--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When words fail, then real language…" description: "\"“When words fail, then real language arrives, that rare guest.”\" — Carolyn Chun" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c3b/carolyn-chun-100355_communication_when-words-fail-then-real-language-arriv_1652808.jpg" --- # When words fail, then real language arrives, that rare… ![“When words fail, then real language arrives, that rare guest.” quote by Carolyn Chun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c3b/carolyn-chun-100355_communication_when-words-fail-then-real-language-arriv_1652808.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c3b/carolyn-chun-100355_communication_when-words-fail-then-real-language-arriv_1652808.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c3b/carolyn-chun-100355_communication_when-words-fail-then-real-language-arriv_1652808.jpg) > ““When words fail, then real language arrives, that rare guest.”” Carolyn Chun ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. When words fail, a deeper, non‑verbal language emerges, offering authentic connection. **In simple terms:** Beyond words lies true communication. Key Takeaway Listen beyond speech. Themes communication language authenticity connection expression Mood philosophical inspirational Type Communication:1 Dialogue:0 Discussion:0 Ineffability:0 Language:1 Miscommunication:0 Words:1 Words Fail:1 Real Language:1 Language Arrives:1 Fail Real:0 When to use this quote - Non‑verbal signals can be misread. Key Concepts non‑verbal cues deep listening emotional exchange Questions to Reflect On - reflective - introspective A Different Perspective What non‑verbal signs do you notice?;How can you convey meaning without words? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Communication](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communication/) [Language](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/language/) [Miscommunication](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/miscommunication/) [Words](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/words/) ## Related quotes > [How our availability, our showing up, our presence, leaves us open to that violence. I think it's a question of language, as it arrives…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claudia-rankine/how-our-availability-our-showing-up-our-presence-leaves-us-open-to/) [Claudia Rankine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claudia-rankine/) > [You try, you fail, you try, you fail but the real failure is when you stop trying...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nishan-panwar/you-try-you-fail-you-try-you-fail-but-the-real-failure-is-when-you/) [Nishan Panwar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nishan-panwar/) > [“It will seem to many persons very inconsistent with their ideas of the dignity of a spirit that they should appear and act in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-crowe/it-will-seem-to-many-persons-very-inconsistent-with-their-ideas-of/) [Catherine Crowe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-crowe/) > [“Robert Frost didn’t like to explain his poems—and for good reason: to explain a poem is to suck the air from its lungs. This…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-leuzzi/robert-frost-didn-t-like-to-explain-his-poems-and-for-good-reason-to/) [Tony Leuzzi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-leuzzi/) > [The symbolic view of things is a consequence of long absorption in images. Is sign language the real language of Paradise?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugo-ball/the-symbolic-view-of-things-is-a-consequence-of-long-absorption-in/) [Hugo Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugo-ball/) > [The real being of language is that into which we are taken up when we hear it - what is said.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hans-georg-gadamer/the-real-being-of-language-is-that-into-which-we-are-taken-up-when-we/) [Hans-Georg Gadamer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hans-georg-gadamer/) > [“She isn't a storm or a leader or a king or a war or anyone whose life and death makes noise. The problem is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-oyeyemi/she-isn-t-a-storm-or-a-leader-or-a-king-or-a-war-or-anyone-whose-life/) [Helen Oyeyemi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-oyeyemi/) > [Words fail to express our love! Even if you try to hide it¦Truth cant be hidden for long](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abdul-basith-nazeem/words-fail-to-express-our-love-even-if-you-try-to-hide-it-truth-cant/) [Abdul Basith Nazeem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abdul-basith-nazeem/) > [Where words fail, music speaks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hans-christian-andersen/where-words-fail-music-speaks/) [Hans Christian Andersen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hans-christian-andersen/) > [I will never be able to say what is in my heart because words fail us, because it is in our nature to protect,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-tempest-williams/i-will-never-be-able-to-say-what-is-in-my-heart-because-words-fail-us/) [Terry Tempest Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-tempest-williams/) > [The beauty of music has the ability to speak where words fail.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suman-rai/the-beauty-of-music-has-the-ability-to-speak-where-words-fail/) [Suman Rai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suman-rai/) > [When words fail, music speaks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/irena-huang/when-words-fail-music-speaks/) Irena Huang > [If my words fail, let my eyes and my heart be my language.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mirtha-michelle/if-my-words-fail-let-my-eyes-and-my-heart-be-my-language/) [Mirtha Michelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mirtha-michelle/) > [When Words Fail.. Action Speaks.. When Action Fails.. Eyes Speak.. When Eyes Fail.. Tears Speak.. And When Everything Else Fails.. 'Silence' Speaks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-words-fail-action-speaks-when-action-fails-eyes-speak-when-eyes/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Love can only be expressed through actions. Words fail to encompass its enormity”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anupama-garg/love-can-only-be-expressed-through-actions-words-fail-to-encompass/) [Anupama Garg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anupama-garg/) ## More by Carolyn Chun > [“We annihilate convention in order to experience the truth of otherness.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolyn-chun/we-annihilate-convention-in-order-to-experience-the-truth-of-otherness/) Carolyn Chun Explore all 2 Carolyn Chun quotes ## More Communication quotes > [Some people still believe you should just fall in line with what's going on - and that's scary. It makes a mockery of freedom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-robison/some-people-still-believe-you-should-just-fall-in-line-with-what-s/) [Emily Robison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-robison/) > [The problem posed by indirect speech acts is the problem of how it is possible for the speaker to say one thing and mean…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-searle/the-problem-posed-by-indirect-speech-acts-is-the-problem-of-how-it-is/) [John Searle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-searle/) > [We should have a conversation when we hang up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benedict-cumberbatch/we-should-have-a-conversation-when-we-hang-up/) [Benedict Cumberbatch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benedict-cumberbatch/) > [Sing like no one's listening, love like you've never been hurt, dance like nobody's watching, and live like its heaven on earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/sing-like-no-one-s-listening-love-like-you-ve-never-been-hurt-dance/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [A poet is wounded into speech, and he examines these wounds, meticulously, to discover how to heal them. The bad poet harangues at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-r-delany/a-poet-is-wounded-into-speech-and-he-examines-these-wounds/) [Samuel R. Delany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-r-delany/) > [“To engage in dialogue is to serve others via whatever is real inside you; to engage in debate is to ultimately serve the illusions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oli-anderson/to-engage-in-dialogue-is-to-serve-others-via-whatever-is-real-inside/) [Oli Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oli-anderson/) > [What it comes down to for me is this: Will the technologies of communication in our culture, serve to enlighten us and help us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-waters/what-it-comes-down-to-for-me-is-this-will-the-technologies-of/) [Roger Waters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-waters/) > [In dialogue, there is opposition, yes, but no head-on collision. Smashing heads does not open minds.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deborah-tannen/in-dialogue-there-is-opposition-yes-but-no-head-on-collision-smashing/) [Deborah Tannen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deborah-tannen/) > [A dialogue is very important. It is a form of communication in which question and answer continue till a question is left without an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jiddu-krishnamurti/a-dialogue-is-very-important-it-is-a-form-of-communication-in-which/) [Jiddu Krishnamurti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jiddu-krishnamurti/) > [I get afraid of the dark if I'm in a great deal of dark, and I have to move around inside of that fear...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emil-ferris/i-get-afraid-of-the-dark-if-i-m-in-a-great-deal-of-dark-and-i-have-to/) [Emil Ferris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emil-ferris/) > [I've been in a serious conversation with one of my children, and a fan has come up. I've been in a public bathroom and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-reddy/i-ve-been-in-a-serious-conversation-with-one-of-my-children-and-a-fan/) [Helen Reddy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-reddy/) > [Life as we know it is fundamentally unsatisfying. I think most folks feel this to be true. They know that a life of aimless…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-yates/life-as-we-know-it-is-fundamentally-unsatisfying-i-think-most-folks/) [Michael Yates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-yates/) > [Disability, in general, hasn't been included in the conversation about inclusivity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-winston-george/disability-in-general-hasn-t-been-included-in-the-conversation-about/) [Jason Winston George](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-winston-george/) > [“Women will be at least 50 percent of the communications community workforce … from executive suite to interns. Why? The “integrated” agency will be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yoram-wind/women-will-be-at-least-50-percent-of-the-communications-community/) Yoram Wind > [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 21,506 Communication quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communication/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“When words fail, then real language arrives, that rare guest.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Carolyn Chun" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolyn-chun/when-words-fail-then-real-language-arrives-that-rare-guest/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Communication" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolyn-chun/when-words-fail-then-real-language-arrives-that-rare-guest/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c3b/carolyn-chun-100355_communication_when-words-fail-then-real-language-arriv_1652808.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c3b/carolyn-chun-100355_communication_when-words-fail-then-real-language-arriv_1652808.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c3b/carolyn-chun-100355_communication_when-words-fail-then-real-language-arriv_1652808.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“When words fail, then real language arrives, that rare guest.” — Carolyn Chun", "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": "Carolyn Chun", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carolyn-chun/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“When words fail, then real language...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolyn-chun/when-words-fail-then-real-language-arrives-that-rare-guest/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolyn-chun/when-words-fail-then-real-language-arrives-that-rare-guest/#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 } } ] } ```