--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I boldly assert, in fact I think I know…" description: "\"I boldly assert, in fact I think I know, that a lot of friendships and connections absolutely depend upon a sort of shared language, or slang. Not nece..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e28/christopher-hitchens-117_absence_i-boldly-assert-in-fact-i-think-i-know-t_2014986.jpg" --- # I boldly assert, in fact I think I know, that a lot of… ![“I boldly assert, in fact I think I know, that a lot of friendships and connections absolutely depend upon a sort of shared language, or slang. Not necessarily designed to exclude others, this can establish a certain comity and, even after a long absence, re-establish it in a second.” quote by Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e28/christopher-hitchens-117_absence_i-boldly-assert-in-fact-i-think-i-know-t_2014986.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e28/christopher-hitchens-117_absence_i-boldly-assert-in-fact-i-think-i-know-t_2014986.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e28/christopher-hitchens-117_absence_i-boldly-assert-in-fact-i-think-i-know-t_2014986.jpg) > “I boldly assert, in fact I think I know, that a lot of friendships and connections absolutely depend upon a sort of shared language, or slang. Not necessarily designed to exclude others, this can establish a certain comity and, even after a long absence, re-establish it in a second.” [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Shared slang creates a sense of belonging and can quickly rebuild rapport after separation. **In simple terms:** Slang builds connection and restores friendships. Key Takeaway Use common language to strengthen ties. Themes communication friendship identity Mood reflective analytical Type observational social When to use this quote - reuniting with old friends - team building - online communities Key Concepts sociolinguistics group cohesion Questions to Reflect On - How does shared language affect trust? - When can slang become a barrier? A Different Perspective Slang may exclude outsiders unintentionally. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Absence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/absence/) [Absolutely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/absolutely/) [After](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/after/) [Assert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/assert/) [Boldly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/boldly/) [Certain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/certain/) [Connections](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/connections/) [Connections Absolutely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/connections-absolutely-3619399/) [Depend](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/depend/) [Designed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/designed/) [Establish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/establish/) [Even](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/even/) [Exclude](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/exclude/) [Fact](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fact/) [Friend](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/friend/) [Friendship](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/friendship/) [Friendships](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/friendships/) [Friendships Connections](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/friendships-connections-1739903/) [I think](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/i-think/) [In fact](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/in-fact/) [Know](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/know/) [Language](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/language/) [Long](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/long/) [Lot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lot/) [Lot Friendships](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lot-friendships-892975/) [Necessarily](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/necessarily/) [Others](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/others/) [Second](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/second/) [Shared](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shared/) [Shared Language](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shared-language-1626922/) [Slang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/slang/) [Sort](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sort/) [Think](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/think/) ## Related quotes > [“When it comes to relationships, friendships, or any connections, I think of life as a big beautiful puzzle. We are all unique beautiful pieces…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-it-comes-to-relationships-friendships-or-any-connections-i-think/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [A lot of it is the friendships made over the years...We've become friends. We've become a family.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-moore/a-lot-of-it-is-the-friendships-made-over-the-years-we-ve-become/) [Barbara Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-moore/) > [I pushed away a lot of friendships.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kaitlyn-bristowe/i-pushed-away-a-lot-of-friendships/) [Kaitlyn Bristowe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kaitlyn-bristowe/) > [Most of my close friends, growing up, were women - and even after I got married, I still maintained a lot of those friendships.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-gurland/most-of-my-close-friends-growing-up-were-women-and-even-after-i-got/) [Andrew Gurland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-gurland/) > [Because I have sixty years of being a professional composer, conductor, musician, whatever, and you develop a lot of friendships and you get involved…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gunther-schuller/because-i-have-sixty-years-of-being-a-professional-composer-conductor/) [Gunther Schuller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gunther-schuller/) > [“Language proficiency—either in a lingua franca, or shared language, or in a local language—does not guarantee high performance.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/language-proficiency-either-in-a-lingua-franca-or-shared-language-or/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [When you're around your family, and you have that history and that shared language, you say things you'd be embarrassed to hear quoted back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noah-baumbach/when-you-re-around-your-family-and-you-have-that-history-and-that/) [Noah Baumbach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noah-baumbach/) > [“What’s so poignant about this mismatch is that a winning campus-to-career alliance is within reach—if only the combatants could talk about their values, needs,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-anders/what-s-so-poignant-about-this-mismatch-is-that-a-winning-campus-to/) [George Anders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-anders/) > [To work our way towards a shared language once again, we must first learn how to discover patterns which are deep, and capable of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-alexander/to-work-our-way-towards-a-shared-language-once-again-we-must-first/) [Christopher Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-alexander/) > [Every actor you work with has a different method, same with the director. You have to figure out what your shared language is and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kerry-washington/every-actor-you-work-with-has-a-different-method-same-with-the/) [Kerry Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kerry-washington/) > [“Language brings with it an identity and a culture, or at least the perception of it. A shared language says “We’re the same.” A…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trevor-noah/language-brings-with-it-an-identity-and-a-culture-or-at-least-the/) [Trevor Noah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trevor-noah/) > [My position does not give me the liberty to exclude anything, but my mood tells me there will not be violence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vano-merabishvili/my-position-does-not-give-me-the-liberty-to-exclude-anything-but-my/) [Vano Merabishvili](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vano-merabishvili/) > [To be great, be whole; Exclude nothing. Be whole in everything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fernando-pessoa/to-be-great-be-whole-exclude-nothing-be-whole-in-everything/) [Fernando Pessoa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fernando-pessoa/) > [No matter how valuable you are and your ideas, fools will certainly play both of you down, so exclude yourselves from the inflammatory environs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bassey-johnson/no-matter-how-valuable-you-are-and-your-ideas-fools-will-certainly/) [Michael Bassey Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bassey-johnson/) > [The Conservatives must never give the impression we exclude any group of British citizens.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/damian-green/the-conservatives-must-never-give-the-impression-we-exclude-any-group/) [Damian Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/damian-green/) ## More by Christopher Hitchens > [“The spirit of our accurate and exact philosophy is outraged by conclusions that contradict each other so glaringly.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/the-spirit-of-our-accurate-and-exact-philosophy-is-outraged-by/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [“Many governments employ torture but this was the first time that the element of Saturnalia and pornography in the process had been made so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/many-governments-employ-torture-but-this-was-the-first-time-that-the/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [ It's \[Los Angeles\] mostly full of nonsense and delusion and egomania. They think they'll be young and beautiful forever, even though most of them… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/it-s-los-angeles-mostly-full-of-nonsense-and-delusion-and-egomania/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [To be against rationalization is not the same as to be opposed to reasoning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/to-be-against-rationalization-is-not-the-same-as-to-be-opposed-to/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [ \[Religion\] attacks us in our deepest integrity - the core of our self-respect. Religion says that we would not know right from wrong, we… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/religion-attacks-us-in-our-deepest-integrity-the-core-of-our-self/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [“In the very recent past, we have seen the Church of Rome befouled by its complicity with the unpardonable sin of child rape, or,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/in-the-very-recent-past-we-have-seen-the-church-of-rome-befouled-by/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [It's surprising to me how many of my friends send Christmas cards, or holiday cards, including my atheist and secular friends.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/it-s-surprising-to-me-how-many-of-my-friends-send-christmas-cards-or/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [Suppose there were groups of secularists at hospitals who went round the terminally ill and urged them to adopt atheism: 'Don't be a mug…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/suppose-there-were-groups-of-secularists-at-hospitals-who-went-round/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [There are, after all, atheists who say they wish the fable were true but are unable to suspend the requisite disbelief, or who have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/there-are-after-all-atheists-who-say-they-wish-the-fable-were-true/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [“It isn’t so long since a test of Anglican orthodoxy was applied to anyone seeking to study or teach at Oxford and Cambridge universities.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/it-isn-t-so-long-since-a-test-of-anglican-orthodoxy-was-applied-to/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [Gullibility and credulity are considered undesireable qualities in every department of human life - except religion ... 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Don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/it-s-much-worse-to-see-a-woman-drunk-than-a-man-i-don-t-know-quite/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [It's true that obscenity is a matter of taste and in the eye of the beholder.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/it-s-true-that-obscenity-is-a-matter-of-taste-and-in-the-eye-of-the/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [I worked out early on to give up things I couldn't do well at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/i-worked-out-early-on-to-give-up-things-i-couldn-t-do-well-at-all/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [Writing is what's important to me, and anything that helps me do that - or enhances and prolongs and deepens and sometimes intensifies argument…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/writing-is-what-s-important-to-me-and-anything-that-helps-me-do-that/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) [Explore all 1,241 Christopher Hitchens quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) ## More Absence quotes > [Distance sometimes endears friendship, and absence sweeteneth it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-howell/distance-sometimes-endears-friendship-and-absence-sweeteneth-it/) [James Howell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-howell/) > [The work, the work, the work. This is what the business is all about. This is the fun, the glory, the pleasure. It's the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-dusenberry/the-work-the-work-the-work-this-is-what-the-business-is-all-about/) [Phil Dusenberry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-dusenberry/) > [Total depravity means the entire absence of holiness, not the highest intensity of sin. A totally depraved man is not as bad as he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-greenough-thayer-shedd/total-depravity-means-the-entire-absence-of-holiness-not-the-highest/) [William Greenough Thayer Shedd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-greenough-thayer-shedd/) > [Local and state governments have outrun the federal government. The EPA has served notice that it will enact a rule requiring CO2 reductions by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/al-gore/local-and-state-governments-have-outrun-the-federal-government-the/) [Al Gore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/al-gore/) > [There, in the center of that silence was not eternity but the death of time and a loneliness so profound the word itself had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/there-in-the-center-of-that-silence-was-not-eternity-but-the-death-of/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [Of all the bewildering things about a new country, the absence of human landmarks is one of the most depressing and disheartening.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/of-all-the-bewildering-things-about-a-new-country-the-absence-of/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > [Young men have strong passions and tend to gratify them indiscriminately. Of the bodily desires, it is the sexual by which they are most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristotle/young-men-have-strong-passions-and-tend-to-gratify-them/) [Aristotle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristotle/) > [It is suggested that in domestic violence at least the presence or absence of a firearm, or of any other type of weapon, is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-greenwood/it-is-suggested-that-in-domestic-violence-at-least-the-presence-or/) [Colin Greenwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-greenwood/) > [The absence of God in most spheres of life is perceived to be normal, and even Christians feel it as normal - which is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-piper/the-absence-of-god-in-most-spheres-of-life-is-perceived-to-be-normal/) [John Piper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-piper/) > [Every person needs to take one day away. A day in which one consciously separates the past from the future. 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Ambedkar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-r-ambedkar/) [Browse all 2,057 Absence quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/absence/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I boldly assert, in fact I think I know, that a lot of friendships and connections absolutely depend upon a sort of shared language, or slang. 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