---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Nobody has a right to speak more clearly…"
description: "\"Nobody has a right to speak more clearly than he thinks.\" — Alfred North Whitehead"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5cd/alfred-north-whitehead-836_speak_nobody-has-a-right-to-speak-more-clearly_1439959.png"
---

#  Nobody has a right to speak more clearly than he thinks.

![“Nobody has a right to speak more clearly than he thinks.” quote by Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5cd/alfred-north-whitehead-836_speak_nobody-has-a-right-to-speak-more-clearly_1439959.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5cd/alfred-north-whitehead-836_speak_nobody-has-a-right-to-speak-more-clearly_1439959.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5cd/alfred-north-whitehead-836_speak_nobody-has-a-right-to-speak-more-clearly_1439959.png)

> “Nobody has a right to speak more clearly than he thinks.”

[Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Clear thinking should precede clear speech; clarity of mind is the foundation of articulate expression.

**In simple terms:** Think clearly before speaking.

Key Takeaway

Ensure thoughts are clear before speaking.

Themes

communication clarity thought expression

Mood

thoughtful analytical

Type

advice philosophical

When to use this quote

- public speaking
- teaching
- debate
- writing

Key Concepts

philosophy logic language

Questions to Reflect On

- How do you verify your thoughts are clear before speaking?
- What habits improve mental clarity?

A Different Perspective

Clarity of speech can still be hindered by anxiety or social pressure.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Speech](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/speech/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/)

## Related quotes

> [“Do not Speak for Anyone. Just let them know their Right to Speak.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vineet-raj-kapoor/do-not-speak-for-anyone-just-let-them-know-their-right-to-speak/)

[Vineet Raj Kapoor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vineet-raj-kapoor/)

> [There is a responsibility as president to choose your words carefully, especially on foreign policy, and to speak as clearly as possible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-young/there-is-a-responsibility-as-president-to-choose-your-words-carefully/)

[Todd Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-young/)

> [Some people find clarity threatening. They like muddle, confusion, obscurity. So when somebody does no more than speak clearly it sounds threatening.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/some-people-find-clarity-threatening-they-like-muddle-confusion/)

[Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/)

> [“Edward," I said, managing to speak more clearly with a little effort, "there's no point to forever without you. I wouldn't want one day…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephanie-meyers/edward-i-said-managing-to-speak-more-clearly-with-a-little-effort/)

Stephanie Meyers

> [You ask my advice about acting? Speak clearly, don't bump into the furniture and if you must have motivation, think of your pay packet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noel-coward/you-ask-my-advice-about-acting-speak-clearly-don-t-bump-into-the/)

[Noel Coward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noel-coward/)

> [“Speak up and speak clearly. I want to hear what you have to say because it matters. Let's listen to each other and respect…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felicia-johnson/speak-up-and-speak-clearly-i-want-to-hear-what-you-have-to-say/)

Felicia Johnson

> [I have been asked about terrorism many times, and each time I speak as clearly as I can.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jagmeet-singh/i-have-been-asked-about-terrorism-many-times-and-each-time-i-speak-as/)

[Jagmeet Singh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jagmeet-singh/)

> [Never speak more clearly than you think](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-bernstein/never-speak-more-clearly-than-you-think/)

Jeremy Bernstein

> [Dance is communication, and so the great challenge is to speak clearly, beautifully and with inevitability.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-graham/dance-is-communication-and-so-the-great-challenge-is-to-speak-clearly/)

[Martha Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-graham/)

> [You can't write about people out of textbooks, and you can't use jargon. You have to speak clearly and simply and purely in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katherine-anne-porter/you-can-t-write-about-people-out-of-textbooks-and-you-can-t-use/)

[Katherine Anne Porter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katherine-anne-porter/)

> [Speak clearly, if you speak at all; carve every word before you let it fall.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/speak-clearly-if-you-speak-at-all-carve-every-word-before-you-let-it/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Read critically, write consciously; speak clearly; tell your truth!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clint-smith/read-critically-write-consciously-speak-clearly-tell-your-truth/)

[Clint Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clint-smith/)

> [“Will you ever use common sense, I hear it comes pretty cheap. And if I speak more clearly, if I make more sense. Will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tegan-quin/will-you-ever-use-common-sense-i-hear-it-comes-pretty-cheap-and-if-i/)

[Tegan Quin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tegan-quin/)

> [“Energy doesn't communicate in English, French, Chinese or Swahili, but it does speak clearly”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elaine-seiler/energy-doesn-t-communicate-in-english-french-chinese-or-swahili-but/)

[Elaine Seiler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elaine-seiler/)

> [ Let us not forget that among \[women's\] rights is the right to speak freely. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/let-us-not-forget-that-among-women-s-rights-is-the-right-to-speak/)

[Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/)

## More by Alfred North Whitehead

> [For successful education there must always be a certain freshness in the knowledge dealt with. It must be either new in itself or invested…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/for-successful-education-there-must-always-be-a-certain-freshness-in/)

[Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/)

> [Philosophy begins in wonder. And, at the end, when philosophic thought has done its best, the wonder remains.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/philosophy-begins-in-wonder-and-at-the-end-when-philosophic-thought/)

[Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/)

> [The pursuit of mathematics is a divine madness of the human spirit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/the-pursuit-of-mathematics-is-a-divine-madness-of-the-human-spirit/)

[Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/)

> [Without adventure all civilization is full of decay. Adventure rarely reaches its predetermined end. Columbus never reached China.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/without-adventure-all-civilization-is-full-of-decay-adventure-rarely/)

[Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/)

> [Aristotle discovered all the half-truths which were necessary to the creation of science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/aristotle-discovered-all-the-half-truths-which-were-necessary-to-the/)

[Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/)

> [On the ostensible exactitude of certain branches of human knowledge, including mathematics. The exactness is a fake.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/on-the-ostensible-exactitude-of-certain-branches-of-human-knowledge/)

[Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/)

> [It is this union of passionate interest in the detailed facts with equal devotion to abstract generalisation which forms the novelty in our present…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/it-is-this-union-of-passionate-interest-in-the-detailed-facts-with/)

[Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/)

> [Our minds are finite, and yet even in these circumstances of infinitude we are surrounded by possibilities that are infinite, and the purpose of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/our-minds-are-finite-and-yet-even-in-these-circumstances-of/)

[Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/)

> [The many become one and are increased by one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/the-many-become-one-and-are-increased-by-one/)

[Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/)

> [Art is the imposing of a pattern on experience, and our aesthetic enjoyment is recognition of the pattern.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/art-is-the-imposing-of-a-pattern-on-experience-and-our-aesthetic/)

[Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/)

> [The future belongs to those who can rise above the confines of the earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/the-future-belongs-to-those-who-can-rise-above-the-confines-of-the/)

[Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/)

> [Common sense is genius in homespun.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/common-sense-is-genius-in-homespun/)

[Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/)

> [Everyone is a philosopher. Not everyone is good at it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/everyone-is-a-philosopher-not-everyone-is-good-at-it/)

[Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/)

> [Do not teach too many subjects and what you teach, teach thoroughly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/do-not-teach-too-many-subjects-and-what-you-teach-teach-thoroughly/)

[Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/)

> [Civilization advances by extending the number of important operations which we can perform without thinking about them. Operations of thought are cavalry charges in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/civilization-advances-by-extending-the-number-of-important-operations/)

[Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/)

[Explore all 356 Alfred North Whitehead quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/)

## More Speak quotes

> [I receive something we might euphemistically call an 'inappropriately hostile' response - that is to say, more than fair criticism or even fair anger…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-beard/i-receive-something-we-might-euphemistically-call-an-inappropriately/)

[Mary Beard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-beard/)

> [I just speak the truth. I keep it real.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marlon-vera/i-just-speak-the-truth-i-keep-it-real/)

[Marlon Vera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marlon-vera/)

> [Why do Christians sing when they are together? The reason is, quite simply, because in singing together it is possible for them to speak…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-bonhoeffer/why-do-christians-sing-when-they-are-together-the-reason-is-quite/)

[Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/)

> [“We've all met people who are beautiful on the outside, however, when they open their mouths to speak, they have nothing of substance to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-c-young/we-ve-all-met-people-who-are-beautiful-on-the-outside-however-when/)

[Susan C. Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-c-young/)

> [He who knows does not speak. He who speaks does not know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/he-who-knows-does-not-speak-he-who-speaks-does-not-know/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [A man walks down the street. It's a street in a strange world. Maybe it's the third world. Maybe it's his first time around.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-simon/a-man-walks-down-the-street-it-s-a-street-in-a-strange-world-maybe-it/)

[Paul Simon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-simon/)

> [Some people you speak to you speak into their heads. It's logical.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johnny-hunt/some-people-you-speak-to-you-speak-into-their-heads-it-s-logical/)

[Johnny Hunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johnny-hunt/)

> [A Light exists in Spring Not present on the Year At any other period - When March is scarcely here A Color stands abroad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-dickinson/a-light-exists-in-spring-not-present-on-the-year-at-any-other-period/)

[Emily Dickinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-dickinson/)

> [My real name's McGill. The Jew thing I just do for the homeboys. They all want a pipe-hitting member of the tribe, so to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul/my-real-name-s-mcgill-the-jew-thing-i-just-do-for-the-homeboys-they/)

[Saul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul/)

> [If I had to speak in front of a Korean audience, I would be hard pressed to sound other than a little girl.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/an-na/if-i-had-to-speak-in-front-of-a-korean-audience-i-would-be-hard/)

[An Na](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/an-na/)

> [I hate watching myself speak German, it's painful!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-marsch/i-hate-watching-myself-speak-german-it-s-painful/)

[Jesse Marsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-marsch/)

> [A man cannot speak but he judges himself. With his will or against his will he draws his portrait to the eye of his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/a-man-cannot-speak-but-he-judges-himself-with-his-will-or-against-his/)

[Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/)

> [The world's history is a divine poem, of which the history of every nation is a canto, and every man a word. Its strains…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-a-garfield/the-world-s-history-is-a-divine-poem-of-which-the-history-of-every/)

[James A. Garfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-a-garfield/)

> [The language we share is at the core of our identity as citizens, and our ticket to full participation in American political life. We…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-i-hayakawa/the-language-we-share-is-at-the-core-of-our-identity-as-citizens-and/)

[S. I. Hayakawa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-i-hayakawa/)

> [There are certain things you must not say in spite of the fact that supposedly democracy means free speech. No. You are not allowed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-eubank-sr/there-are-certain-things-you-must-not-say-in-spite-of-the-fact-that/)

[Chris Eubank Sr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-eubank-sr/)

Browse all 12,967 Speak quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Nobody has a right to speak more clearly than he thinks.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Alfred North Whitehead"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/nobody-has-a-right-to-speak-more-clearly-than-he-thinks/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Speak"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/nobody-has-a-right-to-speak-more-clearly-than-he-thinks/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5cd/alfred-north-whitehead-836_speak_nobody-has-a-right-to-speak-more-clearly_1439959.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5cd/alfred-north-whitehead-836_speak_nobody-has-a-right-to-speak-more-clearly_1439959.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5cd/alfred-north-whitehead-836_speak_nobody-has-a-right-to-speak-more-clearly_1439959.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Nobody has a right to speak more clearly than he thinks.” — Alfred North Whitehead",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Alfred North Whitehead",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Nobody has a right to speak...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/nobody-has-a-right-to-speak-more-clearly-than-he-thinks/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/nobody-has-a-right-to-speak-more-clearly-than-he-thinks/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
