--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Usually the modest person passes for…" description: "\"Usually the modest person passes for someone reserved, the silent for a sullen person\" — Horace" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/80a/horace-172_humility_usually-the-modest-person-passes-for-som_2773025.jpg" --- # Usually the modest person passes for someone reserved, the… ![“Usually the modest person passes for someone reserved, the silent for a sullen person” quote by Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/80a/horace-172_humility_usually-the-modest-person-passes-for-som_2773025.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/80a/horace-172_humility_usually-the-modest-person-passes-for-som_2773025.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/80a/horace-172_humility_usually-the-modest-person-passes-for-som_2773025.jpg) > “Usually the modest person passes for someone reserved, the silent for a sullen person” [Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Observes that modesty can be mistaken for reservation, and silence for sullenness, highlighting misinterpretations of demeanor. **In simple terms:** People often misread modest or silent behavior. Key Takeaway Clarify intentions behind quietness. Themes communication perception personality Mood thoughtful observant Type philosophical reflective When to use this quote - team meetings - first impressions - leadership contexts Key Concepts social interaction psychology Questions to Reflect On - How can you convey confidence while being modest? - What cues reveal true feelings behind silence? A Different Perspective Cultural norms affect interpretation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Humility](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humility/) [Modesty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/modesty/) [Silence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/silence/) ## Related quotes > [“You can be the most talented, the most intelligent or the most successful man in the world, but if you're not a modest person,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/you-can-be-the-most-talented-the-most-intelligent-or-the-most/) [Mehmet Murat ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [I'm much too modest a person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-muggeridge/i-m-much-too-modest-a-person/) [Malcolm Muggeridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-muggeridge/) > [I'm not too modest of a person. I've got a pretty blue sense of humor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-monaghan/i-m-not-too-modest-of-a-person-i-ve-got-a-pretty-blue-sense-of-humor/) [Michelle Monaghan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-monaghan/) > [“Modesty is a learned adaptation. It’s stuck on like decals. As soon as life slams a modest person against the wall, that modesty will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/modesty-is-a-learned-adaptation-it-s-stuck-on-like-decals-as-soon-as/) [Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/) > [I'm a very, very modest person and with limited abilities. I do have the wish to succeed in anything I undertake, and that does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-hillary/i-m-a-very-very-modest-person-and-with-limited-abilities-i-do-have/) [Edmund Hillary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-hillary/) > [A modest person seldom fails to gain the goodwill of those he converses with, because nobody envies a man who does not appear to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-steele/a-modest-person-seldom-fails-to-gain-the-goodwill-of-those-he/) [Richard Steele](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-steele/) > [I'm a very modest person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/drew-brees/i-m-a-very-modest-person/) [Drew Brees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/drew-brees/) > [I'm a very modest person. But I'm also extremely confident. And if you put me in the situation or in the moment, I'm gonna…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/drew-brees/i-m-a-very-modest-person-but-i-m-also-extremely-confident-and-if-you/) [Drew Brees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/drew-brees/) > [The modest person is usually admired, if people ever hear of them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-w-howe/the-modest-person-is-usually-admired-if-people-ever-hear-of-them/) [E. W. Howe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-w-howe/) > [Modesty is a learned affectation. And as soon as life slams the modest person against the wall, that modesty drops.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/modesty-is-a-learned-affectation-and-as-soon-as-life-slams-the-modest/) [Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/) > [ What would it mean in practice to eliminate all the 'negative people' from one's life \[as demanded by motivational speaker J.P. Maroney\]? It might… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-ehrenreich/what-would-it-mean-in-practice-to-eliminate-all-the-negative-people/) [Barbara Ehrenreich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-ehrenreich/) > [And by his smile, I knew that sullen hall, By his dead smile I knew we stood in Hell.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilfred-owen/and-by-his-smile-i-knew-that-sullen-hall-by-his-dead-smile-i-knew-we/) [Wilfred Owen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilfred-owen/) > [No person who has not spent a period of his life in those 'stark and sullen solitudes that sentinel the Pole' will understand fully…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-shackleton/no-person-who-has-not-spent-a-period-of-his-life-in-those-stark-and/) [Ernest Shackleton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-shackleton/) > [Britannia's shame! There took her gloomy flight, On wing impetuous, a black sullen soul . Less base the fear of death than fear of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-young/britannia-s-shame-there-took-her-gloomy-flight-on-wing-impetuous-a/) [Edward Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-young/) > [“I doubt taking in a sullen, bitter, teenage girl with more issues than National Geographic is at the center of the vision board for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katja-millay/i-doubt-taking-in-a-sullen-bitter-teenage-girl-with-more-issues-than/) [Katja Millay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katja-millay/) ## More by Horace > [Strange - is it not? That of the myriads who Before us passed the door of Darkness through, Not one returns to tell us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/strange-is-it-not-that-of-the-myriads-who-before-us-passed-the-door/) [Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/) > [“Finxerunt animi, raro et perpauca loquentis. (To action little, less to words inclinded.)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/finxerunt-animi-raro-et-perpauca-loquentis-to-action-little-less-to/) [Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/) > [No verse can give pleasure for long, nor last, that is written by drinkers of water.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/no-verse-can-give-pleasure-for-long-nor-last-that-is-written-by/) [Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/) > [Fate with impartial hand turns out the doom of high and low; her capacious urn is constantly shaking the names of all mankind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/fate-with-impartial-hand-turns-out-the-doom-of-high-and-low-her/) [Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/) > [A word, once sent abroad, flies irrevocably.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/a-word-once-sent-abroad-flies-irrevocably/) [Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/) > [“Natales grate numeras? (Do you count your birthdays with gratitude?)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/natales-grate-numeras-do-you-count-your-birthdays-with-gratitude/) [Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/) > [ In a moment comes either death or joyful victory. \[Lat., Horae Momento cita mors venit aut victoria laeta.\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/in-a-moment-comes-either-death-or-joyful-victory-lat-horae-momento/) [Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/) > [Dulce et decorum est pro patria mori - It is a sweet and becoming thing to die for ones country.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/dulce-et-decorum-est-pro-patria-mori-it-is-a-sweet-and-becoming-thing/) [Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/) > [ Neither men, nor gods, nor booksellers' shelves permit ordinary poets to exist. \[Lat., Mediocribus esse poetis Non homines, non di, non concessere columnae.\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/neither-men-nor-gods-nor-booksellers-shelves-permit-ordinary-poets-to/) [Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/) > [Don't yield to that alluring witch, laziness, or else be prepared to surrender all that you have won in your better moments.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/don-t-yield-to-that-alluring-witch-laziness-or-else-be-prepared-to/) [Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/) > [Avoid inquisitive persons, for they are sure to be gossips, their ears are open to hear, but they will not keep what is entrusted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/avoid-inquisitive-persons-for-they-are-sure-to-be-gossips-their-ears/) [Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/) > [“You may drive out Nature with a pitchfork, yet she still will hurry back.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/you-may-drive-out-nature-with-a-pitchfork-yet-she-still-will-hurry/) [Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/) > [There is a proper measure in all things, certain limits beyond which and short of which right is not to be found. Who so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/there-is-a-proper-measure-in-all-things-certain-limits-beyond-which/) [Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/) > [Never despair while under the guidance and auspices of Teucer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/never-despair-while-under-the-guidance-and-auspices-of-teucer/) [Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/) > [Alas, Postumus, the fleeting years slip by, nor will piety give any stay to wrinkles and pressing old age and untamable death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/alas-postumus-the-fleeting-years-slip-by-nor-will-piety-give-any-stay/) [Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/) [Explore all 1,000 Horace quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/) ## More Humility quotes > [You just have to stay humble.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lamar-jackson/you-just-have-to-stay-humble/) [Lamar Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lamar-jackson/) > [Everyone will admire you when you do well. What a horrible thing to do to someone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/everyone-will-admire-you-when-you-do-well-what-a-horrible-thing-to-do/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [It's a great lesson in modesty that you realize you're illiterate in a field that you think you're an expert in.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wim-wenders/it-s-a-great-lesson-in-modesty-that-you-realize-you-re-illiterate-in/) [Wim Wenders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wim-wenders/) > [The more holy, the more humble.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-spurgeon/the-more-holy-the-more-humble/) [Charles Spurgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-spurgeon/) > [“Prayer of an Anonymous Abbess: Lord, thou knowest better than myself that I am growing older and will soon be old. Keep me from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/prayer-of-an-anonymous-abbess-lord-thou-knowest-better-than-myself/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“But, like all indulgences that are valued not just for their product but for their process, the sento will never entirely disappear. For in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-eisler/but-like-all-indulgences-that-are-valued-not-just-for-their-product/) [Barry Eisler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-eisler/) > [“Humility and Trustworthiness are not rooted only in Presentation, Voice modulation or Nice Jorgan but in Actions and Intentions that speak louder than you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/venkat-gandhi/humility-and-trustworthiness-are-not-rooted-only-in-presentation/) [Venkat Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/venkat-gandhi/) > [I think being vulnerable paves the way for humility.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-sadowski/i-think-being-vulnerable-paves-the-way-for-humility/) [Jonathan Sadowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-sadowski/) > [I need to look like an idiot at least twice a day to keep myself humble.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-evanovich/i-need-to-look-like-an-idiot-at-least-twice-a-day-to-keep-myself/) [Janet Evanovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-evanovich/) > [“I am waiting for the meek to be blessed and inherit the earth... without taxes”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-ferlinghetti/i-am-waiting-for-the-meek-to-be-blessed-and-inherit-the-earth-without/) [Lawrence Ferlinghetti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-ferlinghetti/) > [Rukmini Devi was an icon for all the Bharat Natyam students at Kalakshetra. I grew up watching her at dance school and I associate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amala-akkineni/rukmini-devi-was-an-icon-for-all-the-bharat-natyam-students-at/) [Amala Akkineni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amala-akkineni/) > [“Oh where is the noble face of modesty, or the strength of virtue, now that blasphemy is in power and men have put justice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/euripides/oh-where-is-the-noble-face-of-modesty-or-the-strength-of-virtue-now/) [Euripides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/euripides/) > [Modesty is the gentle art of enhancing your charm by pretending not to be aware of it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-herford/modesty-is-the-gentle-art-of-enhancing-your-charm-by-pretending-not/) [Oliver Herford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-herford/) > [How arrogant - how very far from humility - would be the self-satisfied, smug assurance that God, a tidy-up-after-us God will come and clean…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheldon-whitehouse/how-arrogant-how-very-far-from-humility-would-be-the-self-satisfied/) [Sheldon Whitehouse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheldon-whitehouse/) > [To be part of the creation, I must act humbly. I'll take that over a goddess any day!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-o-hara/to-be-part-of-the-creation-i-must-act-humbly-i-ll-take-that-over-a/) [Maureen O'Hara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-o-hara/) [Browse all 4,759 Humility quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humility/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Usually the modest person passes for someone reserved, the silent for a sullen person", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Horace" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/usually-the-modest-person-passes-for-someone-reserved-the-silent-for/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Humility" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/usually-the-modest-person-passes-for-someone-reserved-the-silent-for/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/80a/horace-172_humility_usually-the-modest-person-passes-for-som_2773025.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/80a/horace-172_humility_usually-the-modest-person-passes-for-som_2773025.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/80a/horace-172_humility_usually-the-modest-person-passes-for-som_2773025.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Usually the modest person passes for someone reserved, the silent for a sullen person” — Horace", "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": "Horace", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Usually the modest person passes for...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/usually-the-modest-person-passes-for-someone-reserved-the-silent-for/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/usually-the-modest-person-passes-for-someone-reserved-the-silent-for/#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 } } ] } ```