---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: He who praises everybody, praises nobody."
description: "\"He who praises everybody, praises nobody.\" — Samuel Johnson"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bac/samuel-johnson-50_praises_he-who-praises-everybody-praises-nobody_1749405.png"
---

#  He who praises everybody, praises nobody.

![“He who praises everybody, praises nobody.” quote by Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bac/samuel-johnson-50_praises_he-who-praises-everybody-praises-nobody_1749405.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bac/samuel-johnson-50_praises_he-who-praises-everybody-praises-nobody_1749405.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bac/samuel-johnson-50_praises_he-who-praises-everybody-praises-nobody_1749405.png)

> “He who praises everybody, praises nobody.”

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

## About This Quote

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

Universal praise dilutes value; specific commendation is needed to truly acknowledge merit.

**In simple terms:** Praising everyone loses meaning.

Key Takeaway

Give targeted praise.

Themes

recognition value communication social dynamics

Mood

reflective constructive

Type

advice philosophical

When to use this quote

- leadership
- teaching
- team management
- customer service

Key Concepts

psychology ethics

Questions to Reflect On

- When have you felt praise was generic?
- How can you make feedback more specific?

A Different Perspective

Overgeneralized praise can feel insincere.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Everybody Praises](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/everybody-praises-1592881/) [Praises](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/praises/) [Praises Everybody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/praises-everybody-1592882/)

## Related quotes

> [When you're doing good, everybody praises you. But when everything's all gone, a lot of people are nowhere to be found. So you always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ginuwine/when-you-re-doing-good-everybody-praises-you-but-when-everything-s/)

[Ginuwine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ginuwine/)

> [A "classic" is a book that everybody praises but nobody has read](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/a-classic-is-a-book-that-everybody-praises-but-nobody-has-read/)

[Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/)

> [To be flattered is grateful, even when we know that our praises are not believed by those who pronounce them; for they prove, at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/to-be-flattered-is-grateful-even-when-we-know-that-our-praises-are/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [There are reproaches which praise, and praises which defame.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francois-de-la-rochefoucauld/there-are-reproaches-which-praise-and-praises-which-defame/)

[Francois de La Rochefoucauld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-de-la-rochefoucauld/)

> [Guys in slavery sang praises to the Lord to deliver them from bondage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-hayes/guys-in-slavery-sang-praises-to-the-lord-to-deliver-them-from-bondage/)

[Isaac Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-hayes/)

> [If somebody praises you; change the topic!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/if-somebody-praises-you-change-the-topic/)

[Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/)

> [He, who praises you for what you have not, wishes to take from you what you have.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/he-who-praises-you-for-what-you-have-not-wishes-to-take-from-you-what/)

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

> [The thoughts of those moved by natural human love are almost completely fastened on the beloved, their hearts are filled with passion for it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-francis-de-sales/the-thoughts-of-those-moved-by-natural-human-love-are-almost/)

[Saint Francis de Sales](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-francis-de-sales/)

> [Praises I make we hail Ras Tafari. Ise I mek we hail Ras Tafari. I mmh mmh like Martin Luther King. Marcus Garvey and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/big-youth/praises-i-make-we-hail-ras-tafari-ise-i-mek-we-hail-ras-tafari-i-mmh/)

[Big Youth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/big-youth/)

> [The disgraces I suffer should be attributed to me, but the praises that I get go to my family and teachers. It is they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamal-haasan/the-disgraces-i-suffer-should-be-attributed-to-me-but-the-praises/)

[Kamal Haasan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamal-haasan/)

> [Your praises will become your wages.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/your-praises-will-become-your-wages/)

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

> [A full stomach praises Lent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/italian-proverb/a-full-stomach-praises-lent/)

[Italian Proverb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/italian-proverb/)

> [Primarily affecting low-information voters and members of the mainstream media, Obama Worship Syndrome attributes impossible capabilities to Obama's political opponents, finds excuses for every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-shapiro/primarily-affecting-low-information-voters-and-members-of-the/)

[Ben Shapiro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-shapiro/)

> [I could NEVER stop giving God all the praises for he has been better to me than I have been to myself. My worship…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fantasia-barrino/i-could-never-stop-giving-god-all-the-praises-for-he-has-been-better/)

[Fantasia Barrino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fantasia-barrino/)

> [I never want to get caught up in praises. Never want to get caught up in people telling me how good I am.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarvis-landry/i-never-want-to-get-caught-up-in-praises-never-want-to-get-caught-up/)

[Jarvis Landry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarvis-landry/)

## More by Samuel Johnson

> [The size of a man's understanding might always be justly measured by his mirth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/the-size-of-a-man-s-understanding-might-always-be-justly-measured-by/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [Pound St. Paul's Church into atoms, and consider any single atom; it is to be sure, good for nothing; but put all these atoms…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/pound-st-paul-s-church-into-atoms-and-consider-any-single-atom-it-is/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [You can never be wise unless you love reading.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/you-can-never-be-wise-unless-you-love-reading/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [If our aim is to praise, we should forget to criticize; if our aim is to criticize, we should remember to praise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/if-our-aim-is-to-praise-we-should-forget-to-criticize-if-our-aim-is/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [All theory is against free will; all experience is for it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/all-theory-is-against-free-will-all-experience-is-for-it/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [Had I learned to fiddle, I should have done nothing else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/had-i-learned-to-fiddle-i-should-have-done-nothing-else/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [It is as foolish to make experiments upon the constancy of a friend, as upon the chastity of a wife.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/it-is-as-foolish-to-make-experiments-upon-the-constancy-of-a-friend/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [Resolve not to be poor: whatever you have, spend less. Poverty is a great enemy to human happiness; it certainly destroys liberty, and it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/resolve-not-to-be-poor-whatever-you-have-spend-less-poverty-is-a/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [The basis of all excellence is truth: he that professes love ought to feel its power.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/the-basis-of-all-excellence-is-truth-he-that-professes-love-ought-to/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [Words are daughters of earth but ideas are sons of heaven.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/words-are-daughters-of-earth-but-ideas-are-sons-of-heaven/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [“The composition of Shakespeare is a forest, in which oaks extend in the air, interspersed sometimes with weeds and brambles, and sometimes giving shelting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/the-composition-of-shakespeare-is-a-forest-in-which-oaks-extend-in/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [“The cherubim were never intended as an object of worship, because they were only the appendices to another thing. But a thing is then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/the-cherubim-were-never-intended-as-an-object-of-worship-because-they/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [Nobody has the right to put another under such a difficulty that he must either hurt the person by telling the truth or hurt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/nobody-has-the-right-to-put-another-under-such-a-difficulty-that-he/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [That kind of life is most happy which affords us most opportunities of gaining our own self-esteem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/that-kind-of-life-is-most-happy-which-affords-us-most-opportunities/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [The time will come to every human being when it must be known how well he can bear to die.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/the-time-will-come-to-every-human-being-when-it-must-be-known-how/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

[Explore all 1,998 Samuel Johnson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

## More Praises quotes

> [I never want to get caught up in praises. Never want to get caught up in people telling me how good I am.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarvis-landry/i-never-want-to-get-caught-up-in-praises-never-want-to-get-caught-up/)

[Jarvis Landry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarvis-landry/)

> [I could NEVER stop giving God all the praises for he has been better to me than I have been to myself. My worship…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fantasia-barrino/i-could-never-stop-giving-god-all-the-praises-for-he-has-been-better/)

[Fantasia Barrino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fantasia-barrino/)

> [Primarily affecting low-information voters and members of the mainstream media, Obama Worship Syndrome attributes impossible capabilities to Obama's political opponents, finds excuses for every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-shapiro/primarily-affecting-low-information-voters-and-members-of-the/)

[Ben Shapiro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-shapiro/)

> [A full stomach praises Lent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/italian-proverb/a-full-stomach-praises-lent/)

[Italian Proverb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/italian-proverb/)

> [Your praises will become your wages.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/your-praises-will-become-your-wages/)

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

> [The disgraces I suffer should be attributed to me, but the praises that I get go to my family and teachers. It is they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamal-haasan/the-disgraces-i-suffer-should-be-attributed-to-me-but-the-praises/)

[Kamal Haasan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamal-haasan/)

> [Praises I make we hail Ras Tafari. Ise I mek we hail Ras Tafari. I mmh mmh like Martin Luther King. Marcus Garvey and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/big-youth/praises-i-make-we-hail-ras-tafari-ise-i-mek-we-hail-ras-tafari-i-mmh/)

[Big Youth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/big-youth/)

> [The thoughts of those moved by natural human love are almost completely fastened on the beloved, their hearts are filled with passion for it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-francis-de-sales/the-thoughts-of-those-moved-by-natural-human-love-are-almost/)

[Saint Francis de Sales](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-francis-de-sales/)

> [He, who praises you for what you have not, wishes to take from you what you have.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/he-who-praises-you-for-what-you-have-not-wishes-to-take-from-you-what/)

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

> [If somebody praises you; change the topic!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/if-somebody-praises-you-change-the-topic/)

[Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/)

> [Guys in slavery sang praises to the Lord to deliver them from bondage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-hayes/guys-in-slavery-sang-praises-to-the-lord-to-deliver-them-from-bondage/)

[Isaac Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-hayes/)

> [There are reproaches which praise, and praises which defame.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francois-de-la-rochefoucauld/there-are-reproaches-which-praise-and-praises-which-defame/)

[Francois de La Rochefoucauld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-de-la-rochefoucauld/)

> [But they're already singing our praises!" "They are Americans. They toot their horns for anything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-westerfeld/but-they-re-already-singing-our-praises-they-are-americans-they-toot/)

[Scott Westerfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-westerfeld/)

> [It would not be possible to praises nurses too highly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-ambrose/it-would-not-be-possible-to-praises-nurses-too-highly/)

[Stephen Ambrose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-ambrose/)

> [A good book praises itself](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/german-proverb/a-good-book-praises-itself/)

[German Proverb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/german-proverb/)

[Browse all 92 Praises quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/praises/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "He who praises everybody, praises nobody.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Samuel Johnson"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/he-who-praises-everybody-praises-nobody/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Praises"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/he-who-praises-everybody-praises-nobody/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bac/samuel-johnson-50_praises_he-who-praises-everybody-praises-nobody_1749405.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bac/samuel-johnson-50_praises_he-who-praises-everybody-praises-nobody_1749405.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bac/samuel-johnson-50_praises_he-who-praises-everybody-praises-nobody_1749405.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“He who praises everybody, praises nobody.” — Samuel Johnson",
                "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": "Samuel Johnson",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "He who praises everybody, praises nobody.",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/he-who-praises-everybody-praises-nobody/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/he-who-praises-everybody-praises-nobody/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```