--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Hanging on to a resentment, someone once…" description: "\"Hanging on to a resentment, someone once said, is like drinking poison and hoping it will kill someone else.\" — Alice May" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1fe/alice-may-217868_anger_hanging-on-to-a-resentment-someone-once_2811536.jpg" --- # Hanging on to a resentment, someone once said, is like… ![“Hanging on to a resentment, someone once said, is like drinking poison and hoping it will kill someone else.” quote by Alice May](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1fe/alice-may-217868_anger_hanging-on-to-a-resentment-someone-once_2811536.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1fe/alice-may-217868_anger_hanging-on-to-a-resentment-someone-once_2811536.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1fe/alice-may-217868_anger_hanging-on-to-a-resentment-someone-once_2811536.jpg) > “Hanging on to a resentment, someone once said, is like drinking poison and hoping it will kill someone else.” [Alice May](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-may/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Holding onto resentment harms oneself, like drinking poison hoping it hurts another. **In simple terms:** Resentment is self‑destructive. Key Takeaway Release grudges. Themes Anger Resentment Self‑harm Forgiveness Health Mood Bitter Reflective Type Anger:1 Drinking:0 Drinking poison:1 Hanging on:1 Poison:1 Resentment:1 Said:0 Resentment Said:0 Poison Hoping:0 Hanging Resentment:0 When to use this quote - Personal relationships - Workplace - Therapy - Self‑growth Key Concepts Psychology Emotional health Toxicity Questions to Reflect On - What benefits come from forgiveness? - How to process lingering anger? A Different Perspective Letting go may feel like surrendering justice. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Anger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anger/) [Drinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/drinking/) [Drinking poison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/drinking-poison/) [Hanging on](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hanging-on/) [Hanging Resentment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hanging-resentment-2641378/) [Poison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poison/) [Poison Hoping](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poison-hoping-837718/) [Resentment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/resentment/) [Resentment Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/resentment-said-703201/) [Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/said/) ## Related quotes > [We should blush for shame to show so much resentment at what is done or said against us, knowing that so many injuries and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/teresa-of-vila/we-should-blush-for-shame-to-show-so-much-resentment-at-what-is-done/) [Teresa of Avila](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/teresa-of-vila/) > [A wise person once wrote, “Resentment is like drinking poison and hoping the other person would die.” But the only one dying is ourselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/debbie-ford/a-wise-person-once-wrote-resentment-is-like-drinking-poison-and/) [Debbie Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/debbie-ford/) > [Resentment is like drinking poison and then hoping it will kill your enemies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-mandela/resentment-is-like-drinking-poison-and-then-hoping-it-will-kill-your/) [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) > [Unforgiveness is like drinking poison and hoping the other person dies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-stunt/unforgiveness-is-like-drinking-poison-and-hoping-the-other-person-dies/) [Margaret Stunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-stunt/) > [Harboring unforgiveness is like drinking poison and hoping your enemy will die.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-meyer/harboring-unforgiveness-is-like-drinking-poison-and-hoping-your-enemy/) [Joyce Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-meyer/) > [Not forgiving somebody is like drinking poison and hoping that the offender will get sick.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-smalley/not-forgiving-somebody-is-like-drinking-poison-and-hoping-that-the/) [Gary Smalley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-smalley/) > [“Holding on to resentments is like drinking poison and hoping the other person will die.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-hatvany/holding-on-to-resentments-is-like-drinking-poison-and-hoping-the/) [Amy Hatvany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-hatvany/) > [Hanging onto resentment is letting someone you despise live rent-free in your head.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-landers/hanging-onto-resentment-is-letting-someone-you-despise-live-rent-free/) [Ann Landers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-landers/) > [“Having resentment against someone is like drinking poison and thinking it will kill your enemy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-mandela/having-resentment-against-someone-is-like-drinking-poison-and/) [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) > [Resentment is like drinking poison and waiting for the other person to die.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-fisher/resentment-is-like-drinking-poison-and-waiting-for-the-other-person/) [Carrie Fisher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-fisher/) > [Refusing to forgive is like ingesting a lethal dose of poison and hoping it kills my enemy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-lucado/refusing-to-forgive-is-like-ingesting-a-lethal-dose-of-poison-and/) [Max Lucado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-lucado/) > [“there is an old Rwandan proverb: ‘He who seeks vengeance is like a man who drinks poison, hoping that it will kill his enemy,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-morgan-cron/there-is-an-old-rwandan-proverb-he-who-seeks-vengeance-is-like-a-man/) [Ian Morgan Cron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-morgan-cron/) > [“holding on to anger is like swallowing poison and hoping someone else will die.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-paul-evans/holding-on-to-anger-is-like-swallowing-poison-and-hoping-someone-else/) [Richard Paul Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-paul-evans/) > [“It’s like they say, holding on to anger is like swallowing poison and hoping someone else will die.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-paul-evans/it-s-like-they-say-holding-on-to-anger-is-like-swallowing-poison-and/) [Richard Paul Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-paul-evans/) > [“Holding unforgiveness in my heart and expecting it to hurt my abusers was the equivalent of drinking poison myself and expecting it to kill…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/perry-noble/holding-unforgiveness-in-my-heart-and-expecting-it-to-hurt-my-abusers/) [Perry Noble](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/perry-noble/) ## More Anger quotes > [“If I let myself think of it the pain and anger were still fresh, adrenalin racing down my limbs to pool, hot and itchy,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kylie-ladd/if-i-let-myself-think-of-it-the-pain-and-anger-were-still-fresh/) [Kylie Ladd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kylie-ladd/) > [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/) > [The vision of the left, full of envy and resentment, takes its worst toll on those at the bottom - whether black or white…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sowell/the-vision-of-the-left-full-of-envy-and-resentment-takes-its-worst/) [Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/) > [Anger is a rough water; if you can canalize it into a water mill, you can benefit from it. Anything bad can be transformed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/anger-is-a-rough-water-if-you-can-canalize-it-into-a-water-mill-you/) [Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [“Some say the Earth is angry Because he wants no company; I say the Earth is angry Because he lives alone.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-k-jemisin/some-say-the-earth-is-angry-because-he-wants-no-company-i-say-the/) [N.K. Jemisin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-k-jemisin/) > [“When you feel terribly angry, you're possessed by anger ghost.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toba-beta/when-you-feel-terribly-angry-you-re-possessed-by-anger-ghost/) [Toba Beta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toba-beta/) > [“Medical studies have shown that cursing reduces levels of stress and pain. Repressing your anger is not healthy. It's much better to verbalize it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-markus-malloy/medical-studies-have-shown-that-cursing-reduces-levels-of-stress-and/) [Oliver Markus Malloy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-markus-malloy/) > [My care will be in the heart n not in words My anger will be in Words n not in the Heart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ritu-ghatourey/my-care-will-be-in-the-heart-n-not-in-words-my-anger-will-be-in-words/) [Ritu Ghatourey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ritu-ghatourey/) > [You should be angry. You must not be bitter. Bitterness is like cancer. It eats upon the host. It doesn't do anything to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/you-should-be-angry-you-must-not-be-bitter-bitterness-is-like-cancer/) [Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/) > [To be a Negro in this country and to be relatively conscious is to be in a rage almost all the time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/to-be-a-negro-in-this-country-and-to-be-relatively-conscious-is-to-be/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“God, you had enough time to have been through it three times. You've been through my stuff. I bet you over and let one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/god-you-had-enough-time-to-have-been-through-it-three-times-you-ve/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [The present contains nothing more than the past, and what is found in the effect was already in the cause.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-bergson/the-present-contains-nothing-more-than-the-past-and-what-is-found-in/) [Henri Bergson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-bergson/) > [Depression is merely anger without enthusiasm.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-wright/depression-is-merely-anger-without-enthusiasm/) [Steven Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-wright/) > [I always fight better when my opponent's angry.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-haye/i-always-fight-better-when-my-opponent-s-angry/) [David Haye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-haye/) > [ “Where there are kashays (anger-pride-deceit-greed), there is worldly life. As long as anger-pride-deceit-greed exist; one is a sansaari \[living a worldly life\] regardless of… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dada-bhagwan/where-there-are-kashays-anger-pride-deceit-greed-there-is-worldly/) [Dada Bhagwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dada-bhagwan/) [Browse all 7,469 Anger quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anger/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Hanging on to a resentment, someone once said, is like drinking poison and hoping it will kill someone else.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Alice May" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-may/hanging-on-to-a-resentment-someone-once-said-is-like-drinking-poison/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Anger" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-may/hanging-on-to-a-resentment-someone-once-said-is-like-drinking-poison/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1fe/alice-may-217868_anger_hanging-on-to-a-resentment-someone-once_2811536.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1fe/alice-may-217868_anger_hanging-on-to-a-resentment-someone-once_2811536.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1fe/alice-may-217868_anger_hanging-on-to-a-resentment-someone-once_2811536.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Hanging on to a resentment, someone once said, is like drinking poison and hoping it will kill someone else.” — Alice May", "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": "Alice May", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-may/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Hanging on to a resentment, someone...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-may/hanging-on-to-a-resentment-someone-once-said-is-like-drinking-poison/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-may/hanging-on-to-a-resentment-someone-once-said-is-like-drinking-poison/#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 } } ] } ```