--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Falsehood is never better than truth…" description: "\"Falsehood is never better than truth, theft better than honesty, treachery better than loyalty, cowardice better than courage.\" — Harry Emerson Fosdick" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/194/harry-emerson-fosdick-3672_courage_falsehood-is-never-better-than-truth-the_2658812.png" --- # Falsehood is never better than truth, theft better than… ![“Falsehood is never better than truth, theft better than honesty, treachery better than loyalty, cowardice better than courage.” quote by Harry Emerson Fosdick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/194/harry-emerson-fosdick-3672_courage_falsehood-is-never-better-than-truth-the_2658812.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/194/harry-emerson-fosdick-3672_courage_falsehood-is-never-better-than-truth-the_2658812.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/194/harry-emerson-fosdick-3672_courage_falsehood-is-never-better-than-truth-the_2658812.png) > “Falsehood is never better than truth, theft better than honesty, treachery better than loyalty, cowardice better than courage.” [Harry Emerson Fosdick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-emerson-fosdick/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Falsehood, theft, treachery, and cowardice are inferior to truth, honesty, loyalty, and courage. **In simple terms:** Lies are worse than truth. Key Takeaway Uphold honesty and bravery. Themes ethics truth courage Mood serious inspirational Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - personal decisions - leadership - public policy - education Key Concepts moral hierarchy virtue ethics Questions to Reflect On - When is truth harder than a lie? - How do you practice courage daily? A Different Perspective Complex situations may blur moral lines. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Better Honesty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/better-honesty-2409994/) [Better Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/better-truth-381915/) [Courage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/courage/) [Cowardice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cowardice/) [Disinterested love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disinterested-love-47928/) [Exactness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/exactness/) [Falsehood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/falsehood/) [Falsehood Better](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/falsehood-better-2409992/) [Honesty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/honesty/) [Honesty Treachery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/honesty-treachery-2409993/) [Loyalty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/loyalty/) [Theft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theft/) [Treachery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/treachery/) [Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth/) ## Related quotes > [Granted the endless variations of moral customs, still the essential standards persist. As in a scientific laboratory, all else may change but the standards…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-emerson-fosdick/granted-the-endless-variations-of-moral-customs-still-the-essential/) [Harry Emerson Fosdick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-emerson-fosdick/) > [Even the most disinterested love is, after all, but a kind of bargain, in which self-love always proposes to be the gainer one wayor…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francois-de-la-rochefoucauld/even-the-most-disinterested-love-is-after-all-but-a-kind-of-bargain/) [Francois de La Rochefoucauld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-de-la-rochefoucauld/) > [“Almost all of our relationships begin and most of them continue as forms of mutual exploitation, a mental or physical barter, to be terminated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-h-auden-2/almost-all-of-our-relationships-begin-and-most-of-them-continue-as-2/) [W.H. Auden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-h-auden-2/) > [“ Agape is disinterested love. It is a love in which the individual seeks not his own good, but the good of his neighbor…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr-2/agape-is-disinterested-love-it-is-a-love-in-which-the-individual/) [Martin Luther King Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr-2/) > [Agape is disinterested love. . . . Agape does not begin by discriminating between worthy and unworthy people, or any qualities people possess. 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Irritations set into his shell. He does not like them. But when he cannot get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-emerson-fosdick/the-most-extraordinary-thing-about-the-oyster-is-this-irritations-set/) [Harry Emerson Fosdick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-emerson-fosdick/) > [The tragedy of war is that it uses man's best to do man's worst.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-emerson-fosdick/the-tragedy-of-war-is-that-it-uses-man-s-best-to-do-man-s-worst/) [Harry Emerson Fosdick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-emerson-fosdick/) > [No one can be wrong with man and right with God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-emerson-fosdick/no-one-can-be-wrong-with-man-and-right-with-god/) [Harry Emerson Fosdick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-emerson-fosdick/) > [No man need stay the way he is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-emerson-fosdick/no-man-need-stay-the-way-he-is/) [Harry Emerson Fosdick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-emerson-fosdick/) > [Preaching is personal counseling on a group basis.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-emerson-fosdick/preaching-is-personal-counseling-on-a-group-basis/) [Harry Emerson Fosdick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-emerson-fosdick/) > [Every year the inventions of science weave more inextricably the web that binds man to man, group to group, nation to nation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-emerson-fosdick/every-year-the-inventions-of-science-weave-more-inextricably-the-web/) [Harry Emerson Fosdick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-emerson-fosdick/) > [He who cannot rest, cannot work; he who cannot let go, cannot hold on; he who cannot find footing, cannot go forward.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-emerson-fosdick/he-who-cannot-rest-cannot-work-he-who-cannot-let-go-cannot-hold-on-he/) [Harry Emerson Fosdick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-emerson-fosdick/) > [It is not marriage that fails; it is people that fail. 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Picture yourself vividly as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-emerson-fosdick/hold-a-picture-of-yourself-long-and-steadily-enough-in-your-mind-s/) [Harry Emerson Fosdick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-emerson-fosdick/) [Explore all 123 Harry Emerson Fosdick quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-emerson-fosdick/) ## More Courage quotes > [The greatest act of courage is to be and to ownall of who you are—without apology, without excuses, without masks to cover the truth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/debbie-ford/the-greatest-act-of-courage-is-to-be-and-to-ownall-of-who-you-are/) [Debbie Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/debbie-ford/) > [“It takes tremendous courage, persistence, and perseverance to pursue your ultimate purpose.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/debasish-mridha/it-takes-tremendous-courage-persistence-and-perseverance-to-pursue/) [Debasish Mridha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/debasish-mridha/) > [“Yes, the issue was courage. 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Years from now, we will look back at this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-ingraham/certainly-these-are-not-easy-times-but-history-does-not-contain-very/) [Laura Ingraham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-ingraham/) > [Have the courage to go against the tide of current values that do not conform to the path of Jesus.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-francis/have-the-courage-to-go-against-the-tide-of-current-values-that-do-not/) [Pope Francis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-francis/) > [“There is nothing purer, braver, or more beautiful than the try.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristen-armstrong/there-is-nothing-purer-braver-or-more-beautiful-than-the-try/) [Kristen Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristen-armstrong/) > [“One theory on cannibals, of course, is that they eat parts of their slain enemies to benefit from that person's greatest assets - their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-powell/one-theory-on-cannibals-of-course-is-that-they-eat-parts-of-their/) [Julie Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-powell/) > [It is a tragedy that we live in a world where physical courage is so common, and moral courage is so rare.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claude-monet/it-is-a-tragedy-that-we-live-in-a-world-where-physical-courage-is-so/) [Claude Monet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claude-monet/) > [I have pictures with Morimoto where I'm all embarrassed and he's so serious, it took me 30 minutes to get up the courage to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcela-valladolid/i-have-pictures-with-morimoto-where-i-m-all-embarrassed-and-he-s-so/) [Marcela Valladolid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcela-valladolid/) [Browse all 14,559 Courage quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/courage/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Falsehood is never better than truth, theft better than honesty, treachery better than loyalty, cowardice better than courage.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Harry Emerson Fosdick" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-emerson-fosdick/falsehood-is-never-better-than-truth-theft-better-than-honesty/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Courage" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-emerson-fosdick/falsehood-is-never-better-than-truth-theft-better-than-honesty/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/194/harry-emerson-fosdick-3672_courage_falsehood-is-never-better-than-truth-the_2658812.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/194/harry-emerson-fosdick-3672_courage_falsehood-is-never-better-than-truth-the_2658812.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/194/harry-emerson-fosdick-3672_courage_falsehood-is-never-better-than-truth-the_2658812.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Falsehood is never better than truth, theft better than honesty, treachery better than loyalty, cowardice…” — Harry Emerson Fosdick", "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": "Harry Emerson Fosdick", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-emerson-fosdick/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Falsehood is never better than truth,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-emerson-fosdick/falsehood-is-never-better-than-truth-theft-better-than-honesty/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-emerson-fosdick/falsehood-is-never-better-than-truth-theft-better-than-honesty/#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 } } ] } ```