--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The bees can abide no drones amongst…" description: "\"The bees can abide no drones amongst them; but as soon as they begin to be idle, they kill them.\" — Plato" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/297/plato-103_bees_the-bees-can-abide-no-drones-amongst-the_1783560.jpg" --- # The bees can abide no drones amongst them; but as soon as… ![“The bees can abide no drones amongst them; but as soon as they begin to be idle, they kill them.” quote by Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/297/plato-103_bees_the-bees-can-abide-no-drones-amongst-the_1783560.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/297/plato-103_bees_the-bees-can-abide-no-drones-amongst-the_1783560.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/297/plato-103_bees_the-bees-can-abide-no-drones-amongst-the_1783560.jpg) > “The bees can abide no drones amongst them; but as soon as they begin to be idle, they kill them.” [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Bees eliminate idle drones to protect colony efficiency, illustrating strict social order. **In simple terms:** Bees punish laziness. Key Takeaway Maintain diligence in community roles. Themes discipline community efficiency Mood serious cautionary Type ethical philosophical When to use this quote - workplace teams - family responsibilities - military units - ecosystem management Key Concepts social hierarchy biology Questions to Reflect On - How do you address idleness constructively? - What balance exists between order and flexibility? A Different Perspective Harsh enforcement can stifle creativity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Abide Drones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abide-drones-1883152/) [Bees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bees/) [Bees Abide](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bees-abide-1883150/) [Drones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/drones/) [Honey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/honey/) [Idle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/idle/) [Idle Kill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/idle-kill-1883151/) [Idleness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/idleness/) ## Related quotes > [Democracy does not contain any force which will check the constant tendency to put more and more on the public payroll. The state is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/democracy-does-not-contain-any-force-which-will-check-the-constant/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [“The men only do something when they’re told to. That’s why they’re called drones. You’ll see a lot more humor in this someday when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-ebben/the-men-only-do-something-when-they-re-told-to-that-s-why-they-re/) [Jay Ebben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-ebben/) > [Others, again, give us the mere carcass of another man’s thoughts, but deprived of all their life and spirit, and this is to add…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-caleb-colton/others-again-give-us-the-mere-carcass-of-another-man-s-thoughts-but/) [Charles Caleb Colton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-caleb-colton/) > [Revenge commonly hurts both the offerer and sufferer; as we see in a foolish bee, which in her anger invenometh the flesh and loseth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-hall/revenge-commonly-hurts-both-the-offerer-and-sufferer-as-we-see-in-a/) [Joseph Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-hall/) > [Just as the queen bee, the highest-ranking, peerless creature of her hive, is surrounded by lowly drones to please her, whereas the workers produce…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-grillparzer/just-as-the-queen-bee-the-highest-ranking-peerless-creature-of-her/) [Franz Grillparzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-grillparzer/) > [Worker bees can leave. Even drones can fly away. The Queen is their slave.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/worker-bees-can-leave-even-drones-can-fly-away-the-queen-is-their/) [Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/) > [When the hornet hangs in the hollyhock, And the brown bee drones in the rose, And the west is a red-streaked four-o'clock, And summer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madison-cawein/when-the-hornet-hangs-in-the-hollyhock-and-the-brown-bee-drones-in/) [Madison Cawein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madison-cawein/) > [Well for the drones of the social hive that there are bees of an industrious turn, willing, for an infinitesimal share of the honey,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hood/well-for-the-drones-of-the-social-hive-that-there-are-bees-of-an/) [Thomas Hood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hood/) > [His Labor is a Chant - His Idleness -a Tune - Oh, for a Bee's experience Of Clovers, and of Noon!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-dickinson/his-labor-is-a-chant-his-idleness-a-tune-oh-for-a-bee-s-experience-of/) [Emily Dickinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-dickinson/) > [Prefer diligence before idleness, unless you esteem rust above brightness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/prefer-diligence-before-idleness-unless-you-esteem-rust-above/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [I think the greatest threat to the privacy of Americans is the drone, and the use of the drone and the very few regulations…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dianne-feinstein/i-think-the-greatest-threat-to-the-privacy-of-americans-is-the-drone/) [Dianne Feinstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dianne-feinstein/) > [If when you hear a song by OK Go you conjure up thoughts of a gigantic Rube Goldberg device or treadmills or drones or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-martin/if-when-you-hear-a-song-by-ok-go-you-conjure-up-thoughts-of-a/) [Rachel Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-martin/) > [What am I doing with my life am I living it or am I just going to some hum drum job that I don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kai-greene/what-am-i-doing-with-my-life-am-i-living-it-or-am-i-just-going-to/) [Kai Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kai-greene/) > [It's hard for people to feel secure when there are unexplained drones flying overhead and they're not getting answers they need from the federal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-kim/it-s-hard-for-people-to-feel-secure-when-there-are-unexplained-drones/) [Andy Kim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-kim/) > [ I became an instant fan of the show \[Underground\] seconds into the opening frames of the pilot. When that drone shot carried us through… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aisha-hinds/i-became-an-instant-fan-of-the-show-underground-seconds-into-the/) [Aisha Hinds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aisha-hinds/) ## More by Plato > [Each man is capable of doing one thing well. If he attempts several, he will fail to achieve distinction in any.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/each-man-is-capable-of-doing-one-thing-well-if-he-attempts-several-he/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [You may be sure, dear Crito, that inaccurate language is not only in itself a mistake: it implants evil in men's souls.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/you-may-be-sure-dear-crito-that-inaccurate-language-is-not-only-in/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [“If men learn this, it will implant forgetfulness in their souls; they will cease to exercise memory because they rely on that which is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/if-men-learn-this-it-will-implant-forgetfulness-in-their-souls-they/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [Knowledge which is acquired under compulsion obtains no hold on the mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/knowledge-which-is-acquired-under-compulsion-obtains-no-hold-on-the/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [I do not think it is permitted that a better man be harmed by a worse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/i-do-not-think-it-is-permitted-that-a-better-man-be-harmed-by-a-worse/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [Any city, however small, is in fact divided into two, one the city of the poor, the other of the rich; these are at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/any-city-however-small-is-in-fact-divided-into-two-one-the-city-of/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [When men speak ill of thee, live so as nobody may believe them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/when-men-speak-ill-of-thee-live-so-as-nobody-may-believe-them/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [“The love of man to woman is a thing common and of course, and at first partakes more of instinct and passion than of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/the-love-of-man-to-woman-is-a-thing-common-and-of-course-and-at-first/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [Strange times are these in which we live when old and young are taught in falsehood's school, and the one man that dares to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/strange-times-are-these-in-which-we-live-when-old-and-young-are/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [“He was a wise man who invented God.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/he-was-a-wise-man-who-invented-god/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [For let me tell you, that the more the pleasures of the body fade away, the greater to me is the pleasure and charm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/for-let-me-tell-you-that-the-more-the-pleasures-of-the-body-fade-away/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [“What shall we say about those spectators, then, who can see a plurality of beautiful things, but not beauty itself, and who are incapable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/what-shall-we-say-about-those-spectators-then-who-can-see-a-plurality/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [Geometry existed before creation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/geometry-existed-before-creation/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [When men speak ill of thee, live so that nobody will believe them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/when-men-speak-ill-of-thee-live-so-that-nobody-will-believe-them/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [We must, if we are to be consistent, and if we re to have a real pedigree herd, mate the best of our men…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/we-must-if-we-are-to-be-consistent-and-if-we-re-to-have-a-real/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) [Explore all 1,278 Plato quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) ## More Bees quotes > [Those who have not been stung will hardly fear a bee the same as those who have.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/those-who-have-not-been-stung-will-hardly-fear-a-bee-the-same-as/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) > [Arouse a bee and it will come at you with the force of a dragon.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/takeda-shingen/arouse-a-bee-and-it-will-come-at-you-with-the-force-of-a-dragon/) [Takeda Shingen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/takeda-shingen/) > [Pray look upon the plants and birds, the ants, spiders, and bees, and you will see them all exerting their nature, and busy in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-aurelius/pray-look-upon-the-plants-and-birds-the-ants-spiders-and-bees-and-you/) [Marcus Aurelius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-aurelius/) > [You see, years ago I was just an ordinary bee minding my own business, smelling flowers all day, and occasionally picking up part-time work…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norton-juster/you-see-years-ago-i-was-just-an-ordinary-bee-minding-my-own-business/) [Norton Juster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norton-juster/) > [As the bee collecteth honey with great zest, so the fool collecteth wealth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kabir/as-the-bee-collecteth-honey-with-great-zest-so-the-fool-collecteth/) [Kabir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kabir/) > [It is hard to imagine a world without bees. It would be even harder to live in it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-gardiner/it-is-hard-to-imagine-a-world-without-bees-it-would-be-even-harder-to/) [Barry Gardiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-gardiner/) > [When I heard that the bees were in trouble, the fact that they're disappearing and not coming back to the hive, which is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louie-schwartzberg/when-i-heard-that-the-bees-were-in-trouble-the-fact-that-they-re/) [Louie Schwartzberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louie-schwartzberg/) > [Precise, graceful, and generous, the poems in SuperLoop, seem to be born out of a deep, careful attention and a profound compassion. Sometimes the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ada-limon/precise-graceful-and-generous-the-poems-in-superloop-seem-to-be-born/) [Ada Limon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ada-limon/) > [The little bee returns with evening's gloom, To join her comrades in the braided hive, Where, housed beside their might honey-comb, They dream their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-tennyson-turner/the-little-bee-returns-with-evening-s-gloom-to-join-her-comrades-in/) [Charles Tennyson Turner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-tennyson-turner/) > [“This time of year, the purple blooms were busy with life- not just the bees, but butterflies and ladybugs, skippers and emerald-toned beetles, flitting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-wiggs/this-time-of-year-the-purple-blooms-were-busy-with-life-not-just-the/) [Susan Wiggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-wiggs/) > [“Bees chase flowers.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-l-shreve/bees-chase-flowers/) [Tracy L. Shreve](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-l-shreve/) > [My banks they are furnish'd with bees, Whose murmur invites one to sleep.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shenstone/my-banks-they-are-furnish-d-with-bees-whose-murmur-invites-one-to/) [William Shenstone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shenstone/) > [There are certain pursuits which, if not wholly poetic and true, do at least suggest a nobler and finer relation to nature than we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/there-are-certain-pursuits-which-if-not-wholly-poetic-and-true-do-at/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [The Bee Gees are a fly-by-night sort of group.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-gibb/the-bee-gees-are-a-fly-by-night-sort-of-group/) [Barry Gibb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-gibb/) > [“I don't like to hear cut and dried sermons. No—when I hear a man preach, I like to see him act as if he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/i-don-t-like-to-hear-cut-and-dried-sermons-no-when-i-hear-a-man/) [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) [Browse all 770 Bees quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bees/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The bees can abide no drones amongst them; but as soon as they begin to be idle, they kill them.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Plato" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/the-bees-can-abide-no-drones-amongst-them-but-as-soon-as-they-begin/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Bees" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/the-bees-can-abide-no-drones-amongst-them-but-as-soon-as-they-begin/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/297/plato-103_bees_the-bees-can-abide-no-drones-amongst-the_1783560.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/297/plato-103_bees_the-bees-can-abide-no-drones-amongst-the_1783560.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/297/plato-103_bees_the-bees-can-abide-no-drones-amongst-the_1783560.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The bees can abide no drones amongst them; but as soon as they begin to be idle, they kill them.” — Plato", "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": "Plato", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The bees can abide no drones...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/the-bees-can-abide-no-drones-amongst-them-but-as-soon-as-they-begin/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/the-bees-can-abide-no-drones-amongst-them-but-as-soon-as-they-begin/#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 } } ] } ```