--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I believe that we do not know anything…" description: "\"I believe that we do not know anything for certain, but everything probably.\" — Christiaan Huygens" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b4a/christiaan-huygens-25295_believe_i-believe-that-we-do-not-know-anything-f_88133.jpg" --- # I believe that we do not know anything for certain, but… ![“I believe that we do not know anything for certain, but everything probably.” quote by Christiaan Huygens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b4a/christiaan-huygens-25295_believe_i-believe-that-we-do-not-know-anything-f_88133.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b4a/christiaan-huygens-25295_believe_i-believe-that-we-do-not-know-anything-f_88133.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b4a/christiaan-huygens-25295_believe_i-believe-that-we-do-not-know-anything-f_88133.jpg) > “I believe that we do not know anything for certain, but everything probably.” [Christiaan Huygens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christiaan-huygens/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. We can never claim absolute certainty, yet we can hold probabilistic beliefs about the world. **In simple terms:** Certainty is unattainable, probability guides us. Key Takeaway Knowledge is provisional. Themes epistemology uncertainty probability science philosophy Mood analytical curious Type scientific didactic When to use this quote - scientific research - risk assessment - decision making Key Concepts skepticism rationalism Practical Applications - modeling uncertainty - teaching critical thinking Questions to Reflect On - How does probabilistic thinking affect daily choices? - Can we act responsibly without certainty? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Certainty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/certainty/) [Doubt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doubt/) [Knowledge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knowledge/) [Probability](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/probability/) [Skepticism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/skepticism/) [Understanding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/understanding/) ## Related quotes > [“What luck has gave you will probably leave you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amit-kalantri/what-luck-has-gave-you-will-probably-leave-you/) [Amit Kalantri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amit-kalantri/) > [“The fact that we can neither prove nor disprove the existence of something does not put existence and non-existence on an even footing.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/the-fact-that-we-can-neither-prove-nor-disprove-the-existence-of/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [I know for certain the one you love. I'm through with flirtin', it's just you I'm thinkin' of](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fats-waller/i-know-for-certain-the-one-you-love-i-m-through-with-flirtin-it-s/) [Fats Waller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fats-waller/) > [I know that I am not a great beauty, and I know that I am a certain taste.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suranne-jones/i-know-that-i-am-not-a-great-beauty-and-i-know-that-i-am-a-certain/) [Suranne Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suranne-jones/) > [“There are things we know for certain." "Oh? Name one." "The sun's going to come up tomorrow morning." "Why?" "It always has." "Does that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-eddings/there-are-things-we-know-for-certain-oh-name-one-the-sun-s-going-to/) [David Eddings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-eddings/) > [As you see, it is not that I don't know my own mind, I know it very well but only up to a certain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/as-you-see-it-is-not-that-i-don-t-know-my-own-mind-i-know-it-very/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I know certain actors who have done very well. They are still down to earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-weston-jones/i-know-certain-actors-who-have-done-very-well-they-are-still-down-to/) [Tom Weston-Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-weston-jones/) > [You can be an optimist, but you can also not be okay, you know, at certain points in time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cynthia-germanotta/you-can-be-an-optimist-but-you-can-also-not-be-okay-you-know-at/) [Cynthia Germanotta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cynthia-germanotta/) > [“Wouldn’t it be fine if we could prove things with our mind, and know for certain that things are always in their place. I’d…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/wouldn-t-it-be-fine-if-we-could-prove-things-with-our-mind-and-know/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [“it occurs to me that I must not know altogether what I am, either, and that others know certain things about me better than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lydia-davis/it-occurs-to-me-that-i-must-not-know-altogether-what-i-am-either-and/) [Lydia Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lydia-davis/) > [Know for certain that there is no power in the universe to injure us unless we first injure ourselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/swami-vivekananda/know-for-certain-that-there-is-no-power-in-the-universe-to-injure-us/) [Swami Vivekananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/swami-vivekananda/) > [“How do you ever know for certain that you are doing the right thing?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-doerr/how-do-you-ever-know-for-certain-that-you-are-doing-the-right-thing/) [Anthony Doerr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-doerr/) > [While some of us may know than others about certain things, it is the thinnest slice of all that is, or could be known.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-osgood/while-some-of-us-may-know-than-others-about-certain-things-it-is-the/) [Charles Osgood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-osgood/) > [I think it's better to not know certain things. It gives the world an extra bit of mystery, which is important to us as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-think-it-s-better-to-not-know-certain-things-it-gives-the-world-an/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I know certain truths about life.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dana-reinhardt/i-know-certain-truths-about-life/) [Dana Reinhardt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dana-reinhardt/) ## More by Christiaan Huygens > [There are many degrees of Probable, some nearer Truth than others, in the determining of which lies the chief exercise of our Judgment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christiaan-huygens/there-are-many-degrees-of-probable-some-nearer-truth-than-others-in/) [Christiaan Huygens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christiaan-huygens/) > [One may conceive light to spread successively, by spherical waves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christiaan-huygens/one-may-conceive-light-to-spread-successively-by-spherical-waves/) [Christiaan Huygens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christiaan-huygens/) > [I do not mind at all that Newton is not a Cartesian provided he does not offer us suppositions like that of attraction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christiaan-huygens/i-do-not-mind-at-all-that-newton-is-not-a-cartesian-provided-he-does/) [Christiaan Huygens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christiaan-huygens/) > [Here we may mount from this dull Earth, and viewing it from on high, consider whether Nature has laid out all her Cost and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christiaan-huygens/here-we-may-mount-from-this-dull-earth-and-viewing-it-from-on-high/) [Christiaan Huygens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christiaan-huygens/) > [It's evident God had no design to make a particular Enumeration in the Holy Scriptures, of all the Works of his Creation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christiaan-huygens/it-s-evident-god-had-no-design-to-make-a-particular-enumeration-in/) [Christiaan Huygens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christiaan-huygens/) > [It is surrounded by a thin flat ring, inclined to the ecliptic, and nowhere touches the body of the planet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christiaan-huygens/it-is-surrounded-by-a-thin-flat-ring-inclined-to-the-ecliptic-and/) [Christiaan Huygens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christiaan-huygens/) > [How vast those Orbs must be, and how inconsiderable this Earth, the Theatre upon which all our mighty Designs, all our Navigations, and all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christiaan-huygens/how-vast-those-orbs-must-be-and-how-inconsiderable-this-earth-the/) [Christiaan Huygens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christiaan-huygens/) > [“We may mount from this dull Earth; and viewing it from on high, consider whether Nature has laid out all her cost and finery…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christiaan-huygens/we-may-mount-from-this-dull-earth-and-viewing-it-from-on-high/) [Christiaan Huygens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christiaan-huygens/) > [These Gentlemen must be told, that they take too much upon themselves when they pretend to appoint how far and no farther Men shall…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christiaan-huygens/these-gentlemen-must-be-told-that-they-take-too-much-upon-themselves/) [Christiaan Huygens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christiaan-huygens/) > [What a wonderful and amazing Scheme have we here of the magnificent Vastness of the Universe! So many Suns, so many Earths, and every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christiaan-huygens/what-a-wonderful-and-amazing-scheme-have-we-here-of-the-magnificent/) [Christiaan Huygens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christiaan-huygens/) > [I esteem his understanding and subtlety highly, but I consider that they have been put to ill use in the greater part of his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christiaan-huygens/i-esteem-his-understanding-and-subtlety-highly-but-i-consider-that/) [Christiaan Huygens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christiaan-huygens/) > [“I esteem his understanding and subtlety highly, but I consider that they have been put to ill use in the greater part of his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christiaan-huygens/i-esteem-his-understanding-and-subtlety-highly-but-i-consider-that-2/) [Christiaan Huygens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christiaan-huygens/) > [I had not thought of this regular decrease of gravity, namely that it is as the inverse square of the distance; this is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christiaan-huygens/i-had-not-thought-of-this-regular-decrease-of-gravity-namely-that-it/) [Christiaan Huygens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christiaan-huygens/) > [...great difficulties are felt at first and these cannot be overcome except by starting from experiments .. and then be conceiving certain hypotheses ...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christiaan-huygens/great-difficulties-are-felt-at-first-and-these-cannot-be-overcome/) [Christiaan Huygens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christiaan-huygens/) > [We shall be less apt to admire what this World calls Great, shall nobly despise those Trifles the generality of Men set their Affections…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christiaan-huygens/we-shall-be-less-apt-to-admire-what-this-world-calls-great-shall/) [Christiaan Huygens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christiaan-huygens/) [Explore all 23 Christiaan Huygens quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christiaan-huygens/) ## More Believe quotes > [I actually think acting is a form of self-hypnosis. You have to be hyper, hyper aware of what's going on around you. You have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julianne-moore/i-actually-think-acting-is-a-form-of-self-hypnosis-you-have-to-be/) [Julianne Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julianne-moore/) > [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 truth seems to be that propaganda on its own cannot force its way into unwilling minds; neither can it inculcate something wholly new;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/the-truth-seems-to-be-that-propaganda-on-its-own-cannot-force-its-way/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [Resist discouragement by speaking His Word over your future. Keep standing. Keep hoping; keep believing because He is working behind the scenes. He's going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-osteen/resist-discouragement-by-speaking-his-word-over-your-future-keep/) [Joel Osteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-osteen/) > [I can't believe that I'm sitting in meetings with Steven Spielberg, Tom Hanks, and Annette Bening. I want to take on that responsibility to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ross-williams/i-can-t-believe-that-i-m-sitting-in-meetings-with-steven-spielberg/) [Roger Ross Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ross-williams/) > [There is no such word as item girl in the dictionary. People have created this word and I don't believe that I am an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shefali-zariwala/there-is-no-such-word-as-item-girl-in-the-dictionary-people-have/) [Shefali Zariwala](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shefali-zariwala/) > [I understand that it's the music that keeps me alive... That's my lifeblood. And to give that up for, like, the TV, the cars,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-springsteen/i-understand-that-it-s-the-music-that-keeps-me-alive-that-s-my/) [Bruce Springsteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-springsteen/) > [I don't really like too much credit. I know nobody's going to believe this, but I'd rather be able to score goals and nobody…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bradley-wright-phillips/i-don-t-really-like-too-much-credit-i-know-nobody-s-going-to-believe/) [Bradley Wright-Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bradley-wright-phillips/) > [“What I have a problem with is not so much religion or god, but faith. When you say you believe something in your heart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penn-jillette/what-i-have-a-problem-with-is-not-so-much-religion-or-god-but-faith/) [Penn Jillette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penn-jillette/) > [Bush reiterated his stand to conservatives opposing his decision on stem cell research. He said today he believes life begins at conception and ends…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-leno/bush-reiterated-his-stand-to-conservatives-opposing-his-decision-on/) [Jay Leno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-leno/) > [Never underestimate the power of the human mind to believe what it wants to believe, no matter the conflicting evidence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-herbert/never-underestimate-the-power-of-the-human-mind-to-believe-what-it/) [Brian Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-herbert/) > [To believe in love, to be ready to give up anything for it, to be willing to risk your life for it, is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-dicaprio/to-believe-in-love-to-be-ready-to-give-up-anything-for-it-to-be/) [Leonardo DiCaprio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-dicaprio/) > [That's why I don't generally talk about endorsements because I don't believe we have to tell people who to vote for.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-iii/that-s-why-i-don-t-generally-talk-about-endorsements-because-i-don-t/) [Martin Luther King III](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-iii/) > [Mankind have been slow to believe that order reigns in the universe-that the world is a cosmos and a chaos.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-a-garfield/mankind-have-been-slow-to-believe-that-order-reigns-in-the-universe/) [James A. Garfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-a-garfield/) > [We instantly believe everything we think. Isn't that insane? It's good for us to explore the depravity of our minds, so we know we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/krishna-das/we-instantly-believe-everything-we-think-isn-t-that-insane-it-s-good/) [Krishna Das](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/krishna-das/) Browse all 47,704 Believe quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I believe that we do not know anything for certain, but everything probably.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Christiaan Huygens" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christiaan-huygens/i-believe-that-we-do-not-know-anything-for-certain-but-everything/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Believe" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christiaan-huygens/i-believe-that-we-do-not-know-anything-for-certain-but-everything/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b4a/christiaan-huygens-25295_believe_i-believe-that-we-do-not-know-anything-f_88133.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b4a/christiaan-huygens-25295_believe_i-believe-that-we-do-not-know-anything-f_88133.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b4a/christiaan-huygens-25295_believe_i-believe-that-we-do-not-know-anything-f_88133.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I believe that we do not know anything for certain, but everything probably.” — Christiaan Huygens", "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": "Christiaan Huygens", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christiaan-huygens/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I believe that we do not...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christiaan-huygens/i-believe-that-we-do-not-know-anything-for-certain-but-everything/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christiaan-huygens/i-believe-that-we-do-not-know-anything-for-certain-but-everything/#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 } } ] } ```