--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It's only the dead who'll tell you the…" description: "\"It's only the dead who'll tell you the truth.\" — Thomas Adcock" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/625/thomas-adcock-51018_dead_it-s-only-the-dead-who-ll-tell-you-the-t_625686.jpg" --- # It's only the dead who'll tell you the truth. ![“It's only the dead who'll tell you the truth.” quote by Thomas Adcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/625/thomas-adcock-51018_dead_it-s-only-the-dead-who-ll-tell-you-the-t_625686.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/625/thomas-adcock-51018_dead_it-s-only-the-dead-who-ll-tell-you-the-t_625686.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/625/thomas-adcock-51018_dead_it-s-only-the-dead-who-ll-tell-you-the-t_625686.jpg) > “It's only the dead who'll tell you the truth.” [Thomas Adcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-adcock/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Only those who have died can reveal ultimate truths, suggesting truth lies beyond the living. **In simple terms:** Dead reveal truth. Key Takeaway Seek wisdom beyond the obvious. Themes mortality truth wisdom afterlife Mood somber thoughtful Type philosophical reflective When to use this quote - writing - philosophy - spiritual reflection Key Concepts existential insight philosophical paradox Questions to Reflect On - What truths do we ignore while alive? - How do we validate posthumous claims? A Different Perspective Truth may be distorted by memory or bias. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Dead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dead/) [Dead Ll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dead-ll-3292160/) [Ll Tell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ll-tell-245841/) [Tell Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tell-truth-238974/) [Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth/) ## Related quotes > [Tell me we're dead and I'll love you even more.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-siken/tell-me-we-re-dead-and-i-ll-love-you-even-more/) [Richard Siken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-siken/) > [One day I'll be dead and THEN you'll all be sorry.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/one-day-i-ll-be-dead-and-then-you-ll-all-be-sorry/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [“Honor is dead. But I'll see what I can do.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brandon-sanderson/honor-is-dead-but-i-ll-see-what-i-can-do/) [Brandon Sanderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brandon-sanderson/) > [I hope when I'm dead I'll be considered an icon, though.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lady-gaga/i-hope-when-i-m-dead-i-ll-be-considered-an-icon-though/) [Lady Gaga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lady-gaga/) > [If it's dead, I'll eat it. If it's alive, I'll eat it, too. Jus put it in front of me and get out of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-henry/if-it-s-dead-i-ll-eat-it-if-it-s-alive-i-ll-eat-it-too-jus-put-it-in/) [Mark Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-henry/) > [I’ll tell you the truth and its up to you to live with it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-goldman/i-ll-tell-you-the-truth-and-its-up-to-you-to-live-with-it/) [William Goldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-goldman/) > [I'll tell you the truth, even in an election year, and that's what people are ready for.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-cotton/i-ll-tell-you-the-truth-even-in-an-election-year-and-that-s-what/) [Tom Cotton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-cotton/) > [I'm objective because I tell the truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gennaro-gattuso/i-m-objective-because-i-tell-the-truth/) [Gennaro Gattuso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gennaro-gattuso/) > [When you're playing country music, you have to tell the truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christian-kane/when-you-re-playing-country-music-you-have-to-tell-the-truth/) [Christian Kane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christian-kane/) > [“Be interesting. Tell the truth. And if you can’t tell the truth, change what you’re doing so you can. In other words, live the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonah-sachs/be-interesting-tell-the-truth-and-if-you-can-t-tell-the-truth-change/) [Jonah Sachs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonah-sachs/) > [Tell the truth and you won't have so much to remember](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/tell-the-truth-and-you-won-t-have-so-much-to-remember/) [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) > [Tell the truth, or someone else will tell it for you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/tell-the-truth-or-someone-else-will-tell-it-for-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“…there’s nothing in this world that demands more caution than the truth. To tell the truth is like leeching one’s own heart...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/there-s-nothing-in-this-world-that-demands-more-caution-than-the/) [Umberto Eco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umberto-eco/) > [It requires as much to tell the truth as to conceal it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/baltasar-gracian/it-requires-as-much-to-tell-the-truth-as-to-conceal-it/) [Baltasar Gracian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/baltasar-gracian/) > [When a young artist asks me a question, I want to do what I can to give them an answer if I have it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-tait/when-a-young-artist-asks-me-a-question-i-want-to-do-what-i-can-to/) [Michael Tait](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-tait/) ## More by Thomas Adcock > [Indulgences should never be hesitant.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-adcock/indulgences-should-never-be-hesitant/) [Thomas Adcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-adcock/) > [“There's no sense to being Irish unless you know the world's going to break your heart.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-adcock/there-s-no-sense-to-being-irish-unless-you-know-the-world-s-going-to/) [Thomas Adcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-adcock/) > [Things you plan in life usually turn out to be meaningless, things you accumulate without knowing it become your real treasure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-adcock/things-you-plan-in-life-usually-turn-out-to-be-meaningless-things-you/) [Thomas Adcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-adcock/) > [So few women have any clear idea of the power their ordinary beauty holds over so many of us men.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-adcock/so-few-women-have-any-clear-idea-of-the-power-their-ordinary-beauty/) [Thomas Adcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-adcock/) > [Life in New York is a constant struggle to die of natural causes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-adcock/life-in-new-york-is-a-constant-struggle-to-die-of-natural-causes/) [Thomas Adcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-adcock/) > [The trouble with hope is that it only pays off when there's some sense in back of it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-adcock/the-trouble-with-hope-is-that-it-only-pays-off-when-there-s-some/) [Thomas Adcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-adcock/) [Explore all 7 Thomas Adcock quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-adcock/) ## More Dead quotes > [I'm going to stay on stage until I drop dead. Then I'm going to have myself stuffed, like Trigger, and I'm going to put…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/debbie-reynolds/i-m-going-to-stay-on-stage-until-i-drop-dead-then-i-m-going-to-have/) [Debbie Reynolds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/debbie-reynolds/) > [I can't be a legend yet. I'm not dead.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maynard-james-keenan/i-can-t-be-a-legend-yet-i-m-not-dead/) [Maynard James Keenan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maynard-james-keenan/) > [Okay, so I'll admit I'm curious. Big deal. We both know what that leads to. Dead cat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-elizabeth-phillips/okay-so-i-ll-admit-i-m-curious-big-deal-we-both-know-what-that-leads/) [Susan Elizabeth Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-elizabeth-phillips/) > [It's a really dark, emotionally wrenching world that we've created on 'The Walking Dead.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-holden/it-s-a-really-dark-emotionally-wrenching-world-that-we-ve-created-on/) [Laurie Holden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-holden/) > [If you’re alive, don’t move, if you’re dead, don’t worry about it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurell-k-hamilton/if-you-re-alive-don-t-move-if-you-re-dead-don-t-worry-about-it/) [Laurell K. Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurell-k-hamilton/) > [“I’m just–” She wanted to say “not in the mood,” but that was not only a cliché but a vast understatement. She was dead.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-mcintosh/i-m-just-she-wanted-to-say-not-in-the-mood-but-that-was-not-only-a/) [Will McIntosh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-mcintosh/) > [Library: A place where the dead lie.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/library-a-place-where-the-dead-lie/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [When we dead awaken ... we see that we have never lived.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henrik-ibsen/when-we-dead-awaken-we-see-that-we-have-never-lived/) [Henrik Ibsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henrik-ibsen/) > [Rather be dead than cool.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-cobain/rather-be-dead-than-cool/) [Kurt Cobain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-cobain/) > [He was obviously dead. But since he was a vampire that wasn't as hopless a thing as it might have been.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-briggs/he-was-obviously-dead-but-since-he-was-a-vampire-that-wasn-t-as/) [Patricia Briggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-briggs/) > [Ireland starts for me with the end of 'The Dead,' which my father read to me from his desk in his basement office in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-jeremiah-sullivan/ireland-starts-for-me-with-the-end-of-the-dead-which-my-father-read/) [John Jeremiah Sullivan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-jeremiah-sullivan/) > [“Three may keep a secret, if two of them are dead.’ – Ben Franklin,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/three-may-keep-a-secret-if-two-of-them-are-dead-ben-franklin/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [I intend to do the Penn & Teller show until they pry my cheesy magic wand from my cold dead fingers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penn-jillette/i-intend-to-do-the-penn-teller-show-until-they-pry-my-cheesy-magic/) [Penn Jillette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penn-jillette/) > ['Misery' left a lasting mark on me. When I die, it will be 'Kathy 'Misery' Bates Is Dead.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathy-bates/misery-left-a-lasting-mark-on-me-when-i-die-it-will-be-kathy-misery/) [Kathy Bates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathy-bates/) > [The only good Indian is a dead Indian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-tecumseh-sherman/the-only-good-indian-is-a-dead-indian/) [William Tecumseh Sherman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-tecumseh-sherman/) [Browse all 3,376 Dead quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dead/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It's only the dead who'll tell you the truth.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Thomas Adcock" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-adcock/it-s-only-the-dead-who-ll-tell-you-the-truth/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Dead" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-adcock/it-s-only-the-dead-who-ll-tell-you-the-truth/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/625/thomas-adcock-51018_dead_it-s-only-the-dead-who-ll-tell-you-the-t_625686.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/625/thomas-adcock-51018_dead_it-s-only-the-dead-who-ll-tell-you-the-t_625686.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/625/thomas-adcock-51018_dead_it-s-only-the-dead-who-ll-tell-you-the-t_625686.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It's only the dead who'll tell you the truth.” — Thomas Adcock", "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": "Thomas Adcock", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-adcock/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "It's only the dead who'll tell...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-adcock/it-s-only-the-dead-who-ll-tell-you-the-truth/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-adcock/it-s-only-the-dead-who-ll-tell-you-the-truth/#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 } } ] } ```