--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I think that we all do heroic things, but…" description: "\"I think that we all do heroic things, but hero is not a noun, it's a verb.\" — Robert Downey, Jr" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/369/robert-downey-jr-3620_hero_i-think-that-we-all-do-heroic-things-but_3156860.png" --- # I think that we all do heroic things, but hero is not a… ![“I think that we all do heroic things, but hero is not a noun, it's a verb.” quote by Robert Downey, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/369/robert-downey-jr-3620_hero_i-think-that-we-all-do-heroic-things-but_3156860.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/369/robert-downey-jr-3620_hero_i-think-that-we-all-do-heroic-things-but_3156860.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/369/robert-downey-jr-3620_hero_i-think-that-we-all-do-heroic-things-but_3156860.png) > “I think that we all do heroic things, but hero is not a noun, it's a verb.” [Robert Downey, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-downey-jr/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Heroism is defined by actions, not titles; heroism is a verb, not a noun. **In simple terms:** Being heroic is about what you do, not who you are called. Key Takeaway Act heroically in everyday life. Themes action identity heroism Mood inspirational motivational Type philosophical practical When to use this quote - volunteering - leadership - standing up for others - daily challenges Key Concepts verb vs noun ethical behavior Questions to Reflect On - What small actions can you take today? - How does redefining heroism change your self‑view? A Different Perspective Not all actions are recognized as heroic, leading to underappreciation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Hero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hero/) [Heroic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heroic/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [You are a vain fellow. You want to be a hero. That is why you do such silly things. A hero!... I don't quite…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/romain-rolland/you-are-a-vain-fellow-you-want-to-be-a-hero-that-is-why-you-do-such/) [Romain Rolland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/romain-rolland/) > [“It’s tragic to think that heroic man’s great destiny is to become economic man, that men will be reduced to craven creatures who crawl…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-donovan/it-s-tragic-to-think-that-heroic-man-s-great-destiny-is-to-become/) [Jack Donovan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-donovan/) > [I think of few heroic actions, which cannot be traced to the artistical impulse. He who does great deeds, does them from his innate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/i-think-of-few-heroic-actions-which-cannot-be-traced-to-the/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [“Before she closed her eyes tonight, Rose said she regretted that she has not done something heroic in her life. Well, it's not like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lori-lansens/before-she-closed-her-eyes-tonight-rose-said-she-regretted-that-she/) [Lori Lansens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lori-lansens/) > [There's soldiers out there every day that are doing heroic things... We don't need to create them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessica-lynch/there-s-soldiers-out-there-every-day-that-are-doing-heroic-things-we/) [Jessica Lynch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessica-lynch/) > [I think it is the hardest thing in the world. I'm endlessly intrigued by what human nature is capable of, both the horrible things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veena-sud/i-think-it-is-the-hardest-thing-in-the-world-i-m-endlessly-intrigued/) [Veena Sud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veena-sud/) > [“here’s the thing about being a hero: Only a few ever make it into the history books. Every day, people do heroic things. Every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yasmine-galenorn/here-s-the-thing-about-being-a-hero-only-a-few-ever-make-it-into-the/) [Yasmine Galenorn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yasmine-galenorn/) > [There are people who can do all fine and heroic things but one - keep from telling their happiness to the unhappy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/there-are-people-who-can-do-all-fine-and-heroic-things-but-one-keep/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [In the history of the concept of number has been adjective (three cows, three monads) and noun (three, pure and simple), and now ...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-mazur/in-the-history-of-the-concept-of-number-has-been-adjective-three-cows/) [Barry Mazur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-mazur/) > [Who dreamt and made incarnate gaps in Time & Space through images juxtaposed, and trapped the archangel of the soul between 2 visual images…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allen-ginsberg/who-dreamt-and-made-incarnate-gaps-in-time-space-through-images/) [Allen Ginsberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allen-ginsberg/) > [Mother is a verb, not a noun.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shonda-rhimes/mother-is-a-verb-not-a-noun/) [Shonda Rhimes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shonda-rhimes/) > [I live on Earth at present, and I don’t know what I am. I know that I am not a category. I am not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-buckminster-fuller/i-live-on-earth-at-present-and-i-don-t-know-what-i-am-i-know-that-i/) [R. Buckminster Fuller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-buckminster-fuller/) > [Happiness is not a noun or a verb. It's a conjunction. Connective tissue.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-weiner/happiness-is-not-a-noun-or-a-verb-it-s-a-conjunction-connective-tissue/) [Eric Weiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-weiner/) > [Our happiness is completely and utterly intertwined with other people: family and friends and neighbors and the woman you hardly notice who cleans your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-weiner/our-happiness-is-completely-and-utterly-intertwined-with-other-people/) [Eric Weiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-weiner/) > [“Nouns, verbs do not exist for what I feel.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-berryman/nouns-verbs-do-not-exist-for-what-i-feel/) [John Berryman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-berryman/) ## More by Robert Downey, Jr > [I was kind of like chasing my tail and trying to do the right thing, and was a little bit stupid. Or irresponsible, which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-downey-jr/i-was-kind-of-like-chasing-my-tail-and-trying-to-do-the-right-thing/) [Robert Downey, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-downey-jr/) > [Discipline for me is about respect. It's not even about self-respect; it's about respect for life and all it offers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-downey-jr/discipline-for-me-is-about-respect-it-s-not-even-about-self-respect/) [Robert Downey, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-downey-jr/) > [Give me a scotch, I'm starving.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-downey-jr/give-me-a-scotch-i-m-starving/) [Robert Downey, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-downey-jr/) > [People never change because they are under threat or under duress. Never. They change because they see something that makes their life seem valuable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-downey-jr/people-never-change-because-they-are-under-threat-or-under-duress/) [Robert Downey, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-downey-jr/) > [Remember that just because you hit bottom doesn't mean you have to stay there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-downey-jr/remember-that-just-because-you-hit-bottom-doesn-t-mean-you-have-to/) [Robert Downey, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-downey-jr/) > [I don't like words coming out of a character's mouth that I adore because not only is he a little bit duplicitous but he's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-downey-jr/i-don-t-like-words-coming-out-of-a-character-s-mouth-that-i-adore/) [Robert Downey, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-downey-jr/) > [I don't want to be so confident in myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-downey-jr/i-don-t-want-to-be-so-confident-in-myself/) [Robert Downey, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-downey-jr/) > [Pick a dysfunction and it's a family problem.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-downey-jr/pick-a-dysfunction-and-it-s-a-family-problem/) [Robert Downey, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-downey-jr/) > [My old man had a philosophy: peace means having a bigger stick than the other guy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-downey-jr/my-old-man-had-a-philosophy-peace-means-having-a-bigger-stick-than/) [Robert Downey, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-downey-jr/) > [Nobody learns a German aria overnight, except Jared Harris.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-downey-jr/nobody-learns-a-german-aria-overnight-except-jared-harris/) [Robert Downey, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-downey-jr/) > [You can't go from a $2,000-a-night suite at La Mirage to a penitentiary, and really understand it, and come out a liberal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-downey-jr/you-can-t-go-from-a-2-000-a-night-suite-at-la-mirage-to-a/) [Robert Downey, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-downey-jr/) > [I'm an actor, a husband, a father of two, and a full-time Avenger.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-downey-jr/i-m-an-actor-a-husband-a-father-of-two-and-a-full-time-avenger/) [Robert Downey, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-downey-jr/) > [I take some pride in... representing myself exactly how I would like to have my son remember me to his kids.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-downey-jr/i-take-some-pride-in-representing-myself-exactly-how-i-would-like-to/) [Robert Downey, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-downey-jr/) > [Peace means having a bigger stick than the other guy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-downey-jr/peace-means-having-a-bigger-stick-than-the-other-guy/) [Robert Downey, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-downey-jr/) > [I've always just shown up and tried to figure out what's for lunch and am I going to get to play some racquetball that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-downey-jr/i-ve-always-just-shown-up-and-tried-to-figure-out-what-s-for-lunch/) [Robert Downey, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-downey-jr/) [Explore all 126 Robert Downey, Jr quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-downey-jr/) ## More Hero quotes > [I've always been fascinated by the idea that there's no such thing as evil; it's all in your point of view. To one group…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eli-roth/i-ve-always-been-fascinated-by-the-idea-that-there-s-no-such-thing-as/) [Eli Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eli-roth/) > [I am convinced that we will never build a democratic state based on rule of law if we do not at the same time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vaclav-havel/i-am-convinced-that-we-will-never-build-a-democratic-state-based-on/) [Vaclav Havel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vaclav-havel/) > [I am tired of our characters being so incomplete. When do we ever save the day in a film? When does a Latino actor…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esai-morales/i-am-tired-of-our-characters-being-so-incomplete-when-do-we-ever-save/) [Esai Morales](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esai-morales/) > [When the first Superman movie came out I was frequently asked "What is a hero?" ...My answer was that a hero is someone who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-reeve/when-the-first-superman-movie-came-out-i-was-frequently-asked-what-is/) [Christopher Reeve](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-reeve/) > ['Melanin Man' was inspired by the words of an Uber driver in L.A. Before I got out of the car he said, 'They're scared…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masego/melanin-man-was-inspired-by-the-words-of-an-uber-driver-in-l-a-before/) [Masego](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masego/) > [Once the state has been founded, there can no longer be any heroes. They come on the scene only in uncivilized conditions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/once-the-state-has-been-founded-there-can-no-longer-be-any-heroes/) [Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/) > [You know, I often thought that the gangster and the artist are the same in the eyes of the masses. They're admired and hero-worshipped…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-kubrick/you-know-i-often-thought-that-the-gangster-and-the-artist-are-the/) [Stanley Kubrick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-kubrick/) > [“A hero is not know by the number of battles he has won, but rather by the kind of battles he chooses to fight.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tonny-k-brown/a-hero-is-not-know-by-the-number-of-battles-he-has-won-but-rather-by/) [Tonny K. Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tonny-k-brown/) > [The last act in the biography of the hero is that of the death or departure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/the-last-act-in-the-biography-of-the-hero-is-that-of-the-death-or/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [Teachers are heroes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-best/teachers-are-heroes/) [Charles Best](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-best/) > [“Forgotten hero was never the real hero, real hero can not be forgotten.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amit-kalantri/forgotten-hero-was-never-the-real-hero-real-hero-can-not-be-forgotten/) [Amit Kalantri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amit-kalantri/) > ['Sex and The City' was made to correct the myth that if you were single at a certain age, you were a leper. Its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-patrick-king/sex-and-the-city-was-made-to-correct-the-myth-that-if-you-were-single/) [Michael Patrick King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-patrick-king/) > [I believe in a world where there are no heroes, and I've read and know humanity a lot. There are moments that I admire…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orhan-pamuk/i-believe-in-a-world-where-there-are-no-heroes-and-i-ve-read-and-know/) [Orhan Pamuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orhan-pamuk/) > [O it's Tommy this, and Tommy that, and Tommy 'ow's your soul/But it's thin red line of heroes when the drums begin to roll.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudyard-kipling/o-it-s-tommy-this-and-tommy-that-and-tommy-ow-s-your-soul-but-it-s/) [Rudyard Kipling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudyard-kipling/) > [Benny Carter came up to me and said to me, "You know, in the whole history of the alto, I think Phil is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-gordon/benny-carter-came-up-to-me-and-said-to-me-you-know-in-the-whole/) [Jon Gordon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-gordon/) [Browse all 5,602 Hero quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hero/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I think that we all do heroic things, but hero is not a noun, it's a verb.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Robert Downey, Jr" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-downey-jr/i-think-that-we-all-do-heroic-things-but-hero-is-not-a-noun-it-s-a/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Hero" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-downey-jr/i-think-that-we-all-do-heroic-things-but-hero-is-not-a-noun-it-s-a/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/369/robert-downey-jr-3620_hero_i-think-that-we-all-do-heroic-things-but_3156860.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/369/robert-downey-jr-3620_hero_i-think-that-we-all-do-heroic-things-but_3156860.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/369/robert-downey-jr-3620_hero_i-think-that-we-all-do-heroic-things-but_3156860.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I think that we all do heroic things, but hero is not a noun, it's a verb.” — Robert Downey, 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": "Robert Downey, Jr", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-downey-jr/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I think that we all do...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-downey-jr/i-think-that-we-all-do-heroic-things-but-hero-is-not-a-noun-it-s-a/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-downey-jr/i-think-that-we-all-do-heroic-things-but-hero-is-not-a-noun-it-s-a/#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 } } ] } ```