--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Swollen in head, weak in legs, sharp in…" description: "\"Swollen in head, weak in legs, sharp in tongue but empty in belly.\" — Mao Zedong" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/66c/mao-zedong-1123_belly_swollen-in-head-weak-in-legs-sharp-in-to_2328577.jpg" --- # Swollen in head, weak in legs, sharp in tongue but empty… ![“Swollen in head, weak in legs, sharp in tongue but empty in belly.” quote by Mao Zedong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/66c/mao-zedong-1123_belly_swollen-in-head-weak-in-legs-sharp-in-to_2328577.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/66c/mao-zedong-1123_belly_swollen-in-head-weak-in-legs-sharp-in-to_2328577.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/66c/mao-zedong-1123_belly_swollen-in-head-weak-in-legs-sharp-in-to_2328577.jpg) > “Swollen in head, weak in legs, sharp in tongue but empty in belly.” [Mao Zedong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mao-zedong/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The line depicts a person whose thoughts are bloated, body weak, speech harsh, yet lacking substance or nourishment. **In simple terms:** Empty talk, weak body, but no real content. Key Takeaway Avoid empty rhetoric and nourish substance. Themes self-awareness integrity communication Mood reflective critical inspirational Type advice philosophical When to use this quote - public speaking - leadership - personal development - health improvement Key Concepts philosophy psychology health Questions to Reflect On - How can you ensure your speech reflects true knowledge? - What habits fill your mind with substance? A Different Perspective Words without substance can harm credibility. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Belly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/belly/) [Empty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/empty/) [Head Weak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/head-weak-802320/) [Legs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/legs/) [Swollen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/swollen/) [Swollen Head](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/swollen-head-3175894/) [Tongue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tongue/) [Weak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/weak/) [Weak Legs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/weak-legs-5187973/) ## Related quotes > [Don't you get a swollen head. There's always someone who could come and do what you do, maybe even better, so be grateful and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-andrews/don-t-you-get-a-swollen-head-there-s-always-someone-who-could-come/) [Julie Andrews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-andrews/) > [I don't think I ever had a swollen head: I remember where I come from.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eva-herzigova/i-don-t-think-i-ever-had-a-swollen-head-i-remember-where-i-come-from/) [Eva Herzigova](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eva-herzigova/) > [Most people only concentrate on their upper body and ignore their legs. It doesn't make sense to have a bulky upper body and have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kunal-khemu/most-people-only-concentrate-on-their-upper-body-and-ignore-their/) [Kunal Khemu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kunal-khemu/) > [“Idle war of head versus heart It's always this way My head is weak it always speaks Before I know what it will say”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/death-cab-for-cutie/idle-war-of-head-versus-heart-it-s-always-this-way-my-head-is-weak-it/) [Death Cab for Cutie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/death-cab-for-cutie/) > [“Mes enfants, you mustn't go at things head-on, you are too weak; take it from me and take it from an angle... Play dead,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/honor-de-balzac/mes-enfants-you-mustn-t-go-at-things-head-on-you-are-too-weak-take-it/) [Honoré de Balzac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/honor-de-balzac/) > [I'm a war of head versus heart, it's always this way. My head is weak, my heart always speaks, before I know what it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-gibbard/i-m-a-war-of-head-versus-heart-it-s-always-this-way-my-head-is-weak/) [Ben Gibbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-gibbard/) > [Have you not a moist eye, a dry hand, a yellow cheek, a white beard, a decreasing leg, an increasing belly? Is not your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/have-you-not-a-moist-eye-a-dry-hand-a-yellow-cheek-a-white-beard-a/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [My love, do you recall the object which we saw, That fair, sweet, summer morn! At a turn in the path a foul carcass…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-baudelaire/my-love-do-you-recall-the-object-which-we-saw-that-fair-sweet-summer/) [Charles Baudelaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-baudelaire/) > [Catastrophes come when some dominant institution, swollen like a soap-bubble and still standing without foundations, suddenly crumbles at the touch of what may seem…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-santayana/catastrophes-come-when-some-dominant-institution-swollen-like-a-soap/) [George Santayana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-santayana/) > [We both gaze down at my swollen tummy for a while. I still can't quite get my head round the fact that there's a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophie-kinsella/we-both-gaze-down-at-my-swollen-tummy-for-a-while-i-still-can-t-quite/) [Sophie Kinsella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophie-kinsella/) > [Blessed be they as virtuous, who when they feel their virile members swollen with lust, visit a brothel rather than grind at some husband's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cato-the-younger/blessed-be-they-as-virtuous-who-when-they-feel-their-virile-members/) [Cato the Younger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cato-the-younger/) > [The seed, swollen with moisture, burst asunder its covering of soil and out peers the blade of wheat, full of symbols. So faith, whose…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ephrem-the-syrian/the-seed-swollen-with-moisture-burst-asunder-its-covering-of-soil-and/) [Ephrem the Syrian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ephrem-the-syrian/) > [“There it is: the spoken admission that he was hers to lose. As soon as the words leave my mouth, I feel weirdly deflated,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/there-it-is-the-spoken-admission-that-he-was-hers-to-lose-as-soon-as/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [“No matter how it felt to be near him, she had to keep her swollen heart in check.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-brashares/no-matter-how-it-felt-to-be-near-him-she-had-to-keep-her-swollen/) [Ann Brashares](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-brashares/) > [I was raised to stand up for myself, if I feel I'm in the right. Maybe it would have been best if I'd just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shannen-doherty/i-was-raised-to-stand-up-for-myself-if-i-feel-i-m-in-the-right-maybe/) [Shannen Doherty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shannen-doherty/) ## More by Mao Zedong > [Firstly, do not fear hardship, and secondly, do not fear death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mao-zedong/firstly-do-not-fear-hardship-and-secondly-do-not-fear-death/) [Mao Zedong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mao-zedong/) > [The most effective method of propaganda directed at the enemy forces is to release captured soldiers and give the wounded medical treatment... Whenever soldiers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mao-zedong/the-most-effective-method-of-propaganda-directed-at-the-enemy-forces/) [Mao Zedong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mao-zedong/) > [We must learn to do economic work from all who know how, no matter who they are. We must esteem them as teachers, learning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mao-zedong/we-must-learn-to-do-economic-work-from-all-who-know-how-no-matter-who/) [Mao Zedong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mao-zedong/) > [A revolution is not a dinner party, or writing an essay, or painting a picture, or doing embroidery.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mao-zedong/a-revolution-is-not-a-dinner-party-or-writing-an-essay-or-painting-a/) [Mao Zedong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mao-zedong/) > [At the beginning of anything out of the ordinary, the mass of the people always dislike it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mao-zedong/at-the-beginning-of-anything-out-of-the-ordinary-the-mass-of-the/) [Mao Zedong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mao-zedong/) > [Winds flap the sail, tortoise and snake are silent, a great plan looms. A bridge will fly over this moat dug by heaven and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mao-zedong/winds-flap-the-sail-tortoise-and-snake-are-silent-a-great-plan-looms/) [Mao Zedong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mao-zedong/) > [Let a hundred flowers bloom, let a hundred schools of thought contend.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mao-zedong/let-a-hundred-flowers-bloom-let-a-hundred-schools-of-thought-contend/) [Mao Zedong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mao-zedong/) > [ In the struggle to defend the legacy of Leninism . . . \[Stalin\] proved himself to be an outstanding Marxist-Leninist fighter. . . .… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mao-zedong/in-the-struggle-to-defend-the-legacy-of-leninism-stalin-proved/) [Mao Zedong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mao-zedong/) > [New things have to experience difficulties and setbacks as they grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mao-zedong/new-things-have-to-experience-difficulties-and-setbacks-as-they-grow/) [Mao Zedong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mao-zedong/) > [It is necessary to master Marxist theory and apply it, master it for the sole purpose of applying it. If you can apply the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mao-zedong/it-is-necessary-to-master-marxist-theory-and-apply-it-master-it-for/) [Mao Zedong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mao-zedong/) > [It is a very good thing, and a significant one too, to exterminate the bourgeoisie and capitalism in China.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mao-zedong/it-is-a-very-good-thing-and-a-significant-one-too-to-exterminate-the/) [Mao Zedong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mao-zedong/) > [Return to Shaoshan I regret the passing, the dying, of the vague dream: my native orchards thirty-two years ago. Yet red banners roused the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mao-zedong/return-to-shaoshan-i-regret-the-passing-the-dying-of-the-vague-dream/) [Mao Zedong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mao-zedong/) > [We should go to the masses and learn from them, synthesize their experience into better, articulated principles and methods, then do propaganda among the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mao-zedong/we-should-go-to-the-masses-and-learn-from-them-synthesize-their/) [Mao Zedong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mao-zedong/) > [Complacency is the enemy of study.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mao-zedong/complacency-is-the-enemy-of-study/) [Mao Zedong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mao-zedong/) > [Women hold up half the sky.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mao-zedong/women-hold-up-half-the-sky/) [Mao Zedong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mao-zedong/) [Explore all 287 Mao Zedong quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mao-zedong/) ## More Belly quotes > [I'm bigger than you! I'm higher on the food chain - get in my belly!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-myers/i-m-bigger-than-you-i-m-higher-on-the-food-chain-get-in-my-belly/) [Mike Myers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-myers/) > [I was the first to win a major with a belly putter, and I've spent hours practicing that way, so I hope they don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keegan-bradley/i-was-the-first-to-win-a-major-with-a-belly-putter-and-i-ve-spent/) [Keegan Bradley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keegan-bradley/) > [That devilish Iron Horse, whose ear-rending neigh is heard throughout the town, has muddied the Boiling Spring with his foot, and he it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/that-devilish-iron-horse-whose-ear-rending-neigh-is-heard-throughout/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [I liked the taste of beer, its live, white lather, its brass-bright depths, the sudden world through the wet-brown walls of the glass, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dylan-thomas/i-liked-the-taste-of-beer-its-live-white-lather-its-brass-bright/) [Dylan Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dylan-thomas/) > [“Somewhere squidgy. Your belly, maybe?” “I can’t believe you called my belly ‘squidgy.’ It’s not squidgy, it’s pillowy. And sexy!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-peeler/somewhere-squidgy-your-belly-maybe-i-can-t-believe-you-called-my/) [Nicole Peeler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-peeler/) > [“That man’s so low he has to reach up to rub the belly of a snake.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rae-carson/that-man-s-so-low-he-has-to-reach-up-to-rub-the-belly-of-a-snake/) [Rae Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rae-carson/) > [We sat there, not talking, for a few minutes. He ate the Moon Pie; only skinny people can scarf down junk food like that.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-dessen/we-sat-there-not-talking-for-a-few-minutes-he-ate-the-moon-pie-only/) [Sarah Dessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dessen/) > [I get so nervous, I get belly pains before I go on stage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rita-ora/i-get-so-nervous-i-get-belly-pains-before-i-go-on-stage/) [Rita Ora](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rita-ora/) > [I can reason down or deny everything, except this perpetual Belly: feed he must and will, and I cannot make him respectable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/i-can-reason-down-or-deny-everything-except-this-perpetual-belly-feed/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [I've learned ballet for seven years and Kathak and belly dancing for some time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nidhhi-agerwal/i-ve-learned-ballet-for-seven-years-and-kathak-and-belly-dancing-for/) [Nidhhi Agerwal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nidhhi-agerwal/) > [It's very important to not repeat yourself. After 'Delhi Belly,' I was offered 40 'Delhi Belly's and you can't do that! So 'Revolver Rani'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vir-das/it-s-very-important-to-not-repeat-yourself-after-delhi-belly-i-was/) [Vir Das](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vir-das/) > [I asked these Indians: "Do men ever make Chicha?" My question was met with gales of laughter. The women howled. Bent over in hilarity,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-d-eames/i-asked-these-indians-do-men-ever-make-chicha-my-question-was-met/) [Alan D. Eames](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-d-eames/) > [Wit, like the Belly, if it be not fed, Will starve the Members, and distract the Head.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-defoe/wit-like-the-belly-if-it-be-not-fed-will-starve-the-members-and/) [Daniel Defoe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-defoe/) > [After three years down here, I've not learned too much. But one thing I do know is that our bellies aren't big enough for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-d-wilson/after-three-years-down-here-i-ve-not-learned-too-much-but-one-thing-i/) [N.D. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-d-wilson/) > [The City of New York is like an enormous citadel, a modern Carcassonne. Walking between the magnificent skyscrapers one feels the presence on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/the-city-of-new-york-is-like-an-enormous-citadel-a-modern-carcassonne/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) [Browse all 662 Belly quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/belly/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Swollen in head, weak in legs, sharp in tongue but empty in belly.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Mao Zedong" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mao-zedong/swollen-in-head-weak-in-legs-sharp-in-tongue-but-empty-in-belly/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Belly" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mao-zedong/swollen-in-head-weak-in-legs-sharp-in-tongue-but-empty-in-belly/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/66c/mao-zedong-1123_belly_swollen-in-head-weak-in-legs-sharp-in-to_2328577.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/66c/mao-zedong-1123_belly_swollen-in-head-weak-in-legs-sharp-in-to_2328577.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/66c/mao-zedong-1123_belly_swollen-in-head-weak-in-legs-sharp-in-to_2328577.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Swollen in head, weak in legs, sharp in tongue but empty in belly.” — Mao Zedong", "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": "Mao Zedong", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mao-zedong/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Swollen in head, weak in legs,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mao-zedong/swollen-in-head-weak-in-legs-sharp-in-tongue-but-empty-in-belly/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mao-zedong/swollen-in-head-weak-in-legs-sharp-in-tongue-but-empty-in-belly/#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 } } ] } ```