--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Time isn't made of anything. It is an…" description: "\"Time isn't made of anything. It is an abstraction. Just a meaning that we impose upon motion.\" — Anne Carson" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/589/anne-carson-1985_abstraction_time-isn-t-made-of-anything-it-is-an-abs_637253.png" --- # Time isn't made of anything. It is an abstraction. Just a… ![“Time isn't made of anything. It is an abstraction. Just a meaning that we impose upon motion.” quote by Anne Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/589/anne-carson-1985_abstraction_time-isn-t-made-of-anything-it-is-an-abs_637253.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/589/anne-carson-1985_abstraction_time-isn-t-made-of-anything-it-is-an-abs_637253.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/589/anne-carson-1985_abstraction_time-isn-t-made-of-anything-it-is-an-abs_637253.png) > “Time isn't made of anything. It is an abstraction. Just a meaning that we impose upon motion.” [Anne Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-carson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Time is a conceptual label we assign to motion, not a physical substance. **In simple terms:** Time is a mental construct. Key Takeaway Recognize time as a tool, not a thing. Themes philosophy perception physics Mood reflective analytical Type conceptual philosophical When to use this quote - daily planning - scientific research - philosophical debate Key Concepts ontology relativity subjectivity Questions to Reflect On - How does viewing time as a construct change your habits? - What decisions rely on treating time as a thing? A Different Perspective Time can be useful but may mislead if treated as concrete. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Abstraction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abstraction/) [Clock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/clock/) [Motion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/motion/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [Real isn't what they try to tell you. Time isn't. Grown-ups hammer down all these markers, bells, schedules, coffee-breaks, to stake down time so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tana-french/real-isn-t-what-they-try-to-tell-you-time-isn-t-grown-ups-hammer-down/) [Tana French](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tana-french/) > [“Nothing is and isn’t; nothing is and isn’t—nothing itself is, and at the same time, nothing isn’t.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/nothing-is-and-isn-t-nothing-is-and-isn-t-nothing-itself-is-and-at/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > [Sometimes, God doesn't give you what you want because the time isn't right. Maybe it isn't what you need. In the end, things will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/sometimes-god-doesn-t-give-you-what-you-want-because-the-time-isn-t/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Look, just as time isn't inside clocks love isn't inside bodies: bodies only tell the love.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yehuda-amichai/look-just-as-time-isn-t-inside-clocks-love-isn-t-inside-bodies-bodies/) [Yehuda Amichai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yehuda-amichai/) > [“I don’t call watches watches, I call them grasps, because one, they grasp onto your wrist, and two, time isn’t something you can watch;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/i-don-t-call-watches-watches-i-call-them-grasps-because-one-they/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > [“Because time is not like space. And when you put something down somewhere, like a protractor or a biscuit, you can have a map…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-haddon/because-time-is-not-like-space-and-when-you-put-something-down/) [Mark Haddon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-haddon/) > [It's depressing how two people can drift into strangers just because time isn't being made for each other](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-s-depressing-how-two-people-can-drift-into-strangers-just-because/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“time isn’t something you can spread out like butter or jam, and death isn’t going to hang around and wait for you to finish…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruth-ozeki/time-isn-t-something-you-can-spread-out-like-butter-or-jam-and-death/) [Ruth Ozeki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ruth-ozeki/) > [You can't fool all of the people all of the time. But it isn't necessary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-rogers/you-can-t-fool-all-of-the-people-all-of-the-time-but-it-isn-t/) [Will Rogers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-rogers/) > [Pilots track their lives by the number of hours in the air, as if any other kind of time isn't worth noting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-parfit/pilots-track-their-lives-by-the-number-of-hours-in-the-air-as-if-any/) Michael Parfit > [Time isn't a commodity, something you pass around like cake. Time is the substance of life. When anyone asks you to give your time,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoinette-bosco/time-isn-t-a-commodity-something-you-pass-around-like-cake-time-is/) [Antoinette Bosco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antoinette-bosco/) > [“For the longest time I ignored or dismissed the adage that time flies as we get older because I didn't feel old enough for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-burdick/for-the-longest-time-i-ignored-or-dismissed-the-adage-that-time-flies/) Alan Burdick > [“Fucking two things up at the same time isn't multitasking”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dick-masterson/fucking-two-things-up-at-the-same-time-isn-t-multitasking/) Dick Masterson > [Time isn't what makes a friendship last...It's love and devotion that keeps the tie between souls.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/time-isn-t-what-makes-a-friendship-last-it-s-love-and-devotion-that/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Please remove your watch,' he said. 'In my domain time isn't a factor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hanif-kureishi/please-remove-your-watch-he-said-in-my-domain-time-isn-t-a-factor/) [Hanif Kureishi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hanif-kureishi/) ## More by Anne Carson > [Those nights lying alone are not discontinuous with this cold hectic dawn. It is who I am.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-carson/those-nights-lying-alone-are-not-discontinuous-with-this-cold-hectic/) [Anne Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-carson/) > [“Town of the Dragon Vein If you wake up too early listen for it. A sort of inverted whistling the sound of sound. Being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-carson/town-of-the-dragon-vein-if-you-wake-up-too-early-listen-for-it-a-sort/) [Anne Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-carson/) > [“You could take the entirety of the common sense of humans and put it in the palm of your hand and still have room…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-carson/you-could-take-the-entirety-of-the-common-sense-of-humans-and-put-it/) [Anne Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-carson/) > [Could you visit me in dreams? That would cheer me. Sweet to see friends in the night, however short the time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-carson/could-you-visit-me-in-dreams-that-would-cheer-me-sweet-to-see-friends/) [Anne Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-carson/) > [“He had a respect for facts maybe this was one.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-carson/he-had-a-respect-for-facts-maybe-this-was-one/) [Anne Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-carson/) > [“She stumbled then and Geryon caught her other arm, it was like a handful of autumn. He felt huge and wrong. When is it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-carson/she-stumbled-then-and-geryon-caught-her-other-arm-it-was-like-a/) [Anne Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-carson/) > [“M: ... but everytime I start in everytime I everytime you see I would have to tell the whole story all over again or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-carson/m-but-everytime-i-start-in-everytime-i-everytime-you-see-i-would-have/) [Anne Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-carson/) > [“On the Rules of Perspective A bad trick. Mistake. Dishonesty. These are the views of Braque. Why? Braque rejected perspective. Why? Someone who spends…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-carson/on-the-rules-of-perspective-a-bad-trick-mistake-dishonesty-these-are/) [Anne Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-carson/) > [We participate in the creation of the world by decreating ourselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-carson/we-participate-in-the-creation-of-the-world-by-decreating-ourselves/) [Anne Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-carson/) > [“Look at me. This is nobility in a man: to bear what falls from the gods and not say No.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-carson/look-at-me-this-is-nobility-in-a-man-to-bear-what-falls-from-the-gods/) [Anne Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-carson/) > [“Well, they said, these are the pies we have . It was a proverb.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-carson/well-they-said-these-are-the-pies-we-have-it-was-a-proverb/) [Anne Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-carson/) > [What is a quote? A quote (cognate with quota) is a cut, a section, a slice of someone's orange. You suck the slice, toss…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-carson/what-is-a-quote-a-quote-cognate-with-quota-is-a-cut-a-section-a-slice/) [Anne Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-carson/) > [Up against another human being one's own procedures take on definition](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-carson/up-against-another-human-being-one-s-own-procedures-take-on-definition/) [Anne Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-carson/) > [Philosophy - hopeless. Yet it gives me hope.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-carson/philosophy-hopeless-yet-it-gives-me-hope/) [Anne Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-carson/) > [“Grief and rage--you need to contain that, to put a frame around it, where it can play itself out without you or your kin…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-carson/grief-and-rage-you-need-to-contain-that-to-put-a-frame-around-it/) [Anne Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-carson/) [Explore all 193 Anne Carson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-carson/) ## More Abstraction quotes > [Everything in dancing is style, allusion, the essence of many thoughts and feelings. 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A surprising variety of things happen to have both magnitude and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/banesh-hoffmann/but-we-must-not-underestimate-the-potency-of-the-mathematical-process/) Banesh Hoffmann > [Sometimes I start in a very realistic fashion, and as I go on from one painting to another of the same kind, it becomes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georgia-o-keeffe/sometimes-i-start-in-a-very-realistic-fashion-and-as-i-go-on-from-one/) [Georgia O'Keeffe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georgia-o-keeffe/) > [I like residing in abstraction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sufjan-stevens/i-like-residing-in-abstraction/) [Sufjan Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sufjan-stevens/) > [Cancer begins and ends with people. In the midst of scientific abstraction, it is sometimes possible to forget this one basic fact. Doctors treat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/june-goodfield/cancer-begins-and-ends-with-people-in-the-midst-of-scientific/) [June Goodfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/june-goodfield/) > [Yes, there was an element of abstraction and unreality in misfortune. But when an abstraction starts to kill you, you have to get to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/yes-there-was-an-element-of-abstraction-and-unreality-in-misfortune/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [Computer Science is a science of abstraction -creating the right model for a problem and devising the appropriate mechanizable techniques to solve it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-aho/computer-science-is-a-science-of-abstraction-creating-the-right-model/) Alfred Aho > [In 'Self Comes to Mind' I pay a lot of attention to simple creatures without brains or minds, because those 'cartooned abstractions of who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-damasio/in-self-comes-to-mind-i-pay-a-lot-of-attention-to-simple-creatures/) [Antonio Damasio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-damasio/) > [Don't get stuck on the level of words. A word is no more than a means to an end. It's an abstraction. Not unlike…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/don-t-get-stuck-on-the-level-of-words-a-word-is-no-more-than-a-means/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [Holidays are in no sense an alternative to the congestion and bustle of the cities and work. Quite the contrary. People look to escape…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-baudrillard/holidays-are-in-no-sense-an-alternative-to-the-congestion-and-bustle/) [Jean Baudrillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-baudrillard/) > [The pragmatist turns away from abstraction and insufficiency, from verbal solutions, from bad a priori reasons, from fixed principles, closed systems, and pretended absolutes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-james/the-pragmatist-turns-away-from-abstraction-and-insufficiency-from/) [William James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-james/) > [ I'd say that \[Louis\] Brandeis practiced a kind of a "living originalism," to use the title of Jack Balkin's great book. 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