aesop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4da/aesop-1073_enemy_a-doubtful-friend-is-worse-than-a-certai_257427.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4da/aesop-1073_enemy_a-doubtful-friend-is-worse-than-a-certai_257427.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4da/aesop-1073_enemy_a-doubtful-friend-is-worse-than-a-certai_257427.jpg) > “A doubtful friend is worse than a certain enemy. Let a man be one thing or the other, and we then know how to meet him.” [Aesop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A friend who is unreliable is more harmful than a known enemy, because uncertainty breeds mistrust. **In simple terms:** Unreliable friends are worse than known foes. Key Takeaway Prefer reliable over uncertain relationships. Themes trust friendship reliability Mood cautious analytical Type reflective philosophical When to use this quote - teamwork - personal networks - leadership - conflict resolution Key Concepts ethics social dynamics Questions to Reflect On - How do you assess reliability in others? - What steps can you take to protect yourself from unreliable friends? A Different Perspective Even a known enemy can be predictable. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Certain Enemy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/certain-enemy-2545209/) [Doubtful Friend](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doubtful-friend-2545208/) [Enemy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/enemy/) [Enemy Let](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/enemy-let-383562/) [Friend](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/friend/) [Friend Worse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/friend-worse-1038893/) [Friendship](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/friendship/) ## Related quotes > [“I am not going to make small talk with the enemy, let's be clear about that.' - ppg 31”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annabel-pitcher/i-am-not-going-to-make-small-talk-with-the-enemy-let-s-be-clear-about/) [Annabel Pitcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annabel-pitcher/) > [Anyone who is an enemy of mine, let him love women, but let he who is my friend rejoice in men.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/anyone-who-is-an-enemy-of-mine-let-him-love-women-but-let-he-who-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Strike an enemy once and for all. Let him cease to exist as a tribe or he will live to fly in your throat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shaka/strike-an-enemy-once-and-for-all-let-him-cease-to-exist-as-a-tribe-or/) [Shaka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shaka/) > [There is an Italian proverb which saith, From my enemy let me defend myself; but from a pretensed friend Lord deliver me](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-i/there-is-an-italian-proverb-which-saith-from-my-enemy-let-me-defend/) [Elizabeth I](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-i/) > [Only a fool lets somebody else tell him who his enemy is…never let your enemies choose your enemies for you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/assata-shakur/only-a-fool-lets-somebody-else-tell-him-who-his-enemy-is-never-let/) [Assata Shakur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/assata-shakur/) > [Demonstrate to the world there is 'No Better Friend, No Worse Enemy' than a U.S. Marine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/demonstrate-to-the-world-there-is-no-better-friend-no-worse-enemy/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“No one should leave a friend worse than they found them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-laurens/no-one-should-leave-a-friend-worse-than-they-found-them/) [Jennifer Laurens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-laurens/) > [An open foe may prove a curse, but a pretended friend is worse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-gay/an-open-foe-may-prove-a-curse-but-a-pretended-friend-is-worse/) [John Gay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-gay/) > [“Why are people so fucked up?” I asked “Maybe you do need college, Poiter,” Everett said. “You want to know why people are so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percival-everett/why-are-people-so-fucked-up-i-asked-maybe-you-do-need-college-poiter/) [Percival Everett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/percival-everett/) > [An ignorant friend is worse than a learned foe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-herbert/an-ignorant-friend-is-worse-than-a-learned-foe/) [Brian Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-herbert/) > [“The treachery of a friend is worse than the treachery of an enemy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-crossley-holland/the-treachery-of-a-friend-is-worse-than-the-treachery-of-an-enemy/) [Kevin Crossley-Holland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-crossley-holland/) > [The treachery of a friend is worse than that of a foe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hannah-kent/the-treachery-of-a-friend-is-worse-than-that-of-a-foe/) [Hannah Kent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hannah-kent/) > [“That's my big problem. That's it! Before the Arrival,guys like Evan Walker never looked twice at me, much less shot wild game for me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-yancey/that-s-my-big-problem-that-s-it-before-the-arrival-guys-like-evan/) [Rick Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-yancey/) > [“Enemies Teach. Friends Preach.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tapan-ghosh/enemies-teach-friends-preach/) [Tapan Ghosh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tapan-ghosh/) > [“Before you were my enemy, you were my best friend.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kresley-cole/before-you-were-my-enemy-you-were-my-best-friend/) [Kresley Cole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kresley-cole/) ## More by Aesop > [“Lay not the blame on me, O sailor, but on the winds. By nature I am as calm and safe as the land itself,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop/lay-not-the-blame-on-me-o-sailor-but-on-the-winds-by-nature-i-am-as/) [Aesop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop/) > [It is in vain to expect our prayers to be heard, if we do not strive as well as pray.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop/it-is-in-vain-to-expect-our-prayers-to-be-heard-if-we-do-not-strive/) [Aesop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop/) > [Beware of a wolf in sheep's clothing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop/beware-of-a-wolf-in-sheep-s-clothing/) [Aesop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop/) > [Better a long life of toil than a short one of ease.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop/better-a-long-life-of-toil-than-a-short-one-of-ease/) [Aesop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop/) > [Don't let your special character and values, the secret that you know and no one else does, the truth - don't let that get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop/don-t-let-your-special-character-and-values-the-secret-that-you-know/) [Aesop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop/) > [Every man carries two bags about him, one in front and one behind, and both are full of faults. The bag in front contains…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop/every-man-carries-two-bags-about-him-one-in-front-and-one-behind-and/) [Aesop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop/) > [It pays to be content with your lot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop/it-pays-to-be-content-with-your-lot/) [Aesop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop/) > [Be content with your lot; one cannot be first in everything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop/be-content-with-your-lot-one-cannot-be-first-in-everything/) [Aesop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop/) > [Equals make the best friends.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop/equals-make-the-best-friends/) [Aesop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop/) > [once upon a time all the rivers combined to protest against the action of the sea in making their waters salt. "When we come…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop/once-upon-a-time-all-the-rivers-combined-to-protest-against-the/) [Aesop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop/) > [In union there is strength.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop/in-union-there-is-strength/) [Aesop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop/) > [“Be content with your lot; once cannot be first in everything.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop/be-content-with-your-lot-once-cannot-be-first-in-everything/) [Aesop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop/) > [False friends leave you in times of trouble.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop/false-friends-leave-you-in-times-of-trouble/) [Aesop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop/) > [Better beans and bacon in peace than cakes and ale in fear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop/better-beans-and-bacon-in-peace-than-cakes-and-ale-in-fear/) [Aesop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop/) > [“The Sun is bad enough even while he is single, drying up our marshes with his heat as he does. But what will become…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop/the-sun-is-bad-enough-even-while-he-is-single-drying-up-our-marshes/) [Aesop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop/) [Explore all 297 Aesop quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop/) ## More Enemy quotes > [Shall there be truth between us, as two men? Not as friends, but as enemies and equals?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/shall-there-be-truth-between-us-as-two-men-not-as-friends-but-as/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [Art isn't done to decorate apartments, but to wage war against the enemy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/art-isn-t-done-to-decorate-apartments-but-to-wage-war-against-the/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) > [“Before you were my enemy, you were my best friend.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kresley-cole/before-you-were-my-enemy-you-were-my-best-friend/) [Kresley Cole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kresley-cole/) > [It is the rule in war, if our forces are ten to the enemy's one, to surround him; if five to one, to attack…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sun-tzu/it-is-the-rule-in-war-if-our-forces-are-ten-to-the-enemy-s-one-to/) [Sun Tzu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sun-tzu/) > [Fear is a man's worst enemy, but love is a man's most powerful weapon against anything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/fear-is-a-man-s-worst-enemy-but-love-is-a-man-s-most-powerful-weapon/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The surprise of an army is now next to an impossibility. ... Prearranged surprises are rare and difficult because in order to plan one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoine-henri-jomini/the-surprise-of-an-army-is-now-next-to-an-impossibility-prearranged/) [Antoine-Henri Jomini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antoine-henri-jomini/) > [“Never let your Enemies become your Advocates.” by A. K. Hasan”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-k-hasan/never-let-your-enemies-become-your-advocates-by-a-k-hasan/) [A.K. Hasan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-k-hasan/) > [The concept of humanity is an especially useful ideological instrument of imperialist expansion, and in its ethical-humanitarian form it is a specific vehicle of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-schmitt/the-concept-of-humanity-is-an-especially-useful-ideological/) [Carl Schmitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-schmitt/) > [Pain held no terror for him. Pain was, if not friend, then family, something he had grown up with in his crèche, learning to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paolo-bacigalupi/pain-held-no-terror-for-him-pain-was-if-not-friend-then-family/) [Paolo Bacigalupi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paolo-bacigalupi/) > [To achieve victory we must mass our forces at the hub of all power & movement. The enemy's 'Center of Gravity'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/to-achieve-victory-we-must-mass-our-forces-at-the-hub-of-all-power/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I don't see why we and the Chinese should have to be enemies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/indira-gandhi/i-don-t-see-why-we-and-the-chinese-should-have-to-be-enemies/) [Indira Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/indira-gandhi/) > [The invention of gunpowder and the constant improvement of firearms are enough in themselves to show that the advance of civilization has done nothing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-von-clausewitz/the-invention-of-gunpowder-and-the-constant-improvement-of-firearms/) [Carl von Clausewitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-von-clausewitz/) > [Perfection is the enemy of greatness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janelle-monae/perfection-is-the-enemy-of-greatness/) [Janelle Monae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janelle-monae/) > [In this business, you find the enemy, then go after and destroy him. Everything else is rubbish!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eddie-rickenbacker/in-this-business-you-find-the-enemy-then-go-after-and-destroy-him/) [Eddie Rickenbacker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-rickenbacker/) > [“Enemies Teach. Friends Preach.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tapan-ghosh/enemies-teach-friends-preach/) [Tapan Ghosh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tapan-ghosh/) [Browse all 7,981 Enemy quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/enemy/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "A doubtful friend is worse than a certain enemy. 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