---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: For what is there more hideous than…"
description: "\"For what is there more hideous than avarice, more brutal than lust, more contemptible than cowardice, more base than stupidity and folly?\" — Marcus Tul..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f35/marcus-tullius-cicero-157_avarice_for-what-is-there-more-hideous-than-avar_1544331.jpg"
---

#  For what is there more hideous than avarice, more brutal…

![“For what is there more hideous than avarice, more brutal than lust, more contemptible than cowardice, more base than stupidity and folly?” quote by Marcus Tullius Cicero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f35/marcus-tullius-cicero-157_avarice_for-what-is-there-more-hideous-than-avar_1544331.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f35/marcus-tullius-cicero-157_avarice_for-what-is-there-more-hideous-than-avar_1544331.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f35/marcus-tullius-cicero-157_avarice_for-what-is-there-more-hideous-than-avar_1544331.jpg)

> “For what is there more hideous than avarice, more brutal than lust, more contemptible than cowardice, more base than stupidity and folly?”

[Marcus Tullius Cicero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-tullius-cicero/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Avarice, lust, cowardice, stupidity, and folly are the most despicable human vices.

**In simple terms:** These vices are the worst of human flaws.

Key Takeaway

Avoid these vices.

Themes

morality human nature vice

Mood

critical reflective

Type

philosophical ethical

When to use this quote

- personal conduct
- leadership
- public policy

Key Concepts

philosophy ethics psychology

Questions to Reflect On

- What personal habits reflect these vices?
- How can society discourage them?

A Different Perspective

These vices can be deeply ingrained and hard to eradicate.

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[Avarice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/avarice/) [Avarice Brutal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/avarice-brutal-5758200/) [Brutal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/brutal/) [Contemptible](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/contemptible/) [Cowardice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cowardice/) [Folly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/folly/) [Hideous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hideous/) [Hideous Avarice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hideous-avarice-5758199/) [Lust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lust/) [Lust Contemptible](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lust-contemptible-5758201/) [Stupidity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stupidity/)

## Related quotes

> [The avarice of the old: it's absurd to increase one's luggage as one nears the journey's end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-tullius-cicero/the-avarice-of-the-old-it-s-absurd-to-increase-one-s-luggage-as-one/)

[Marcus Tullius Cicero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-tullius-cicero/)

> [When money is unreasonably coveted, it is a disease of the mind which is called avarice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-tullius-cicero/when-money-is-unreasonably-coveted-it-is-a-disease-of-the-mind-which/)

[Marcus Tullius Cicero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-tullius-cicero/)

> [ If you wish to remove avarice you must remove its mother, luxuries. \[Lat., Avaritiam si tollere vultis, mater ejus est tollenda, luxuries.\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-tullius-cicero/if-you-wish-to-remove-avarice-you-must-remove-its-mother-luxuries-lat/)

[Marcus Tullius Cicero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-tullius-cicero/)

> [What the object of senile avarice may be I cannot conceive. For can there be anything more absurd than to seek more journey money,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-tullius-cicero/what-the-object-of-senile-avarice-may-be-i-cannot-conceive-for-can/)

[Marcus Tullius Cicero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-tullius-cicero/)

> [Contemptuous people are sure to be contemptible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicolas-chamfort/contemptuous-people-are-sure-to-be-contemptible/)

[Nicolas Chamfort](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicolas-chamfort/)

> [We gave him a hearty welcome, for there was nearly half as much of the entertaining as of the contemptible about the man..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-allan-poe/we-gave-him-a-hearty-welcome-for-there-was-nearly-half-as-much-of-the/)

[Edgar Allan Poe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-allan-poe/)

> [“It is a difficult choice sometimes whether to feel revolted at the male sex or merely to dismiss them as contemptible.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-asimov/it-is-a-difficult-choice-sometimes-whether-to-feel-revolted-at-the/)

[Isaac Asimov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-asimov/)

> [It was better, he thought, to fail in attempting exquisite things than to succeed in the department of the utterly contemptible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-machen/it-was-better-he-thought-to-fail-in-attempting-exquisite-things-than/)

[Arthur Machen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-machen/)

> [To my eye Rubens' colouring is most contemptible. His shadows are a filthy brown somewhat the colour of excrement.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-blake/to-my-eye-rubens-colouring-is-most-contemptible-his-shadows-are-a/)

[William Blake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-blake/)

> [As men neither fear nor respect what has been made contemptible, all honor to him who makes oppression laughable as well as detestable. Armies…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwin-percy-whipple/as-men-neither-fear-nor-respect-what-has-been-made-contemptible-all/)

[Edwin Percy Whipple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwin-percy-whipple/)

> [The unanimously applauded, self-congratulatory bromides of a Soviet Party Congress seemed contemptible. The unanimity of the sanctimonious, reality-concealing rhetoric spouted by American officials and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-sontag/the-unanimously-applauded-self-congratulatory-bromides-of-a-soviet/)

[Susan Sontag](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-sontag/)

> [None but the contemptible are apprehensive of contempt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francois-de-la-rochefoucauld/none-but-the-contemptible-are-apprehensive-of-contempt/)

[Francois de La Rochefoucauld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-de-la-rochefoucauld/)

> [“For it was intelligence that was the thin line between endearing rapscallion and idiot bastard. - Éibhear the Contemptible”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-a-aiken/for-it-was-intelligence-that-was-the-thin-line-between-endearing/)

[G.A. Aiken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-a-aiken/)

> [Nothing that is not a real crime makes a man appear so contemptible and little in the eyes of the world as inconsistency, especially…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/nothing-that-is-not-a-real-crime-makes-a-man-appear-so-contemptible/)

[Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/)

> [A man who lets himself be bored is even more contemptible than the bore.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-butler/a-man-who-lets-himself-be-bored-is-even-more-contemptible-than-the/)

[Samuel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-butler/)

## More by Marcus Tullius Cicero

> [Laughing, laughing, laughing, laughing! It is the jester! A voice from the Void, to cheer poor Cicero! I accept your gift, dearest Night Mother.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-tullius-cicero/laughing-laughing-laughing-laughing-it-is-the-jester-a-voice-from-the/)

[Marcus Tullius Cicero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-tullius-cicero/)

> [This is a proof of a well-trained mind, to rejoice in what is good and to grieve at the opposite.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-tullius-cicero/this-is-a-proof-of-a-well-trained-mind-to-rejoice-in-what-is-good-and/)

[Marcus Tullius Cicero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-tullius-cicero/)

> [Let art, then, imitate nature, find what she desires, and follow as she directs. For in invention nature is never last, education never first;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-tullius-cicero/let-art-then-imitate-nature-find-what-she-desires-and-follow-as-she/)

[Marcus Tullius Cicero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-tullius-cicero/)

> [“Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues, but the parent of all others.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-tullius-cicero/gratitude-is-not-only-the-greatest-of-virtues-but-the-parent-of-all/)

[Marcus Tullius Cicero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-tullius-cicero/)

> [Things sacred should not only be touched with the hands, but unviolated in thought. \[Lat., Res sacros non modo manibus attingi, sed ne cogitatione…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-tullius-cicero/things-sacred-should-not-only-be-touched-with-the-hands-but/)

[Marcus Tullius Cicero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-tullius-cicero/)

> [Grief is not in the nature of things, but in opinion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-tullius-cicero/grief-is-not-in-the-nature-of-things-but-in-opinion/)

[Marcus Tullius Cicero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-tullius-cicero/)

> [Physicians, when the cause of disease is discovered, consider that the cure is discovered.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-tullius-cicero/physicians-when-the-cause-of-disease-is-discovered-consider-that-the/)

[Marcus Tullius Cicero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-tullius-cicero/)

> [Nihil est incertius vulgo, nihil obscurius voluntate hominum, nihil fallacius ratione tota comitiorum. (Nothing is more unpredictable than the mob, nothing more obscure than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-tullius-cicero/nihil-est-incertius-vulgo-nihil-obscurius-voluntate-hominum-nihil/)

[Marcus Tullius Cicero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-tullius-cicero/)

> [The foundations of justice are that on one shall suffer wrong; then, that the public good be promoted.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-tullius-cicero/the-foundations-of-justice-are-that-on-one-shall-suffer-wrong-then/)

[Marcus Tullius Cicero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-tullius-cicero/)

> [“The life of the dead is set in the memory of the living.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-tullius-cicero/the-life-of-the-dead-is-set-in-the-memory-of-the-living/)

[Marcus Tullius Cicero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-tullius-cicero/)

> [Pardon is granted to necessity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-tullius-cicero/pardon-is-granted-to-necessity/)

[Marcus Tullius Cicero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-tullius-cicero/)

> [Friendship embraces innumerable ends; turn where you will it is ever at your side; no barrier shuts it out; it is never untimely and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-tullius-cicero/friendship-embraces-innumerable-ends-turn-where-you-will-it-is-ever/)

[Marcus Tullius Cicero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-tullius-cicero/)

> [History is the witness of the times, the light of truth, the life of memory, the teacher of life, the messenger of antiquity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-tullius-cicero/history-is-the-witness-of-the-times-the-light-of-truth-the-life-of/)

[Marcus Tullius Cicero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-tullius-cicero/)

> [The Jews belong to a dark and repulsive force. One knows how numerous this clique is, how they stick together and what power they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-tullius-cicero/the-jews-belong-to-a-dark-and-repulsive-force-one-knows-how-numerous/)

[Marcus Tullius Cicero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-tullius-cicero/)

> [Nature has planted in our minds an insatiable longing to see the truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-tullius-cicero/nature-has-planted-in-our-minds-an-insatiable-longing-to-see-the-truth/)

[Marcus Tullius Cicero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-tullius-cicero/)

[Explore all 1,068 Marcus Tullius Cicero quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-tullius-cicero/)

## More Avarice quotes

> [In our own time the whole of Greece has been subject to a low birth rate and a general decrease of the population, owing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/polybius/in-our-own-time-the-whole-of-greece-has-been-subject-to-a-low-birth/)

[Polybius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/polybius/)

> [avarice breeds envy, a worm that is always gnawing, letting the avaricious enjoy neither their own nor anyone else's good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/st-catherine-of-siena/avarice-breeds-envy-a-worm-that-is-always-gnawing-letting-the/)

[St. Catherine of Siena](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/st-catherine-of-siena/)

> [The man who worships mere wealth is a snob.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-trollope/the-man-who-worships-mere-wealth-is-a-snob/)

[Anthony Trollope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-trollope/)

> [Where today are the Pequot? Where are the Narragansett, the Mohican, the Pcanet, and other powerful tribes of our people? They have vanished before…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tecumseh/where-today-are-the-pequot-where-are-the-narragansett-the-mohican-the/)

[Tecumseh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tecumseh/)

> [The corruption of the age is made up by the particular contribution of every individual man; some contribute treachery, others injustice, atheism, tyranny, avarice,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/the-corruption-of-the-age-is-made-up-by-the-particular-contribution/)

[Michel de Montaigne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-de-montaigne/)

> [Where poverty ceases, avarice begins.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/honor-de-balzac/where-poverty-ceases-avarice-begins/)

[Honore de Balzac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/honor-de-balzac/)

> [Five enemies of peace inhabit with us - avarice, ambition, envy, anger, and pride; if these were to be banished, we should infallibly enjoy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/petrarch/five-enemies-of-peace-inhabit-with-us-avarice-ambition-envy-anger-and/)

[Petrarch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/petrarch/)

> ['Maneater' is about N.Y.C. in the '80s. It's about greed, avarice, and spoiled riches.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-oates/maneater-is-about-n-y-c-in-the-80s-it-s-about-greed-avarice-and/)

[John Oates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-oates/)

> [A woman's whole life is a history of the affections. The heart is her world: it is there her ambition strives for empire; it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/washington-irving/a-woman-s-whole-life-is-a-history-of-the-affections-the-heart-is-her/)

[Washington Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/washington-irving/)

> [Gluttony should be destroyed by self-control; unchastity by desire for God and longing for the blessings held in store; avarice by compassion for the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-of-damascus/gluttony-should-be-destroyed-by-self-control-unchastity-by-desire-for/)

[John of Damascus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-of-damascus/)

> [Riches with their wicked inducements increase; nevertheless, avarice is never satisfied.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/riches-with-their-wicked-inducements-increase-nevertheless-avarice-is/)

[Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/)

> [Poverty wants much; but avarice, everything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/publilius-syrus/poverty-wants-much-but-avarice-everything/)

[Publilius Syrus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/publilius-syrus/)

> [When virtue is banished, ambition invades the minds of those who are disposed to receive it and avarice possesses the whole community.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/baron-de-montesquieu/when-virtue-is-banished-ambition-invades-the-minds-of-those-who-are/)

[Baron de Montesquieu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/baron-de-montesquieu/)

> [He who is always in a hurry to be wealthy and immersed in the study of augmenting his fortune has lost the arms of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/he-who-is-always-in-a-hurry-to-be-wealthy-and-immersed-in-the-study/)

[Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/)

> [Goodness is weakness, pleasantness is poisonous, serenity is mediocrity and kindness is for losers. The best reason for committing loathsome and detestable acts –…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jasper-fforde/goodness-is-weakness-pleasantness-is-poisonous-serenity-is-mediocrity/)

[Jasper Fforde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jasper-fforde/)

[Browse all 318 Avarice quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/avarice/)

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