--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Often have brief words laid men low and…" description: "\"Often have brief words laid men low and then raise them up.\" — Sophocles" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/df7/sophocles-370_lows_often-have-brief-words-laid-men-low-and_2329455.png" --- # Often have brief words laid men low and then raise them up. ![“Often have brief words laid men low and then raise them up.” quote by Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/df7/sophocles-370_lows_often-have-brief-words-laid-men-low-and_2329455.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/df7/sophocles-370_lows_often-have-brief-words-laid-men-low-and_2329455.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/df7/sophocles-370_lows_often-have-brief-words-laid-men-low-and_2329455.png) > “Often have brief words laid men low and then raise them up.” [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Harsh criticism can crush a person, but kind words can restore dignity. **In simple terms:** Mean words hurt, kind words heal. Key Takeaway Speak kindly to lift others. Themes humility compassion communication Mood empathetic reflective Type motivational inspirational When to use this quote - workplace feedback - parenting - public speaking - conflict resolution Key Concepts psychology social dynamics Questions to Reflect On - How can you turn criticism into constructive feedback? - What words have lifted you? A Different Perspective Kind words may be ignored if not backed by action. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Brief Words](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/brief-words-719925/) [Laid Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/laid-men-3311669/) [Low Raise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/low-raise-5597794/) [Lows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lows/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Raise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/raise/) [Raises](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/raises/) [Speech](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/speech/) [Words Laid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/words-laid-3768588/) ## Related quotes > [And in Clonmacnois they laid the men of Teffia,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angus-o-gillan-fl-14th-century/and-in-clonmacnois-they-laid-the-men-of-teffia/) [Angus O'Gillan (fl 14th Century](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angus-o-gillan-fl-14th-century/) > [“I cannot fix on the hour, or the spot, or the look, or the words which laid the foundation. It is too long ago.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amanda-grange/i-cannot-fix-on-the-hour-or-the-spot-or-the-look-or-the-words-which-2/) [Amanda Grange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amanda-grange/) > [The impossible talked of is less impossible from the moment words are laid to it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/storm-jameson/the-impossible-talked-of-is-less-impossible-from-the-moment-words-are/) [Storm Jameson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/storm-jameson/) > [If you would be pungent, be brief; for it is with words as with sunbeams - the more they are condensed, the deeper they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-southey/if-you-would-be-pungent-be-brief-for-it-is-with-words-as-with/) [Robert Southey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-southey/) > [If you be pungent, be brief; for it is with words as with sunbeams - the more they are condensed the deeper they burn.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dryden/if-you-be-pungent-be-brief-for-it-is-with-words-as-with-sunbeams-the/) [John Dryden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dryden/) > [One of the biggest challenges is for women to find an organization that's willing to accept them back after they leave the work force…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-garnick/one-of-the-biggest-challenges-is-for-women-to-find-an-organization/) [Diane Garnick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-garnick/) > [I raise up my voice-not so I can shout but so that those without a voice can be heard...we cannot succeed when half of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malala-yousafzai/i-raise-up-my-voice-not-so-i-can-shout-but-so-that-those-without-a/) [Malala Yousafzai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malala-yousafzai/) > [Our contemporary society is experimenting with the diminishment of caregivers for children. Some children are raised through crucial stages of life by only one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-gurian/our-contemporary-society-is-experimenting-with-the-diminishment-of/) [Michael Gurian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-gurian/) > [The truth is that as we move forward, if one side says we can't raise any taxes on anybody or any interest, and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-axelrod/the-truth-is-that-as-we-move-forward-if-one-side-says-we-can-t-raise/) [David Axelrod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-axelrod/) > [If you don't raise the bar, how will you ever know your potential?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-tom-perry/if-you-don-t-raise-the-bar-how-will-you-ever-know-your-potential/) [L. Tom Perry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-tom-perry/) > [I would be embarrassed to tell you how many folks ran saying that they weren't going to spend a bunch of money, they weren't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mick-mulvaney/i-would-be-embarrassed-to-tell-you-how-many-folks-ran-saying-that/) [Mick Mulvaney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mick-mulvaney/) > [Agrarian reform should not merely subdivide misery, it must raise living standards. Ownership raises the farmer from his, but productivity will keep him on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/agrarian-reform-should-not-merely-subdivide-misery-it-must-raise/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If you like me, raise your hand. If you don't, raise your standards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shahrukh-khan/if-you-like-me-raise-your-hand-if-you-don-t-raise-your-standards/) [Shahrukh Khan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shahrukh-khan/) > [I can't raise the bar of others if I haven't raised the bar for myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-c-maxwell/i-can-t-raise-the-bar-of-others-if-i-haven-t-raised-the-bar-for-myself/) [John C. Maxwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-c-maxwell/) > [Raise up the people beside you & quit worshipping those above you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-brogan/raise-up-the-people-beside-you-quit-worshipping-those-above-you/) [Chris Brogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-brogan/) ## More by Sophocles > [Those whose life is long still strive for gain, and for all mortals all things take second place to money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/those-whose-life-is-long-still-strive-for-gain-and-for-all-mortals/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) > [God's dice always have a lucky roll.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/god-s-dice-always-have-a-lucky-roll/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) > [A fool cannot be an actor, though an actor may act a fool's part.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/a-fool-cannot-be-an-actor-though-an-actor-may-act-a-fool-s-part/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) > [Go then if you must, but remember, no matter how foolish your deeds, those who love you will love you still.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/go-then-if-you-must-but-remember-no-matter-how-foolish-your-deeds/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) > [Man's worst ill is stubbornness of heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/man-s-worst-ill-is-stubbornness-of-heart/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) > [A lie never lives to be old.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/a-lie-never-lives-to-be-old/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) > [How dangerous can false reasoning prove!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/how-dangerous-can-false-reasoning-prove/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) > [Why should man fear since chance is all in all for him, and he can clearly foreknow nothing? Best to live lightly, as one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/why-should-man-fear-since-chance-is-all-in-all-for-him-and-he-can/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) > [“But life takes sudden twists.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/but-life-takes-sudden-twists/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) > [When ice appears out of doors, and boys seize it up while it is solid, at first they experience new pleasures. But in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/when-ice-appears-out-of-doors-and-boys-seize-it-up-while-it-is-solid/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) > [For God hates utterly the bray of bragging tongues.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/for-god-hates-utterly-the-bray-of-bragging-tongues/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) > [“I have nothing but contempt for the kind of governor who is afraid, for whatever reason, to follow the course that he knows is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/i-have-nothing-but-contempt-for-the-kind-of-governor-who-is-afraid/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) > [“Not from Hades' black and universal lake can you lift him. Not by groaning, not by prayers. Yet you run yourself out in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/not-from-hades-black-and-universal-lake-can-you-lift-him-not-by/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) > [A fearful man is always hearing things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/a-fearful-man-is-always-hearing-things/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) > [There is a point at which even justice does injury.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/there-is-a-point-at-which-even-justice-does-injury/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) [Explore all 621 Sophocles quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) ## More Lows quotes > [It is indeed a surprising and fortunate fact that nature can be expressed by relatively low-order mathematical functions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudolf-carnap/it-is-indeed-a-surprising-and-fortunate-fact-that-nature-can-be/) [Rudolf Carnap](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudolf-carnap/) > [A low-minded person should not be given good advice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chanakya/a-low-minded-person-should-not-be-given-good-advice/) [Chanakya](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chanakya/) > [This is true; virtually all edible substances, and many automotive products, are now marketed as being low-fat or fat-free. 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Laugh at good stories and learn to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mother-teresa/keep-the-corners-of-your-mouth-turned-up-speak-in-a-low-persuasive/) [Mother Teresa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mother-teresa/) > [In our own time the whole of Greece has been subject to a low birth rate and a general decrease of the population, owing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/polybius/in-our-own-time-the-whole-of-greece-has-been-subject-to-a-low-birth/) [Polybius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/polybius/) > [There was no mistake in us making abortion legal and available on demand. That was what we call progress. Just like it was no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-ruffalo/there-was-no-mistake-in-us-making-abortion-legal-and-available-on/) [Mark Ruffalo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-ruffalo/) > [In low theologies, hell is invariably the deepest truth, and the love of God is not so deep as hell.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-macdonald/in-low-theologies-hell-is-invariably-the-deepest-truth-and-the-love/) [George MacDonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-macdonald/) > [My phone rings, they call me up and say, 'Chael, your testosterone level is too high.' I say, 'Well, how high was it?' They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chael-sonnen/my-phone-rings-they-call-me-up-and-say-chael-your-testosterone-level/) [Chael Sonnen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chael-sonnen/) > [While all men are born as equals, to say that Brahmins alone are the highest and all others are low as Pariah (the Untouchables)…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/periyar-e-v-ramasamy/while-all-men-are-born-as-equals-to-say-that-brahmins-alone-are-the/) [Periyar E. V. Ramasamy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/periyar-e-v-ramasamy/) > [I see a lot of true artists... then you see them on the cover of Maxim. That's the lowest of low to me. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheyenne-kimball/i-see-a-lot-of-true-artists-then-you-see-them-on-the-cover-of-maxim/) [Cheyenne Kimball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheyenne-kimball/) > [Low levels of vitamin D in the population as a whole suggest that most people need to take a vitamin D supplement. 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