Language Quotes

5358 quotes by 3185 authors

Every language reflects the prejudices of the society in which it evolved. — Casey Miller
Prune what is turgid, elevate what is commonplace, arrange what is disorderly, introduce rhythm where the language is harsh, modify where it is too absolute. — Quintilian
The best fantasy is written in the language of dreams. It is alive as dreams are alive, more real than real ... for a moment… — George R. R. Martin
Writing, or at least good writing, is an outgrowth of that urge to use language to communicate complex ideas and experiences between people. And that's… — John Green
Words in prose ought to express the intended meaning; if they attract attention to themselves, it is a fault; in the very best styles you… — Samuel Taylor Coleridge
The chief virtue that language can have is clearness, and nothing detracts from it so much as the use of unfamiliar words. — Hippocrates
Political writing in our time consists almost entirely of prefabricated phrases bolted together like the pieces of a child's Meccano set. It is the unavoidable… — George Orwell
I think my prose reads as if English were my second language. By the time I get to the end of a paragraph, I'm dodging… — Lynn Abbey
In the most basic way, writers are defined not by the stories they tell, or their politics, or their gender, or their race, but by… — Donald E. Westlake
Acutely aware of the poverty of my means, language became obstacle. At every page I thought, 'That's not it.' So I began again with other… — Elie Wiesel
The truth of the matter is that about 99 percent of teaching is making the students feel interestedin the material. Then the other 1 percent… — Noam Chomsky
Must you write complete sentences each time, every time? Perish the thought. If your work consists only of fragments and floating clauses, the Grammar Police… — Stephen King
Purists behave as if there was a vintage year when language achieved a measure of excellence which we should all strive to maintain. In fact,… — Jean Aitchison
Language is more fashion than science, and matters of usage, spelling and pronunciation tend to wander around like hemlines. — Bill Bryson
English grammar is so complex and confusing for the one very simple reason that its rules and terminology are based on Latin - a language… — Bill Bryson
Those who sniff decay in every shift of sense or alteration of usage do the language no service. Too often for such people the notion… — Bill Bryson
The good writer, the great writer, has what I have called the three S's: the power to see, to sense, and to say. That is,… — Lawrence Clark Powell
The language of the street is always strong. — Ralph Waldo Emerson
One of the obligations of the writer is to say or sing all that he or she can, to deal with as much of the… — Denise Levertov
The use of language is all we have to pit against death and silence. — Joyce Carol Oates

Who Wrote These Language Quotes

3,185 authors contributed a total of 5,358 Language Quotes, led by these top contributors: