--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: To know, is to know that you know…" description: "\"To know, is to know that you know nothing. That is the meaning of true knowledge. For a man who claims to have knowledge, while actually knowing nothin..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3b4/socrates-405_claims_to-know-is-to-know-that-you-know-nothing_1197559.jpg" --- # To know, is to know that you know nothing. That is the… ![“To know, is to know that you know nothing. That is the meaning of true knowledge. For a man who claims to have knowledge, while actually knowing nothing, is less smarter than you, who claim to know nothing.” quote by Socrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3b4/socrates-405_claims_to-know-is-to-know-that-you-know-nothing_1197559.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3b4/socrates-405_claims_to-know-is-to-know-that-you-know-nothing_1197559.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3b4/socrates-405_claims_to-know-is-to-know-that-you-know-nothing_1197559.jpg) > “To know, is to know that you know nothing. That is the meaning of true knowledge. For a man who claims to have knowledge, while actually knowing nothing, is less smarter than you, who claim to know nothing.” [Socrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/socrates/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. True knowledge is recognizing one’s own ignorance. **In simple terms:** Admit what you don’t know. Key Takeaway Embrace intellectual humility. Themes wisdom humility learning Mood thoughtful inquisitive Type philosophical educational When to use this quote - education - debate - personal development Key Concepts Socratic method epistemology Questions to Reflect On - How does admitting ignorance aid learning? - What steps help you move from ignorance to knowledge? A Different Perspective May be misinterpreted as lack of confidence. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Knowing nothing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knowing-nothing/) [Knowledge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knowledge/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [True knowledge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/true-knowledge/) ## Related quotes > [To know, is to know that you know nothing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/socrates/to-know-is-to-know-that-you-know-nothing/) [Socrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/socrates/) > [To know is to know that you know nothing. That is the meaning of true knowledge.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/to-know-is-to-know-that-you-know-nothing-that-is-the-meaning-of-true/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [To know, is to know that you know nothing. That is the meaning of true knowledge. When you say something, say what you know.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/confucius/to-know-is-to-know-that-you-know-nothing-that-is-the-meaning-of-true-3/) [Confucius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/confucius/) > [But shortcuts are dangerous; we cannot delude ourselves that our knowledge is further along than it actually is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mihaly-csikszentmihalyi/but-shortcuts-are-dangerous-we-cannot-delude-ourselves-that-our/) [Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mihaly-csikszentmihalyi/) > [“The resulting flood of information, always of varying quality and sometimes of uncertain sanity, creates a veneer of knowledge that actually leaves people worse…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-m-nichols/the-resulting-flood-of-information-always-of-varying-quality-and/) [Thomas M. Nichols](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-m-nichols/) > [I am wiser than this man, for neither of us appears to know anything great and good; but he fancies he knows something, although…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/socrates/i-am-wiser-than-this-man-for-neither-of-us-appears-to-know-anything/) [Socrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/socrates/) > [I know one thing, that I know nothing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/socrates/i-know-one-thing-that-i-know-nothing/) [Socrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/socrates/) > [The only thing I know is that I know nothing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/socrates/the-only-thing-i-know-is-that-i-know-nothing/) [Socrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/socrates/) > [Nobody knows anything, but I, knowing nothing, am the smartest man in the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/socrates/nobody-knows-anything-but-i-knowing-nothing-am-the-smartest-man-in/) [Socrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/socrates/) > [True knowledge exists in knowing that you know nothing. And in knowing that you know nothing, that makes you the smartest of all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/socrates/true-knowledge-exists-in-knowing-that-you-know-nothing-and-in-knowing/) [Socrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/socrates/) > [True knowledge exists in knowing that you know nothing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/socrates/true-knowledge-exists-in-knowing-that-you-know-nothing/) [Socrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/socrates/) > [“But when you're in second grade, you don't yet know the meaning of impossible”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adina-rishe-gewirtz/but-when-you-re-in-second-grade-you-don-t-yet-know-the-meaning-of/) Adina Rishe Gewirtz > [“Nothing is without meaning. What matters is you know that meaning or not.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i-love-the-way-you-love-me/nothing-is-without-meaning-what-matters-is-you-know-that-meaning-or/) [I Love the way you love me](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/i-love-the-way-you-love-me/) > [“In one ear the anthropologist (daughter): how are you? meaning: stay alive. In the other the artist (mother): I don't know. meaning: prepare to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erin-moure/in-one-ear-the-anthropologist-daughter-how-are-you-meaning-stay-alive/) [Erin Moure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erin-moure/) > [Who love me no matter what, and know the meaning of real beauty&compassion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ahmed-hashim/who-love-me-no-matter-what-and-know-the-meaning-of-real-beauty/) [Ahmed Hashim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ahmed-hashim/) ## More by Socrates > [By all means marry; if you get a good wife, you'll be happy. If you get a bad one, you'll become a philosopher.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/socrates/by-all-means-marry-if-you-get-a-good-wife-you-ll-be-happy-if-you-get/) [Socrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/socrates/) > [Falling down is not a failure. Failure comes when you stay where you have fallen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/socrates/falling-down-is-not-a-failure-failure-comes-when-you-stay-where-you/) [Socrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/socrates/) > [Do not go through life like leaf blown from here to there believing whatever you are told.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/socrates/do-not-go-through-life-like-leaf-blown-from-here-to-there-believing/) [Socrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/socrates/) > [If the whole world depends on today's youth, I can't see the world lasting another 100 years.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/socrates/if-the-whole-world-depends-on-today-s-youth-i-can-t-see-the-world/) [Socrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/socrates/) > [“I only know, I know nothing”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/socrates/i-only-know-i-know-nothing/) [Socrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/socrates/) > [I cannot teach anybody anything, I can only make them think.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/socrates/i-cannot-teach-anybody-anything-i-can-only-make-them-think/) [Socrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/socrates/) > [If measure and symmetry are absent from any composition in any degree, ruin awaits both the ingredients and the composition... Measure and symmetry are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/socrates/if-measure-and-symmetry-are-absent-from-any-composition-in-any-degree/) [Socrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/socrates/) > [Marry a good woman, and be happy the rest of your life. Or, marry a bad, and become a good philosopher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/socrates/marry-a-good-woman-and-be-happy-the-rest-of-your-life-or-marry-a-bad/) [Socrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/socrates/) > [“For the fear of death is indeed the pretense of wisdom, and not real wisdom, being a pretense of knowing the unknown; and no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/socrates/for-the-fear-of-death-is-indeed-the-pretense-of-wisdom-and-not-real/) [Socrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/socrates/) > [There is no difference between knowledge and temperance; for he who knows what is good and embraces it, who knows what is bad and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/socrates/there-is-no-difference-between-knowledge-and-temperance-for-he-who/) [Socrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/socrates/) > [Besides, it is a shame to let yourself grow old through neglect before seeing how you can develop the maximum beauty and strength of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/socrates/besides-it-is-a-shame-to-let-yourself-grow-old-through-neglect-before/) [Socrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/socrates/) > [The greatest blessing granted to mankind come by way of madness, which is a divine gift.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/socrates/the-greatest-blessing-granted-to-mankind-come-by-way-of-madness-which/) [Socrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/socrates/) > [I desire only to know the truth, and to live as well as I can...And, to the utmost of my power, I exhort all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/socrates/i-desire-only-to-know-the-truth-and-to-live-as-well-as-i-can-and-to/) [Socrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/socrates/) > [So you would rather suffer an injustice than do an injustice?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/socrates/so-you-would-rather-suffer-an-injustice-than-do-an-injustice/) [Socrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/socrates/) > [The end of life is to be like unto God; and the soul following God, will be like unto Him; He being the beginning,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/socrates/the-end-of-life-is-to-be-like-unto-god-and-the-soul-following-god/) [Socrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/socrates/) [Explore all 579 Socrates quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/socrates/) ## More Claims quotes > [One of the worst things to come out of the Consumer Protection Board's misleading claims is the impression that government resources are to hard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-lesko/one-of-the-worst-things-to-come-out-of-the-consumer-protection-board/) [Matthew Lesko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-lesko/) > [Now I am in the place I call this wide wide Heaven because it includes all my simplest desires but also the most humble…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/now-i-am-in-the-place-i-call-this-wide-wide-heaven-because-it/) [Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/) > [A common fallacy in much of the adverse criticism to which science is subjected today is that it claims certainty, infallibility and complete emotional…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cyril-norman-hinshelwood/a-common-fallacy-in-much-of-the-adverse-criticism-to-which-science-is/) [Cyril Norman Hinshelwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cyril-norman-hinshelwood/) > [We do not claim that punning is legitimate wit. Wit consists in combination of ideas, punning in combination of words only. We wonder at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harriet-hosmer/we-do-not-claim-that-punning-is-legitimate-wit-wit-consists-in/) [Harriet Hosmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harriet-hosmer/) > [It is popular to call it a crisis of the Western world. It is in fact a crisis of the whole world. Communism, which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/whittaker-chambers/it-is-popular-to-call-it-a-crisis-of-the-western-world-it-is-in-fact/) [Whittaker Chambers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/whittaker-chambers/) > [One argument goes that recessions are good for female artists because when money flies out the window, women are allowed in the house. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-saltz/one-argument-goes-that-recessions-are-good-for-female-artists-because/) [Jerry Saltz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-saltz/) > [Atheist’s denial of God’s existence needs just as much substantiation as does the theist’s claim; the atheist must give plausible reasons for rejecting God’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-copan/atheist-s-denial-of-god-s-existence-needs-just-as-much-substantiation/) [Paul Copan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-copan/) > [In luggage claim at the Minneapolis airport, the guy came up to me and said, "Maybe you're wrong, maybe stories do matter." I wrote…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-dicamillo/in-luggage-claim-at-the-minneapolis-airport-the-guy-came-up-to-me-and/) [Kate DiCamillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-dicamillo/) > [The rights essential to happiness. . . . We claim them from a higher source - from the King of kings and Lord of all the earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dickinson/the-rights-essential-to-happiness-we-claim-them-from-a-higher-source/) [John Dickinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dickinson/) > [Those who do not know what love is likens it to beauty Those who claim to know what love is likens it to ugliness…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tite-kubo/those-who-do-not-know-what-love-is-likens-it-to-beauty-those-who/) [Tite Kubo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tite-kubo/) > [If ever my life can be of any use to you, come and claim it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anton-chekhov/if-ever-my-life-can-be-of-any-use-to-you-come-and-claim-it/) [Anton Chekhov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anton-chekhov/) > [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/) > [How can I set free anyone who doesn't have the guts to stand up alone and declare his own freedom? I think it's a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-morrison/how-can-i-set-free-anyone-who-doesn-t-have-the-guts-to-stand-up-alone/) [Jim Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-morrison/) > [The Chinese describe themselves as political refugees. Many base that claim on China's strict population laws, which allow them to have only one child.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-koch/the-chinese-describe-themselves-as-political-refugees-many-base-that/) [Ed Koch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-koch/) > [Life is so full of meaning and of purpose, so full of beauty - beneath its covering - that you will find that earth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giovanni-giocondo/life-is-so-full-of-meaning-and-of-purpose-so-full-of-beauty-beneath/) [Giovanni Giocondo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giovanni-giocondo/) Browse all 2,762 Claims quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "To know, is to know that you know nothing. That is the meaning of true knowledge. For a man who claims to have knowledge, while actually knowing nothing, is less smarter than you, who claim to know nothing.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Socrates" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/socrates/to-know-is-to-know-that-you-know-nothing-that-is-the-meaning-of-true-2/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Claims" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/socrates/to-know-is-to-know-that-you-know-nothing-that-is-the-meaning-of-true-2/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3b4/socrates-405_claims_to-know-is-to-know-that-you-know-nothing_1197559.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3b4/socrates-405_claims_to-know-is-to-know-that-you-know-nothing_1197559.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3b4/socrates-405_claims_to-know-is-to-know-that-you-know-nothing_1197559.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“To know, is to know that you know nothing. That is the meaning of true knowledge. For a man who claims to…” — Socrates", "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": "Socrates", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/socrates/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "To know, is to know that...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/socrates/to-know-is-to-know-that-you-know-nothing-that-is-the-meaning-of-true-2/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/socrates/to-know-is-to-know-that-you-know-nothing-that-is-the-meaning-of-true-2/#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 } } ] } ```