---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Man's mind, stretched by a new idea…"
description: "\"Man's mind, stretched by a new idea, never goes back to its original dimensions.\" — Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/722/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr-2-207_creativity_man-s-mind-stretched-by-a-new-idea-never_502762.jpg"
---

#  Man's mind, stretched by a new idea, never goes back to…

![“Man's mind, stretched by a new idea, never goes back to its original dimensions.” quote by Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/722/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr-2-207_creativity_man-s-mind-stretched-by-a-new-idea-never_502762.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/722/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr-2-207_creativity_man-s-mind-stretched-by-a-new-idea-never_502762.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/722/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr-2-207_creativity_man-s-mind-stretched-by-a-new-idea-never_502762.jpg)

> “Man's mind, stretched by a new idea, never goes back to its original dimensions.”

[Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr-2/)

## About This Quote

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

New ideas expand mental capacity, preventing a return to old, limited thinking.

**In simple terms:** New ideas enlarge the mind.

Key Takeaway

Embrace fresh perspectives.

Themes

growth learning open-mindedness

Mood

inquisitive optimistic

Type

philosophical educational

When to use this quote

- education
- innovation
- personal development

Key Concepts

cognitive flexibility intellectual expansion

Questions to Reflect On

- What ideas have reshaped your thinking?
- How do you stay open to novel concepts?

A Different Perspective

Old habits may resist change despite new ideas.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Creativity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creativity/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) [New idea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/new-idea/) [Psychology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychology/)

## Related quotes

> [A man's mind stretched by a new idea can never go back to its original dimensions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-wendell-holmes/a-man-s-mind-stretched-by-a-new-idea-can-never-go-back-to-its/)

[Oliver Wendell Holmes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-wendell-holmes/)

> [One's mind, once stretched by a new idea, never regains its original dimensions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-wendell-holmes/one-s-mind-once-stretched-by-a-new-idea-never-regains-its-original/)

[Oliver Wendell Holmes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-wendell-holmes/)

> [The mind, once stretched by a new idea, never returns to its original dimensions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/the-mind-once-stretched-by-a-new-idea-never-returns-to-its-original/)

[Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/)

> [Man's mind, once stretched by a new idea, never regains its original dimensions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/man-s-mind-once-stretched-by-a-new-idea-never-regains-its-original/)

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

> [Man's mind stretched to a new idea never goes back to its original dimensions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-wendell-holmes/man-s-mind-stretched-to-a-new-idea-never-goes-back-to-its-original/)

[Oliver Wendell Holmes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-wendell-holmes/)

> [“A man's mind is stretched by a new idea or sensation, and never shrinks back to its former dimensions.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-wendell-holmes-sr/a-man-s-mind-is-stretched-by-a-new-idea-or-sensation-and-never/)

[Oliver Wendell Holmes Sr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-wendell-holmes-sr/)

> [Man's mind, once stretched by a new idea, never regains its original dimension.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-wendell-holmes/man-s-mind-once-stretched-by-a-new-idea-never-regains-its-original-2/)

[Oliver Wendell Holmes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-wendell-holmes/)

> [Every now and then a man's mind is stretched by a new idea or sensation, and never shrinks back to its former dimensions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/every-now-and-then-a-man-s-mind-is-stretched-by-a-new-idea-or/)

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

> [A mind that is stretched by new experiences can never go back to its old dimensions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr-2/a-mind-that-is-stretched-by-new-experiences-can-never-go-back-to-its/)

[Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr-2/)

> [I know everything, you see,' the old voice wheedled. 'The beginning, the present, the end. Everything. You now, you see the past and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-gardner/i-know-everything-you-see-the-old-voice-wheedled-the-beginning-the/)

[John Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-gardner/)

> [“A mind that is stretched by a new experience can never go back to its old dimensions. ~Oliver Wendall Holmes, Jr.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/k-langston/a-mind-that-is-stretched-by-a-new-experience-can-never-go-back-to-its/)

[K. Langston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/k-langston/)

> [“The best moments usually occur when a person’s body or mind is stretched to its limits in a voluntary effort to accomplish something difficult…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cal-newport/the-best-moments-usually-occur-when-a-person-s-body-or-mind-is/)

[Cal Newport](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cal-newport/)

> [“The mind, stretched to new dimensions by images, thoughts and ideas, can never return to its former shape.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/travis-luedke/the-mind-stretched-to-new-dimensions-by-images-thoughts-and-ideas-can/)

[Travis Luedke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/travis-luedke/)

> [In good company your thoughts run, in solitude your thought is still ... In talk your mind can be stretched, widened, exhilarated to heights,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumer-godden/in-good-company-your-thoughts-run-in-solitude-your-thought-is-still-2/)

[Rumer Godden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumer-godden/)

> [“In good company your thoughts run, in solitude your thought is still; it goes deeper and makes for itself a deeper groove, delves. Delve…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumer-godden/in-good-company-your-thoughts-run-in-solitude-your-thought-is-still/)

[Rumer Godden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumer-godden/)

## More by Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr

> [“Every idea is an incitement. It offers itself for belief and if believed it is acted on unless some other belief outweighs it or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr-2/every-idea-is-an-incitement-it-offers-itself-for-belief-and-if/)

[Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr-2/)

> [The right to swing my fist ends where the other man's nose begins.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr-2/the-right-to-swing-my-fist-ends-where-the-other-man-s-nose-begins/)

[Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr-2/)

> [“We are very quiet there, but it is the quiet of a storm centre. .”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr-2/we-are-very-quiet-there-but-it-is-the-quiet-of-a-storm-centre/)

[Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr-2/)

> [“A child's education should begin at least 100 years before he was born.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr-2/a-child-s-education-should-begin-at-least-100-years-before-he-was-born/)

[Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr-2/)

> [“Academic life is but half life it is a withdrawal from the fight to utter smart things that cost you nothing except the thinking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr-2/academic-life-is-but-half-life-it-is-a-withdrawal-from-the-fight-to/)

[Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr-2/)

> [You commit a sin of omission if you do not utilize all the power that is within you. All men have claims on man,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr-2/you-commit-a-sin-of-omission-if-you-do-not-utilize-all-the-power-that/)

[Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr-2/)

> [“Every year, if not every day, we have to wager our salvation upon some prophecy based upon imperfect knowledge.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr-2/every-year-if-not-every-day-we-have-to-wager-our-salvation-upon-some/)

[Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr-2/)

> [“We believed that it was most desirable that the North should win, we believed in the principle that the Union is indissoluable, we, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr-2/we-believed-that-it-was-most-desirable-that-the-north-should-win-we/)

[Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr-2/)

> [“A man who called everyone a damn fool is like a man who damns the weather. He only shows that he is not adapted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr-2/a-man-who-called-everyone-a-damn-fool-is-like-a-man-who-damns-the/)

[Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr-2/)

> [“We have shared the incommunicable experience of war, we have felt, we still feel, the passion of life to its top. In our youth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr-2/we-have-shared-the-incommunicable-experience-of-war-we-have-felt-we/)

[Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr-2/)

> [“The rational study of law is still to a large extent the study of history. History must be a part of the study, because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr-2/the-rational-study-of-law-is-still-to-a-large-extent-the-study-of/)

[Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr-2/)

> [Take a music bath once or twice a week for a few seasons, and you will find that it is to the soul what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr-2/take-a-music-bath-once-or-twice-a-week-for-a-few-seasons-and-you-will/)

[Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr-2/)

> [To be seventy years young is sometimes for more cheerful and hopeful than to be forty years old.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr-2/to-be-seventy-years-young-is-sometimes-for-more-cheerful-and-hopeful/)

[Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr-2/)

> [“But, nevertheless, the generation that carried on the war has been set apart by its experience. Through our great good fortune, in our youth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr-2/but-nevertheless-the-generation-that-carried-on-the-war-has-been-set/)

[Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr-2/)

> [I have no respect for the passion of equality, which seems to me merely idealizing envy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr-2/i-have-no-respect-for-the-passion-of-equality-which-seems-to-me/)

[Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr-2/)

[Explore all 30 Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr-2/)

## More Creativity quotes

> [The prophet who fails to present a bearable alternative and yet preaches doom is part of the trap that he postulates. Not only does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mead/the-prophet-who-fails-to-present-a-bearable-alternative-and-yet/)

[Margaret Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mead/)

> [That's the great secret of creativity. You treat ideas like cats: you make them follow you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/that-s-the-great-secret-of-creativity-you-treat-ideas-like-cats-you/)

[Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/)

> [“The Soviet “creative intelligentsia” - that is, people accustomed to thinking one thing, saying another and doing a third - is as a whole…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrei-amalrik/the-soviet-creative-intelligentsia-that-is-people-accustomed-to/)

Andrei Amalrik

> [It’s so important to create in your own voice, to hold onto what makes you unique, and have faith in your vision.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lasseter/it-s-so-important-to-create-in-your-own-voice-to-hold-onto-what-makes/)

[John Lasseter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lasseter/)

> [A rock pile ceases to be a rock pile the moment a single man contemplates it, bearing within him the image of a cathedral.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/a-rock-pile-ceases-to-be-a-rock-pile-the-moment-a-single-man/)

[Antoine de Saint-Exupery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/)

> [You don't get lucky. You create lucky.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-sharma/you-don-t-get-lucky-you-create-lucky/)

[Robin Sharma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-sharma/)

> [By making conscious choices in our behavior and where we focus our attention, we can transform our experience of our body, decrease our biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/by-making-conscious-choices-in-our-behavior-and-where-we-focus-our/)

[Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/)

> [“You are the end of beauty and creativity one must have created so far.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-f-moonzajer/you-are-the-end-of-beauty-and-creativity-one-must-have-created-so-far/)

[M.F. Moonzajer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-f-moonzajer/)

> [Jonah Lehrer is one of the most talented explainers of science that we’ve got. What a pleasure it is to follow his investigation of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joshua-foer/jonah-lehrer-is-one-of-the-most-talented-explainers-of-science-that/)

[Joshua Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joshua-foer/)

> [If you've got creativity, imagination, and intelligence, and you want to be hypnotised, then there's no reason you shouldn't be able to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-barry/if-you-ve-got-creativity-imagination-and-intelligence-and-you-want-to/)

[Keith Barry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-barry/)

> [“I believe in magic. As a writer, I create them on blank paper.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sonnia-kemmer/i-believe-in-magic-as-a-writer-i-create-them-on-blank-paper/)

[Sonnia Kemmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sonnia-kemmer/)

> [Creativity is like chasing chickens.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christoph-niemann/creativity-is-like-chasing-chickens/)

Christoph Niemann

> [It is proposed that a form of free dialogue may well be one of the most effective ways of investigating the crisis which faces…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bohm/it-is-proposed-that-a-form-of-free-dialogue-may-well-be-one-of-the/)

[David Bohm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bohm/)

> [You always hear actors say, 'Theater is my first love,' and it is. It's a time when you really get to do what you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-landecker/you-always-hear-actors-say-theater-is-my-first-love-and-it-is-it-s-a/)

[Amy Landecker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-landecker/)

> [Create an environment for people to fail, to learn, and to grow. Their creativity and productivity will increase.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/create-an-environment-for-people-to-fail-to-learn-and-to-grow-their/)

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

[Browse all 13,625 Creativity quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creativity/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Man's mind, stretched by a new idea, never goes back to its original dimensions.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr-2/man-s-mind-stretched-by-a-new-idea-never-goes-back-to-its-original/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Creativity"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr-2/man-s-mind-stretched-by-a-new-idea-never-goes-back-to-its-original/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/722/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr-2-207_creativity_man-s-mind-stretched-by-a-new-idea-never_502762.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/722/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr-2-207_creativity_man-s-mind-stretched-by-a-new-idea-never_502762.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/722/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr-2-207_creativity_man-s-mind-stretched-by-a-new-idea-never_502762.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Man's mind, stretched by a new idea, never goes back to its original dimensions.” — Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr",
                "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": "Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr-2/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Man's mind, stretched by a new...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr-2/man-s-mind-stretched-by-a-new-idea-never-goes-back-to-its-original/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr-2/man-s-mind-stretched-by-a-new-idea-never-goes-back-to-its-original/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```