---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We judge a horse not only by its pace on…"
description: "\"We judge a horse not only by its pace on a racecourse, but also by its walk, nay, when resting in its stable.\" — Michel de Montaigne"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/637/michel-de-montaigne-142_horse_we-judge-a-horse-not-only-by-its-pace-on_1842789.jpg"
---

#  We judge a horse not only by its pace on a racecourse, but…

![“We judge a horse not only by its pace on a racecourse, but also by its walk, nay, when resting in its stable.” quote by Michel de Montaigne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/637/michel-de-montaigne-142_horse_we-judge-a-horse-not-only-by-its-pace-on_1842789.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/637/michel-de-montaigne-142_horse_we-judge-a-horse-not-only-by-its-pace-on_1842789.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/637/michel-de-montaigne-142_horse_we-judge-a-horse-not-only-by-its-pace-on_1842789.jpg)

> “We judge a horse not only by its pace on a racecourse, but also by its walk, nay, when resting in its stable.”

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

## About This Quote

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

Judgment should consider both peak performance and everyday behavior.

**In simple terms:** Judge both action and character.

Key Takeaway

Look beyond flashy achievements.

Themes

character evaluation consistency

Mood

thoughtful analytical

Type

philosophical reflective

When to use this quote

- job performance
- personal relationships
- leadership assessment

Key Concepts

ethics holistic assessment

Questions to Reflect On

- How do you evaluate someone's true character?
- What signs reveal consistency in daily life?

A Different Perspective

People may hide true nature under pressure.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Horse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/horse/)

## Related quotes

> [The only decent people I ever saw at the racecourse were horses.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-joyce/the-only-decent-people-i-ever-saw-at-the-racecourse-were-horses/)

[James Joyce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-joyce/)

> [Don't judge a horse by the harness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/don-t-judge-a-horse-by-the-harness/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [“L'honneste est stable et permanent.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/l-honneste-est-stable-et-permanent/)

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

> ['Diversity' is a wonderfully seductive word. It stresses differences rather than commonalities. Diverse people worldwide are mostly engaged in hating each other - that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-lamm/diversity-is-a-wonderfully-seductive-word-it-stresses-differences/)

[Richard Lamm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-lamm/)

> [Clearly, a stable, unified and democratic Iraq cannot be achieved militarily by the U.S.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-olver/clearly-a-stable-unified-and-democratic-iraq-cannot-be-achieved/)

[John Olver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-olver/)

> [Changing things from the top down works when things are stable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-kelly/changing-things-from-the-top-down-works-when-things-are-stable/)

[Kevin Kelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-kelly/)

> [We can hope that the responsibilities and realities will weigh on Donald Trump and he will not be the president we fear, but rather…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-remnick/we-can-hope-that-the-responsibilities-and-realities-will-weigh-on/)

[David Remnick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-remnick/)

> [I've been sent down to the minor leagues six or seven times in my career. You've just got to have that stability. It's huge.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-diaz/i-ve-been-sent-down-to-the-minor-leagues-six-or-seven-times-in-my/)

[Matt Diaz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-diaz/)

> [I think, fundamentally, open source does tend to be more stable software. It's the right way to do things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linus-torvalds/i-think-fundamentally-open-source-does-tend-to-be-more-stable/)

[Linus Torvalds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linus-torvalds/)

> [It is only through having a stable loving partnership that I began to feel in control enough to attempt a strict writing discipline, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-zambreno/it-is-only-through-having-a-stable-loving-partnership-that-i-began-to/)

[Kate Zambreno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-zambreno/)

> [Modern capitalism seeks to assure us that it operates according to the principles of free creativity, endless development and diversity. It glosses over its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nadezhda-tolokonnikova/modern-capitalism-seeks-to-assure-us-that-it-operates-according-to/)

[Nadezhda Tolokonnikova](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nadezhda-tolokonnikova/)

> [“Wisdom is the God-given ability to see life with rare objectivity and to handle life with rare stability.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-george/wisdom-is-the-god-given-ability-to-see-life-with-rare-objectivity-and/)

[Elizabeth George](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-george/)

> [Not everyone likes the stable, gradual rise of our country. There are some who are using the democratic ideology to interfere in our internal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-putin/not-everyone-likes-the-stable-gradual-rise-of-our-country-there-are/)

[Vladimir Putin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-putin/)

> [At the risk of some oversimplification, if the skill composition of our work force meshed fully with the needs of our increasingly complex capital-stock,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-greenspan/at-the-risk-of-some-oversimplification-if-the-skill-composition-of/)

[Alan Greenspan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-greenspan/)

> [There is one, and only one solution, and we have almost no time to try it. We must turn all our resources to repairing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mollison/there-is-one-and-only-one-solution-and-we-have-almost-no-time-to-try/)

[Bill Mollison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mollison/)

## More by Michel de Montaigne

> [No man is exempt from saying silly things; the mischief is to say them deliberately.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/no-man-is-exempt-from-saying-silly-things-the-mischief-is-to-say-them/)

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

> [The laws keep up their credit, not by being just, but because they are laws; 'tis the mystic foundation of their authority; they have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/the-laws-keep-up-their-credit-not-by-being-just-but-because-they-are/)

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

> [Every one rushes elsewhere and into the future, because no one wants to face one's own inner self.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/every-one-rushes-elsewhere-and-into-the-future-because-no-one-wants/)

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

> [Beauty is the true prerogative of women, and so peculiarly their own, that our sex, though naturally requiring another sort of feature, is never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/beauty-is-the-true-prerogative-of-women-and-so-peculiarly-their-own/)

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

> [The height and value of true virtue consists in the facility, utility, and pleasure of its exercise; so far from difficulty, that boys, as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/the-height-and-value-of-true-virtue-consists-in-the-facility-utility/)

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

> [Fie on the eloquence that leaves us craving itself, not things!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/fie-on-the-eloquence-that-leaves-us-craving-itself-not-things/)

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

> [The plainest sign of wisdom is a continual cheerfulness: her state is like that of things in the regions above the moon, always clear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/the-plainest-sign-of-wisdom-is-a-continual-cheerfulness-her-state-is/)

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

> [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/)

> [If people must be talking about me, I would have it to be truthfully and justly. I would willingly return from the next world…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/if-people-must-be-talking-about-me-i-would-have-it-to-be-truthfully/)

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

> [Most pleasures embrace us but to strangle.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/most-pleasures-embrace-us-but-to-strangle/)

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

> [In true friendship, in which I am expert, I give myself to my friend more than I draw him to me. I not only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/in-true-friendship-in-which-i-am-expert-i-give-myself-to-my-friend/)

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

> [There are as many and innumerable degrees of wit, as there are cubits between this and heaven.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/there-are-as-many-and-innumerable-degrees-of-wit-as-there-are-cubits/)

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

> [A man has need of tough ears to hear himself fairly judged.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/a-man-has-need-of-tough-ears-to-hear-himself-fairly-judged/)

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

> [Lucius Arruntius killed himself, he said, to escape both the future and the past.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/lucius-arruntius-killed-himself-he-said-to-escape-both-the-future-and/)

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

> [I have a vocabulary all my own. I pass the time when itis wet and disagreeable. Whenit is fine I do not wish to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/i-have-a-vocabulary-all-my-own-i-pass-the-time-when-itis-wet-and/)

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

[Explore all 1,131 Michel de Montaigne quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-de-montaigne/)

## More Horse quotes

> [I would drink gallons of coffee a day. Even now, off caffeine, I talk faster than anyone you've ever met. I finally recognized that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-englander/i-would-drink-gallons-of-coffee-a-day-even-now-off-caffeine-i-talk/)

[Nathan Englander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-englander/)

> [A horse, a horse, my kingdom for a horse!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/a-horse-a-horse-my-kingdom-for-a-horse/)

[William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/)

> [The child who ran weeping to you with a cut finger is now brought home, smiling gamely, with a broken collarbone and incredible contusions-…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pam-brown/the-child-who-ran-weeping-to-you-with-a-cut-finger-is-now-brought/)

[Pam Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pam-brown/)

> [I don't know where horse riding could have taken me, and it's something I can always go back to when I've retired from football,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/millie-bright/i-don-t-know-where-horse-riding-could-have-taken-me-and-it-s/)

[Millie Bright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/millie-bright/)

> [I promise myself that I will enjoy every minute of the day that is given me to live.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-promise-myself-that-i-will-enjoy-every-minute-of-the-day-that-is/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [It is a pity that, commonly, more care is had--yea, and that among very wise men--to find out rather a cunning man for their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ascham/it-is-a-pity-that-commonly-more-care-is-had-yea-and-that-among-very/)

[Roger Ascham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ascham/)

> [I always like to look for adventure when I go away. I have gone on several horse adventures with my wife - from Guangxi…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antony-gormley/i-always-like-to-look-for-adventure-when-i-go-away-i-have-gone-on/)

[Antony Gormley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antony-gormley/)

> [Plato compared the intellect to a charioteer guiding the powerful horses of the passions, i.e., he gave it both the power of perception and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-cattell/plato-compared-the-intellect-to-a-charioteer-guiding-the-powerful/)

[Raymond Cattell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-cattell/)

> [There are those that say, if you do the uncomfortable thing long enough, it will become comfortable. But we are really not encouragers of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-hicks/there-are-those-that-say-if-you-do-the-uncomfortable-thing-long/)

[Esther Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-hicks/)

> [If some beggar steals a bridle he'll be hung by a man who's stolen a horse. There's no surer justice in the world than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peire-cardenal/if-some-beggar-steals-a-bridle-he-ll-be-hung-by-a-man-who-s-stolen-a/)

Peire Cardenal

> [Despite the reams of paperwork, obstacles worthy of a horse show, and a wait that can rival an elephant's gestation, adoption feels no different…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-simon/despite-the-reams-of-paperwork-obstacles-worthy-of-a-horse-show-and-a/)

[Scott Simon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-simon/)

> [“I have never heard anyone say, 'Oh, ick! A horse!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elinor-goulding-smith/i-have-never-heard-anyone-say-oh-ick-a-horse/)

Elinor Goulding Smith

> [My friends and I would get up early and take our horses through the national forest. My mom was very free. It was always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-torv/my-friends-and-i-would-get-up-early-and-take-our-horses-through-the/)

[Anna Torv](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-torv/)

> [Blind with love, my daughter has cried nightly for horses, those long-necked marchers and churners that she has mastered, any and all, reigning them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/blind-with-love-my-daughter-has-cried-nightly-for-horses-those-long/)

[Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/)

> [In the Christianity of Christendom the Cross has become something like the child’s hobby-horse and trumpet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/in-the-christianity-of-christendom-the-cross-has-become-something/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

[Browse all 3,533 Horse quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/horse/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "We judge a horse not only by its pace on a racecourse, but also by its walk, nay, when resting in its stable.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Michel de Montaigne"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/we-judge-a-horse-not-only-by-its-pace-on-a-racecourse-but-also-by-its/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Horse"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/we-judge-a-horse-not-only-by-its-pace-on-a-racecourse-but-also-by-its/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/637/michel-de-montaigne-142_horse_we-judge-a-horse-not-only-by-its-pace-on_1842789.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/637/michel-de-montaigne-142_horse_we-judge-a-horse-not-only-by-its-pace-on_1842789.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/637/michel-de-montaigne-142_horse_we-judge-a-horse-not-only-by-its-pace-on_1842789.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“We judge a horse not only by its pace on a racecourse, but also by its walk, nay, when resting in its stable.” — Michel de Montaigne",
                "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": "Michel de Montaigne",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-de-montaigne/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "We judge a horse not only...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/we-judge-a-horse-not-only-by-its-pace-on-a-racecourse-but-also-by-its/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/we-judge-a-horse-not-only-by-its-pace-on-a-racecourse-but-also-by-its/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
