--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When in doubt, tell the truth. That maxim…" description: "\"When in doubt, tell the truth. That maxim I did invent, but never expected it to be applied to me. I did say, \"When you are in doubt,\" but when I am in..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4d2/mark-twain-22_doubt_when-in-doubt-tell-the-truth-that-maxim_2963578.png" --- # When in doubt, tell the truth. That maxim I did invent… ![“When in doubt, tell the truth. That maxim I did invent, but never expected it to be applied to me. I did say, "When you are in doubt," but when I am in doubt myself I use more sagacity.” quote by Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4d2/mark-twain-22_doubt_when-in-doubt-tell-the-truth-that-maxim_2963578.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4d2/mark-twain-22_doubt_when-in-doubt-tell-the-truth-that-maxim_2963578.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4d2/mark-twain-22_doubt_when-in-doubt-tell-the-truth-that-maxim_2963578.png) > “When in doubt, tell the truth. That maxim I did invent, but never expected it to be applied to me. I did say, "When you are in doubt," but when I am in doubt myself I use more sagacity.” [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. When uncertain, truth is advised, yet the speaker admits to using wisdom instead of strict honesty in personal doubt **In simple terms:** Truth is a guide, but personal doubt leads to cautious judgment Key Takeaway When doubtful, seek truth but apply personal judgment Themes integrity self‑reflection wisdom Mood thoughtful introspective Type ethical philosophical When to use this quote - decision making - personal ethics - conflict resolution - self‑assessment Key Concepts truthfulness self‑doubt Questions to Reflect On - When is honesty more harmful than helpful? - How do you balance truth with personal doubt? A Different Perspective Truth may be impractical in complex personal situations ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Doubt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doubt/) [Doubt Doubt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doubt-doubt/) [Doubt me](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doubt-me/) [Doubt Myself](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doubt-myself/) [Doubt Tell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doubt-tell-1224304/) [Doubt Use](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doubt-use-669000/) [Expected](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/expected/) [Maxims](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/maxims/) [Sagacity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sagacity/) [Say Doubt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/say-doubt-1028412/) [Telling the truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/telling-the-truth/) [Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth/) [Use](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/use/) [When in doubt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/when-in-doubt/) ## Related quotes > [When in doubt tell the truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/when-in-doubt-tell-the-truth/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [When in doubt tell the truth. It will confound your enemies and astound your friends.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/when-in-doubt-tell-the-truth-it-will-confound-your-enemies-and/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [When in doubt, tell yourself the truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-godin/when-in-doubt-tell-yourself-the-truth/) [Seth Godin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-godin/) > [When in doubt, use brute force.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-thompson/when-in-doubt-use-brute-force/) [Ken Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-thompson/) > [When any man expresses doubt to me as to the use that I or any other woman might make of the ballot if we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matilda-joslyn-gage/when-any-man-expresses-doubt-to-me-as-to-the-use-that-i-or-any-other/) [Matilda Joslyn Gage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matilda-joslyn-gage/) > [“When in doubt, use your brain. 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No,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-jubert-jonas-kyratzes/they-say-doubt-everything-but-i-disagree-doubt-is-useful-in-small/) [Tom Jubert / Jonas Kyratzes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-jubert-jonas-kyratzes/) > [“I do not believe in any wise man until I have heard him say << I doubt it>> three times and << I don’t know >> two times.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alphonse-karr/i-do-not-believe-in-any-wise-man-until-i-have-heard-him-say-i-doubt/) [Alphonse Karr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alphonse-karr/) > [Never give up. People may doubt what you say but they can't doubt what you do. Work hard, strive for excellence daily, and enjoy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/never-give-up-people-may-doubt-what-you-say-but-they-can-t-doubt-what/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“My path will weave The way you say There is no doubt You'll create the way”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-o-brien/my-path-will-weave-the-way-you-say-there-is-no-doubt-you-ll-create/) [William O'Brien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-o-brien/) > [I say no to doubt and yes to life!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-dyer/i-say-no-to-doubt-and-yes-to-life/) [Wayne Dyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-dyer/) ## More by Mark Twain > [Sing like no one's listening, love like you've never been hurt, dance like nobody's watching, and live like its heaven on earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/sing-like-no-one-s-listening-love-like-you-ve-never-been-hurt-dance/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [If you had made the acquiring of ignorance the study of your life, you could not have graduated with higher honor than you could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/if-you-had-made-the-acquiring-of-ignorance-the-study-of-your-life-you/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [“The Creator sat upon the throne, thinking. Behind him stretched the illimitable continent of heaven, steeped in a glory of light and color; before…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/the-creator-sat-upon-the-throne-thinking-behind-him-stretched-the/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [It's easy to quit smoking. I've done it hundreds of times.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/it-s-easy-to-quit-smoking-i-ve-done-it-hundreds-of-times/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [“It is never wrong to do the right thing.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/it-is-never-wrong-to-do-the-right-thing/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [A man accustomed to American food and American domestic cookery would not starve to death suddenly in Europe, but I think he would gradually…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/a-man-accustomed-to-american-food-and-american-domestic-cookery-would/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [There is nothing training can't cannot do. 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Man gets his through months and months of cruel torture; he will never get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/the-higher-animals-get-their-teeth-without-pain-or-inconvenience-man/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [“As far as I can see, Italy, for fifteen hundred years, has turned all her energies, all her finances, and all her industry to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/as-far-as-i-can-see-italy-for-fifteen-hundred-years-has-turned-all/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [Begin with the determination to succeed and the work is half done already.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/begin-with-the-determination-to-succeed-and-the-work-is-half-done/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [Many public-school children seem to know only two dates—1492 and 4th of July; and as a rule they don't know what happened on either…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/many-public-school-children-seem-to-know-only-two-dates-1492-and-4th/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [If we could imagine such a man, that is a man who could invent the fly and send him out on his mission and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/if-we-could-imagine-such-a-man-that-is-a-man-who-could-invent-the-fly/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [You perceive, now, that these things are all impossible except in a dream. You perceive that they are pure and puerile insanities, the silly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/you-perceive-now-that-these-things-are-all-impossible-except-in-a/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [Lord save us all from a hope tree that has lost the faculty of putting out blossoms.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/lord-save-us-all-from-a-hope-tree-that-has-lost-the-faculty-of/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) [Explore all 3,277 Mark Twain quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) ## More Doubt quotes > [I put myself in the student's place and remember the frustrations, doubts, determination, and desires I felt when I was going through the initial…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-martinez/i-put-myself-in-the-student-s-place-and-remember-the-frustrations/) [Ted Martinez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-martinez/) > [Because of the womb being a central phenomenon in the feminine body, the whole psychology of woman differs: she is non-aggressive, non-inquiring, non-questioning, non-doubting,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/because-of-the-womb-being-a-central-phenomenon-in-the-feminine-body/) [Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/) > [I don't doubt that straight white men have identity issues and identity complexes and struggle with defining themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-simien/i-don-t-doubt-that-straight-white-men-have-identity-issues-and/) [Justin Simien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-simien/) > [“Where there is doubt (shanka), there is misery. The moment one begins to doubt the knowledge that, 'I am Chandubhai,' misery arises. Once one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dada-bhagwan/where-there-is-doubt-shanka-there-is-misery-the-moment-one-begins-to/) [Dada Bhagwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dada-bhagwan/) > [We know accurately only when we know little, with knowledge doubt increases.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/we-know-accurately-only-when-we-know-little-with-knowledge-doubt/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [There is no doubt in my mind and I know in my time, there will be a Canadian basketball player playing for Toronto Raptors, 100%](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masai-ujiri/there-is-no-doubt-in-my-mind-and-i-know-in-my-time-there-will-be-a/) [Masai Ujiri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masai-ujiri/) > [How could you feel worthless when God has honoured you by creating you and choosing you to be with Him, in this life and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yasmin-mogahed/how-could-you-feel-worthless-when-god-has-honoured-you-by-creating/) [Yasmin Mogahed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yasmin-mogahed/) > [“Let no one hope to find in contemplation an escape from conflict, from anguish or from doubt. On the contrary, the deep, inexpressible certitude…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-merton/let-no-one-hope-to-find-in-contemplation-an-escape-from-conflict-from/) [Thomas Merton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-merton/) > [“Two powerful, little words I've learned to use when facing challenges, fears, and doubts— so what? ”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richelle-e-goodrich/two-powerful-little-words-i-ve-learned-to-use-when-facing-challenges/) [Richelle E. Goodrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richelle-e-goodrich/) > [For diplomacy to be effective, words must be credible - and no one can now doubt the word of America.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/for-diplomacy-to-be-effective-words-must-be-credible-and-no-one-can/) [George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/) > [Vision motivates, sustains and dispels doubt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-young/vision-motivates-sustains-and-dispels-doubt/) [Thomas Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-young/) > [One may not doubt that, somehow Good Shall come of Water and of Mud; And sure, the reverent eye must see A purpose in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rupert-brooke/one-may-not-doubt-that-somehow-good-shall-come-of-water-and-of-mud/) [Rupert Brooke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rupert-brooke/) > [Let smiles overshadow sadness. Let faith make you believe. Let confidence wash away doubts. Let love complete your life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ritu-ghatourey/let-smiles-overshadow-sadness-let-faith-make-you-believe-let/) [Ritu Ghatourey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ritu-ghatourey/) > [When in doubt, suggest that a subcommittee be appointed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-chapman/when-in-doubt-suggest-that-a-subcommittee-be-appointed/) [Harry Chapman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-chapman/) > [“Those who contemplate never escape the doubt.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henning-mankell/those-who-contemplate-never-escape-the-doubt/) [Henning Mankell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henning-mankell/) [Browse all 9,582 Doubt quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doubt/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "When in doubt, tell the truth. That maxim I did invent, but never expected it to be applied to me. 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