--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: An amoeba is a formless thing which takes…" description: "\"An amoeba is a formless thing which takes many shapes. It moves by thrusting out an arm, and flowing into the arm. It multiplies by pulling itself in t..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/367/charlton-laird-34745_amoeba_an-amoeba-is-a-formless-thing-which-take_701508.jpg" --- # An amoeba is a formless thing which takes many shapes. It… ![“An amoeba is a formless thing which takes many shapes. It moves by thrusting out an arm, and flowing into the arm. It multiplies by pulling itself in two, without permanently diminishing the original. So with words. A meaning may develop on the periphery of the body of meanings associated with a…” quote by Charlton Laird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/367/charlton-laird-34745_amoeba_an-amoeba-is-a-formless-thing-which-take_701508.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/367/charlton-laird-34745_amoeba_an-amoeba-is-a-formless-thing-which-take_701508.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/367/charlton-laird-34745_amoeba_an-amoeba-is-a-formless-thing-which-take_701508.jpg) > “An amoeba is a formless thing which takes many shapes. It moves by thrusting out an arm, and flowing into the arm. It multiplies by pulling itself in two, without permanently diminishing the original. So with words. A meaning may develop on the periphery of the body of meanings associated with a word, and shortly this tentacle-meaning has grown to such proportions that it dwarfs all other meanings.” [Charlton Laird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlton-laird/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Words can expand like an amoeba, forming new extensions that can dominate original meanings. **In simple terms:** Words grow and can eclipse original meanings. Key Takeaway Watch how new meanings reshape language. Themes language meaning evolution Mood reflective analytical Type philosophical observational When to use this quote - writing - teaching - editing - branding Key Concepts semantics metaphor growth Questions to Reflect On - How do you ensure core meaning stays clear? - When does a new meaning become dominant? A Different Perspective New meanings may obscure original intent. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Amoeba](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/amoeba/) [Body](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/body/) [Creativity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creativity/) [Language](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/language/) [Shapes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shapes/) ## Related quotes > [“She wondered, ever so hopefully, if among these men she would find her holy grail – what she'd been saving herself for from the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cari-silverwood/she-wondered-ever-so-hopefully-if-among-these-men-she-would-find-her/) [Cari Silverwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cari-silverwood/) > [“Naif felt his tentacle caress her again, This time, though, he was holding something as well. It was rough hessian and the smell from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marianne-de-pierres/naif-felt-his-tentacle-caress-her-again-this-time-though-he-was/) [Marianne de Pierres](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marianne-de-pierres/) > [“I would offer congratulations were it not for this tentacle gripping my leg.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-vance/i-would-offer-congratulations-were-it-not-for-this-tentacle-gripping/) [Jack Vance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-vance/) > [I'm absolutely an amoeba. It's my survival value.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/van-heflin/i-m-absolutely-an-amoeba-it-s-my-survival-value/) [Van Heflin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/van-heflin/) > [Not all living creatures die. An amoeba, for example, need never die; it need not even, like certain generals, fade away. It just divides…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-wald/not-all-living-creatures-die-an-amoeba-for-example-need-never-die-it/) [George Wald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-wald/) > [As an analogy one can imagine an intelligent amoeba with a good memory. As time progresses the amoeba is constantly splitting, each time the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-everett-iii/as-an-analogy-one-can-imagine-an-intelligent-amoeba-with-a-good/) Hugh Everett III > [Man in his madness doesn't realize that God has made him from amoeba to this stage for some purpose. There is a big purpose…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nirmala-srivastava/man-in-his-madness-doesn-t-realize-that-god-has-made-him-from-amoeba/) [Nirmala Srivastava](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nirmala-srivastava/) > [We can choose, you know, we ain't no amoeba.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bonnie-raitt/we-can-choose-you-know-we-ain-t-no-amoeba/) [Bonnie Raitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonnie-raitt/) > [Life began on this planet when the first amoeba split. Mankind will still be seeking God, not accepting that God is a spirit; can't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phyllis-diller/life-began-on-this-planet-when-the-first-amoeba-split-mankind-will/) [Phyllis Diller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phyllis-diller/) > [Pope John XXIII was an amoeba of goodness in a sea of waste, mistakenly believing that the Holy See could or would really change…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madalyn-murray-o-hair/pope-john-xxiii-was-an-amoeba-of-goodness-in-a-sea-of-waste/) [Madalyn Murray O'Hair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madalyn-murray-o-hair/) > [A process which led from the amoeba to man appeared to the philosophers to be obviously a progress though whether the amoeba would agree…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/a-process-which-led-from-the-amoeba-to-man-appeared-to-the/) [Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/) > [The Amoeba?" she asked Aiden. "The gang," he said, tossing his hand to indicate all around. "My people. A large amorphous mass that keeps…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annette-curtis-klause/the-amoeba-she-asked-aiden-the-gang-he-said-tossing-his-hand-to/) [Annette Curtis Klause](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annette-curtis-klause/) > [The difference between the amoeba and Einstein is that, although both make use of the method of trial and error elimination, the amoeba dislikes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-popper/the-difference-between-the-amoeba-and-einstein-is-that-although-both/) [Karl Popper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-popper/) > ["Ask, and it is given" means that whether you are a full blossoming genius human, or whether you are the one-celled amoeba in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-hicks/ask-and-it-is-given-means-that-whether-you-are-a-full-blossoming/) [Esther Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-hicks/) > [“Amoeba ass is so hot.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tao-lin/amoeba-ass-is-so-hot/) [Tao Lin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tao-lin/) ## More by Charlton Laird > [Babies and language are the essential ingredients of civilization, and speakers of language no more know where it came from than babies know where…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlton-laird/babies-and-language-are-the-essential-ingredients-of-civilization-and/) [Charlton Laird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlton-laird/) > [Quite naturally, scholars assumed that Latin grammar was not merely Latin grammar, but that it was grammar itself. They borrowed it and made the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlton-laird/quite-naturally-scholars-assumed-that-latin-grammar-was-not-merely/) [Charlton Laird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlton-laird/) > [The great arbiters of language are the women who speak it in the presence of children... What the women pass on to the next…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlton-laird/the-great-arbiters-of-language-are-the-women-who-speak-it-in-the/) [Charlton Laird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlton-laird/) > [You and I who read and write books have very little effect upon language. We may think about it, write about it, and read…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlton-laird/you-and-i-who-read-and-write-books-have-very-little-effect-upon/) [Charlton Laird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlton-laird/) > [Jazz was formerly a crude term for indulging in an action which in polite society is referred to, if at all, only with such…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlton-laird/jazz-was-formerly-a-crude-term-for-indulging-in-an-action-which-in/) [Charlton Laird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlton-laird/) > [Civilization could not exist until there was written language, because without written language no generation could bequeath to succeeding generations anything but its simpler…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlton-laird/civilization-could-not-exist-until-there-was-written-language-because/) [Charlton Laird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlton-laird/) > [Amoebas, once they have themselves well pulled in two, go their ways-they practice divorce, but no remarriage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlton-laird/amoebas-once-they-have-themselves-well-pulled-in-two-go-their-ways/) [Charlton Laird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlton-laird/) > [Language is a living thing. It must survive in men's minds and on their tongues if it survives at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlton-laird/language-is-a-living-thing-it-must-survive-in-men-s-minds-and-on/) [Charlton Laird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlton-laird/) > [ The truth seems to be that they \[teachers of grammar\] were victims of a mighty hoax, one of those true belly-rumbling impostures which a… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlton-laird/the-truth-seems-to-be-that-they-teachers-of-grammar-were-victims-of-a/) [Charlton Laird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlton-laird/) > [Man can be defined, if one wishes, as a languag-ized mammal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlton-laird/man-can-be-defined-if-one-wishes-as-a-languag-ized-mammal/) [Charlton Laird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlton-laird/) > [Grammar is not a set of rules; it is something inherent in the language, and language cannot exist without it. It can be discovered,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlton-laird/grammar-is-not-a-set-of-rules-it-is-something-inherent-in-the/) [Charlton Laird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlton-laird/) > [If language is intimately related to being human, then when we study language we are, to a remarkable degree, studying human nature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlton-laird/if-language-is-intimately-related-to-being-human-then-when-we-study/) [Charlton Laird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlton-laird/) > [“Most people can swim a narrow river. Water is an alien element, but with labor we can force ourselves through it. A good swimmer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlton-laird/most-people-can-swim-a-narrow-river-water-is-an-alien-element-but/) [Charlton Laird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlton-laird/) [Explore all 14 Charlton Laird quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlton-laird/) ## More Amoeba quotes > [“Amoeba ass is so hot.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tao-lin/amoeba-ass-is-so-hot/) [Tao Lin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tao-lin/) > ["Ask, and it is given" means that whether you are a full blossoming genius human, or whether you are the one-celled amoeba in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-hicks/ask-and-it-is-given-means-that-whether-you-are-a-full-blossoming/) [Esther Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-hicks/) > [The difference between the amoeba and Einstein is that, although both make use of the method of trial and error elimination, the amoeba dislikes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-popper/the-difference-between-the-amoeba-and-einstein-is-that-although-both/) [Karl Popper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-popper/) > [The Amoeba?" she asked Aiden. "The gang," he said, tossing his hand to indicate all around. "My people. A large amorphous mass that keeps…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annette-curtis-klause/the-amoeba-she-asked-aiden-the-gang-he-said-tossing-his-hand-to/) [Annette Curtis Klause](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annette-curtis-klause/) > [A process which led from the amoeba to man appeared to the philosophers to be obviously a progress though whether the amoeba would agree…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/a-process-which-led-from-the-amoeba-to-man-appeared-to-the/) [Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/) > [Pope John XXIII was an amoeba of goodness in a sea of waste, mistakenly believing that the Holy See could or would really change…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madalyn-murray-o-hair/pope-john-xxiii-was-an-amoeba-of-goodness-in-a-sea-of-waste/) [Madalyn Murray O'Hair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madalyn-murray-o-hair/) > [Life began on this planet when the first amoeba split. Mankind will still be seeking God, not accepting that God is a spirit; can't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phyllis-diller/life-began-on-this-planet-when-the-first-amoeba-split-mankind-will/) [Phyllis Diller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phyllis-diller/) > [We can choose, you know, we ain't no amoeba.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bonnie-raitt/we-can-choose-you-know-we-ain-t-no-amoeba/) [Bonnie Raitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonnie-raitt/) > [Man in his madness doesn't realize that God has made him from amoeba to this stage for some purpose. There is a big purpose…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nirmala-srivastava/man-in-his-madness-doesn-t-realize-that-god-has-made-him-from-amoeba/) [Nirmala Srivastava](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nirmala-srivastava/) > [As an analogy one can imagine an intelligent amoeba with a good memory. As time progresses the amoeba is constantly splitting, each time the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-everett-iii/as-an-analogy-one-can-imagine-an-intelligent-amoeba-with-a-good/) Hugh Everett III > [Not all living creatures die. An amoeba, for example, need never die; it need not even, like certain generals, fade away. It just divides…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-wald/not-all-living-creatures-die-an-amoeba-for-example-need-never-die-it/) [George Wald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-wald/) > [I'm absolutely an amoeba. It's my survival value.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/van-heflin/i-m-absolutely-an-amoeba-it-s-my-survival-value/) [Van Heflin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/van-heflin/) > [You know the theory of cell irritability?. If you take an amoeba cell and poke it a thousand times, it will change and then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-murray/you-know-the-theory-of-cell-irritability-if-you-take-an-amoeba-cell/) [Bill Murray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-murray/) > [Amoeba has her picture in the book, Proud Protozoon!-Yet beware of pride, All she can do is fatten and divide; She cannot even read,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-huxley/amoeba-has-her-picture-in-the-book-proud-protozoon-yet-beware-of/) [Julian Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-huxley/) > [One day while studying a Yeats poem I decided to write poetry the rest of my life. I recognized that a single short poem…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-bly/one-day-while-studying-a-yeats-poem-i-decided-to-write-poetry-the/) [Robert Bly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-bly/) [Browse all 17 Amoeba quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/amoeba/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "An amoeba is a formless thing which takes many shapes. It moves by thrusting out an arm, and flowing into the arm. It multiplies by pulling itself in two, without permanently diminishing the original. So with words. 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