--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: To belittle, you have to be little." description: "\"To belittle, you have to be little.\" — Anonymous" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/463/anonymous-1_belittle_to-belittle-you-have-to-be-little-249404_2494048.jpg" --- # To belittle, you have to be little. ![“To belittle, you have to be little.” quote by Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/463/anonymous-1_belittle_to-belittle-you-have-to-be-little-249404_2494048.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/463/anonymous-1_belittle_to-belittle-you-have-to-be-little-249404_2494048.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/463/anonymous-1_belittle_to-belittle-you-have-to-be-little-249404_2494048.jpg) > “To belittle, you have to be little.” [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Belittling others requires feeling inferior oneself. **In simple terms:** To belittle, you must be small. Key Takeaway Cultivate humility and respect. Themes humility respect psychology Mood reflective empathetic Type psychological social When to use this quote - online comments - workplace criticism - family disputes Key Concepts self‑esteem social behavior Questions to Reflect On - Why do we sometimes put others down? - How can we respond to belittlement? A Different Perspective People can belittle while feeling powerful. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Belittle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/belittle/) [Belittle Little](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/belittle-little-994096/) [Kids](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kids/) [Kindness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kindness/) [Little](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/little/) [Littles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/littles/) [Spiritual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spiritual/) ## Related quotes > [In 2007, people tried to belittle me a little bit and sort of take the credit away from me and my team and what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/casey-stoner/in-2007-people-tried-to-belittle-me-a-little-bit-and-sort-of-take-the/) [Casey Stoner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/casey-stoner/) > [Today's a perfect day to belittle our single friends.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/today-s-a-perfect-day-to-belittle-our-single-friends/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Do not belittle or disregard those who are different than you, for without them you would cease to be special.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/do-not-belittle-or-disregard-those-who-are-different-than-you-for/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Never belittle someone's problems; you don't know what the struggle is like in their heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/never-belittle-someone-s-problems-you-don-t-know-what-the-struggle-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [When we constantly belittle our children there comes a time when they begin to believe whatever we have said.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-we-constantly-belittle-our-children-there-comes-a-time-when-they/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [When we practice loving kindness and compassion we are the first ones to profit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-we-practice-loving-kindness-and-compassion-we-are-the-first-ones/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Wisdom is the art of being courageous and generous with the unknown.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/wisdom-is-the-art-of-being-courageous-and-generous-with-the-unknown/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The lonliest people are the kindest. The saddest people smile the brightest. The most damaged people are the wisest. All because they do not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-lonliest-people-are-the-kindest-the-saddest-people-smile-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [We cannot tell the precise moment when friendship formed. As in filling a vessel drop by drop, there is at last a drop which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/we-cannot-tell-the-precise-moment-when-friendship-formed-as-in/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Did you know that the people that seem the strongest are usually the most sensitive? That the people who exhibit the most kindness are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/did-you-know-that-the-people-that-seem-the-strongest-are-usually-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Oh, you mysterious girls, when you are fifty-two we shall find you out; you must come into the open then. If the mouth has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/oh-you-mysterious-girls-when-you-are-fifty-two-we-shall-find-you-out/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Don't take my kindness as a sign of weakness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/don-t-take-my-kindness-as-a-sign-of-weakness/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [When kindness has left people, even for a few moments, we become afraid of them, as if their reason had left them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-kindness-has-left-people-even-for-a-few-moments-we-become-afraid/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Our lives are not our own. From womb to tomb, we are bound to others, past and present, and by each crime, and every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/our-lives-are-not-our-own-from-womb-to-tomb-we-are-bound-to-others/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [(I)f we are going to be kind, let it be out of simple generosity, not because we fear guilt or retribution.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-f-we-are-going-to-be-kind-let-it-be-out-of-simple-generosity-not/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Anonymous > [And a tear rolled down her cheek, as she said goodbye; because she's walking away, and she's never looking back](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/and-a-tear-rolled-down-her-cheek-as-she-said-goodbye-because-she-s/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [You'll seldom experience regret for anything that you've done. It is what you haven't done that will torment you. The message, therefore, is clear.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-ll-seldom-experience-regret-for-anything-that-you-ve-done-it-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Scrabble - The game is available in Braille. That’s a nice fact. This makes me feel better about humanity for some reason. I can’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/scrabble-the-game-is-available-in-braille-that-s-a-nice-fact-this/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Everyone needs someone to love, and I choose you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/everyone-needs-someone-to-love-and-i-choose-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“THIS tale of my sore-troubled life I write,    To thank the God of nature, who conveyed    My soul to me, and with such care…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-tale-of-my-sore-troubled-life-i-write-to-thank-the-god-of-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Put on my J's and dance the whole night away Im naughty by nature like Im hip-hop hooray With my hands in the sky,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/put-on-my-j-s-and-dance-the-whole-night-away-im-naughty-by-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Me.. I have been through a lot, but I still manage to have a smile on my face. Im not worried about the past…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/me-i-have-been-through-a-lot-but-i-still-manage-to-have-a-smile-on-my/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Distance is a test of love. many will fail for those who can't withstand it, but for those who can, theres only one answer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/distance-is-a-test-of-love-many-will-fail-for-those-who-can-t/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Im sorry I ever tried...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/im-sorry-i-ever-tried/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Being betrayed by the one you love is the worst feeling in the world...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/being-betrayed-by-the-one-you-love-is-the-worst-feeling-in-the-world/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Let children support their parents or be imprisoned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/let-children-support-their-parents-or-be-imprisoned/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The only person I've ever purposely caused pain here is myself...By simply sharing, caring too much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-only-person-i-ve-ever-purposely-caused-pain-here-is-myself-by/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Start a business, not a startup”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/start-a-business-not-a-startup/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The truth is, of course, that the curtness of the Ten Commandments is an evidence, not of the gloom and narrowness of a religion,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-truth-is-of-course-that-the-curtness-of-the-ten-commandments-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Explore all 162,899 Anonymous quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More Belittle quotes > [Most adults would not dream of belittling, humiliating, or bullying (verbally or physically) another adult. But many of the same adults think nothing of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurence-steinberg/most-adults-would-not-dream-of-belittling-humiliating-or-bullying/) [Laurence Steinberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurence-steinberg/) > [They misunderstand us, they unwittingly belittle us, they do something that they think is nice that instead just makes us mad. And those are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanne-lipman/they-misunderstand-us-they-unwittingly-belittle-us-they-do-something/) [Joanne Lipman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanne-lipman/) > [Do not, under any circumstances, belittle a work of fiction by trying to turn it into a carbon copy of real life; what we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azar-nafisi/do-not-under-any-circumstances-belittle-a-work-of-fiction-by-trying/) [Azar Nafisi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/azar-nafisi/) > [Occasionally, I like to select a mentor, a master, and let him guide me through a revision of one of my paintings... I try…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rico-lebrun/occasionally-i-like-to-select-a-mentor-a-master-and-let-him-guide-me/) [Rico Lebrun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rico-lebrun/) > [The cross of Christ is the response of God to men for belittling His name.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-chandler/the-cross-of-christ-is-the-response-of-god-to-men-for-belittling-his/) [Matt Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-chandler/) > [“Do not share your thoughts with people who think that what you are thinking is not worth thinking.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bassey-johnson/do-not-share-your-thoughts-with-people-who-think-that-what-you-are/) [Michael Bassey Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bassey-johnson/) > [Besides, anyone with an Internet connection feels they have the credentials to critique or belittle anything these days.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-colfer/besides-anyone-with-an-internet-connection-feels-they-have-the/) [Chris Colfer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-colfer/) > [“People who belittle people, will be LITTLE people, and will accomplish very Little”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-vincent-peale/people-who-belittle-people-will-be-little-people-and-will-accomplish/) [Norman Vincent Peale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-vincent-peale/) > [“People will oppose your progress. They will remind you of your past failures, belittle you, etc. The only way to stand against such opposition…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-s-mashego/people-will-oppose-your-progress-they-will-remind-you-of-your-past/) [D.S. Mashego](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-s-mashego/) > [“And she looked upon the mirror that was given as a gift. She hated everything about it, from the circular size of it, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-liccione/and-she-looked-upon-the-mirror-that-was-given-as-a-gift-she-hated/) [Anthony Liccione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-liccione/) > [When my wife and I met, I couldn't talk to her - and my defense mechanism is sarcasm. I belittle someone with verbal pokes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-vogel/when-my-wife-and-i-met-i-couldn-t-talk-to-her-and-my-defense/) [Mike Vogel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-vogel/) > [People want to know those details. They think it gives them greater insight into a piece of art, but when they approach a painting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-de-lint/people-want-to-know-those-details-they-think-it-gives-them-greater/) [Charles de Lint](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-de-lint/) > [A person is bound to lose when he talks about himself; if he belittles himself, he is believed; if he praises himself, he isn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/a-person-is-bound-to-lose-when-he-talks-about-himself-if-he-belittles/) [Michel de Montaigne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-de-montaigne/) > [I would permit no man, no matter what his colour might be, to narrow and degrade my soul by making me hate him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/booker-t-washington/i-would-permit-no-man-no-matter-what-his-colour-might-be-to-narrow/) [Booker T. Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/booker-t-washington/) > [Only those beneath me can envy or hate me. I have never been envied nor hated; I am above no one. Only those above…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khalil-gibran/only-those-beneath-me-can-envy-or-hate-me-i-have-never-been-envied/) [Khalil Gibran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khalil-gibran/) [Browse all 171 Belittle quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/belittle/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "To belittle, you have to be little.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Anonymous" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/to-belittle-you-have-to-be-little/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Belittle" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/to-belittle-you-have-to-be-little/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/463/anonymous-1_belittle_to-belittle-you-have-to-be-little-249404_2494048.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/463/anonymous-1_belittle_to-belittle-you-have-to-be-little-249404_2494048.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/463/anonymous-1_belittle_to-belittle-you-have-to-be-little-249404_2494048.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“To belittle, you have to be little.” — Anonymous", "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": "Anonymous", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "To belittle, you have to be...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/to-belittle-you-have-to-be-little/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/to-belittle-you-have-to-be-little/#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 } } ] } ```