--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: You can never be absolutely certain that…" description: "\"You can never be absolutely certain that anything doesn't exist. But you can show that it's unlikely.\" — Richard Dawkins" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ef0/richard-dawkins-115_certain_you-can-never-be-absolutely-certain-that_2231577.jpg" --- # You can never be absolutely certain that anything doesn't… ![“You can never be absolutely certain that anything doesn't exist. But you can show that it's unlikely.” quote by Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ef0/richard-dawkins-115_certain_you-can-never-be-absolutely-certain-that_2231577.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ef0/richard-dawkins-115_certain_you-can-never-be-absolutely-certain-that_2231577.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ef0/richard-dawkins-115_certain_you-can-never-be-absolutely-certain-that_2231577.jpg) > “You can never be absolutely certain that anything doesn't exist. But you can show that it's unlikely.” [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. We cannot prove a negative, but we can argue that the odds against something's existence are high. **In simple terms:** We can’t be 100% sure something doesn’t exist, but we can show it’s unlikely. Key Takeaway Assess evidence and consider probabilities. Themes science philosophy skepticism probability Mood analytical skeptical Type philosophical scientific When to use this quote - debates on supernatural claims - evaluating conspiracy theories - scientific research - critical thinking Key Concepts epistemology burden of proof falsifiability Questions to Reflect On - What evidence would change your assessment? - How do you handle uncertainty in decision‑making? A Different Perspective Proof of non‑existence is often impossible; uncertainty remains. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Absolutely Certain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/absolutely-certain-315248/) [Certain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/certain/) [Doesn Exist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doesn-exist/) [Exist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/exist/) [Exist Unlikely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/exist-unlikely-4080496/) [Shows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shows/) [Unlikely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unlikely/) ## Related quotes > [“Yet there is also something curiously exhilarating about the contemplation of deep time. True, you learn yourself to be a blip in the larger…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-macfarlane/yet-there-is-also-something-curiously-exhilarating-about-the/) [Robert Macfarlane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-macfarlane/) > [What a man can't remember doesn't exist for him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-ludlum/what-a-man-can-t-remember-doesn-t-exist-for-him/) [Robert Ludlum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-ludlum/) > [I care too much about us, even us doesn't even exist ..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jaypee/i-care-too-much-about-us-even-us-doesn-t-even-exist/) [Jaypee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jaypee/) > [I don't strive for perfection, because it doesn't exist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mya/i-don-t-strive-for-perfection-because-it-doesn-t-exist/) [Mya](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mya/) > [Failure doesn't exist. It's only a change of direction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alejandro-jodorowsky/failure-doesn-t-exist-it-s-only-a-change-of-direction/) [Alejandro Jodorowsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alejandro-jodorowsky/) > [I mean, time for me, I can make it go slow or fast, however I please. That's how I know it doesn't exist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willow-smith/i-mean-time-for-me-i-can-make-it-go-slow-or-fast-however-i-please/) [Willow Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willow-smith/) > [You don't get everything you want. That doesn't exist in this realm.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adriana-trigiani/you-don-t-get-everything-you-want-that-doesn-t-exist-in-this-realm/) [Adriana Trigiani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adriana-trigiani/) > [I was born in Bollywood, life before Bollywood doesn't exist for me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackky-bhagnani/i-was-born-in-bollywood-life-before-bollywood-doesn-t-exist-for-me/) [Jackky Bhagnani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackky-bhagnani/) > [Radio 1 doesn't exist to me. I don't judge my success by anything they say.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/skepta/radio-1-doesn-t-exist-to-me-i-don-t-judge-my-success-by-anything-they/) [Skepta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/skepta/) > [I'm not a slave to a god that doesn't exist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-manson/i-m-not-a-slave-to-a-god-that-doesn-t-exist/) [Marilyn Manson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-manson/) > [Fashion has to be worn; otherwise it doesn't exist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolina-herrera/fashion-has-to-be-worn-otherwise-it-doesn-t-exist/) [Carolina Herrera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carolina-herrera/) > [Lob City doesn't exist anymore. Lob City is done.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blake-griffin/lob-city-doesn-t-exist-anymore-lob-city-is-done/) [Blake Griffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blake-griffin/) > [When it can't be done, do it. If you don't do it, it doesn't exist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-arden/when-it-can-t-be-done-do-it-if-you-don-t-do-it-it-doesn-t-exist/) [Paul Arden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-arden/) > [A work of art doesn't exist outside the perception of the audience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abbas-kiarostami/a-work-of-art-doesn-t-exist-outside-the-perception-of-the-audience/) [Abbas Kiarostami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abbas-kiarostami/) > [There's nothing more dangerous than a place that doesn't exist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-turley/there-s-nothing-more-dangerous-than-a-place-that-doesn-t-exist/) [Jonathan Turley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-turley/) ## More by Richard Dawkins > [At the deepest level, all living things that have ever been looked at have the same DNA code. And many of the same genes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/at-the-deepest-level-all-living-things-that-have-ever-been-looked-at/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [The word 'mundane' has come to mean 'boring' and 'dull', and it really shouldn't - it should mean the opposite. Because it comes from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/the-word-mundane-has-come-to-mean-boring-and-dull-and-it-really/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [We animals are the most complicated things in the known universe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/we-animals-are-the-most-complicated-things-in-the-known-universe/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [“The fundamentalist Kurt Wise proclaims that all the evidence in the universe would not change his mind. The true scientist, however passionately he may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/the-fundamentalist-kurt-wise-proclaims-that-all-the-evidence-in-the/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [“I have found it an amusing strategy, when asked whether I am an atheist, to point out that the questioner is also an atheist…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/i-have-found-it-an-amusing-strategy-when-asked-whether-i-am-an/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [Religions do make claims about the universe--the same kinds of claims that scientists make, except they're usually false.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/religions-do-make-claims-about-the-universe-the-same-kinds-of-claims/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [“much of the Bible is not systematically evil but just plain weird, as you would expect of a chaotically cobbled-together anthology of disjointed documents,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/much-of-the-bible-is-not-systematically-evil-but-just-plain-weird-as/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [The recurrent laryngeal nerve - which runs from the head to the voice box - goes all the way down into the chest, loops…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/the-recurrent-laryngeal-nerve-which-runs-from-the-head-to-the-voice/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [The Roman Catholic Church is an institution for whose gains the phrase "ill-gotten" might have been specially invented. And of all its money-making rip-offs,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/the-roman-catholic-church-is-an-institution-for-whose-gains-the/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [Let us understand what our own selfish genes are up to because we may then at least have the chance to upset their designs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/let-us-understand-what-our-own-selfish-genes-are-up-to-because-we-may/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [What's going to happen when I die? I may be buried, or I may be cremated, I may give my body to science. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/what-s-going-to-happen-when-i-die-i-may-be-buried-or-i-may-be/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [Or why it is acceptable to train fast runners and high jumpers but not to breed them. I can think of some answers, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/or-why-it-is-acceptable-to-train-fast-runners-and-high-jumpers-but/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [We have seen that living things are too improbable and too beautifully 'designed' to have come into existence by chance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/we-have-seen-that-living-things-are-too-improbable-and-too/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [“We will not go quietly away. If in the future that requires violence”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/we-will-not-go-quietly-away-if-in-the-future-that-requires-violence/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [It's a truly disgusting idea that the creator of the universe - capable of inventing the laws of physics and designing the evolutionary process…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/it-s-a-truly-disgusting-idea-that-the-creator-of-the-universe-capable/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) [Explore all 1,239 Richard Dawkins quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) ## More Certain quotes > [I am certain that children always know more than they are able to tell, and that makes the big difference between them and adults,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-lusseyran/i-am-certain-that-children-always-know-more-than-they-are-able-to/) [Jacques Lusseyran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-lusseyran/) > [One can put some trust in the gratitude of a sovereign, and also in that of his family; under certain conditions, one can even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-von-bismarck/one-can-put-some-trust-in-the-gratitude-of-a-sovereign-and-also-in/) [Otto von Bismarck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-von-bismarck/) > [For successful education there must always be a certain freshness in the knowledge dealt with. It must be either new in itself or invested…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/for-successful-education-there-must-always-be-a-certain-freshness-in/) [Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/) > [People don't always realize that a record is forever. It'll always be there under your name. You've got to be certain that it's right.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-iero/people-don-t-always-realize-that-a-record-is-forever-it-ll-always-be/) [Frank Iero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-iero/) > [Faith gives you a certain structure and meaning to your life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/riffat-hassan/faith-gives-you-a-certain-structure-and-meaning-to-your-life/) [Riffat Hassan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/riffat-hassan/) > [I started out dancing on a reality TV show, but always with the intention of making my way over to film. I transitioned into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julianne-hough/i-started-out-dancing-on-a-reality-tv-show-but-always-with-the/) [Julianne Hough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julianne-hough/) > [One of the deepest and strangest of all human moods is the mood which will suddenly strike us perhaps in a garden at night,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/one-of-the-deepest-and-strangest-of-all-human-moods-is-the-mood-which/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [A dialogue is very important. It is a form of communication in which question and answer continue till a question is left without an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jiddu-krishnamurti/a-dialogue-is-very-important-it-is-a-form-of-communication-in-which/) [Jiddu Krishnamurti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jiddu-krishnamurti/) > [I mean those people who are interested in good government will certainly contribute in order to make certain there's some counter-balance to those whose…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-breyer/i-mean-those-people-who-are-interested-in-good-government-will/) [Stephen Breyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-breyer/) > [Why do we love certain homes, and why do they seem to love us? It is the warmth of our individual hearts reflected in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-h-robsjohn-gibbings/why-do-we-love-certain-homes-and-why-do-they-seem-to-love-us-it-is/) [T. H. Robsjohn-Gibbings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-h-robsjohn-gibbings/) > [Human life consists of doing certain things ... to take part in the life of the community; to be able to talk about subjects…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amartya-sen/human-life-consists-of-doing-certain-things-to-take-part-in-the-life/) [Amartya Sen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amartya-sen/) > [We've all seen talented young players who get to a certain level but there comes a point where that talent will only take you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-gatland/we-ve-all-seen-talented-young-players-who-get-to-a-certain-level-but/) [Warren Gatland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-gatland/) > [The concept of humanity is an especially useful ideological instrument of imperialist expansion, and in its ethical-humanitarian form it is a specific vehicle of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-schmitt/the-concept-of-humanity-is-an-especially-useful-ideological/) [Carl Schmitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-schmitt/) > [I think that at a certain age, say fifteen or sixteen, poetry is like masturbation. But later in life good poets burn their early…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/i-think-that-at-a-certain-age-say-fifteen-or-sixteen-poetry-is-like/) [Umberto Eco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umberto-eco/) > [If a person does not listen to the demands of their own spiritual and heart life and insists on a certain program, you're going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/if-a-person-does-not-listen-to-the-demands-of-their-own-spiritual-and/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) [Browse all 13,673 Certain quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/certain/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "You can never be absolutely certain that anything doesn't exist. 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