---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: By this we may understand, there be two…"
description: "\"By this we may understand, there be two sorts of knowledge, whereof the one is nothing else but sense, or knowledge original (as I have said at the beg..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f2a/thomas-hobbes-1127_chapters_by-this-we-may-understand-there-be-two-s_2959384.jpg"
---

#  By this we may understand, there be two sorts of…

![“By this we may understand, there be two sorts of knowledge, whereof the one is nothing else but sense, or knowledge original (as I have said at the beginning of the second chapter), and remembrance of the same; the other is called science or knowledge of the truth of propositions, and how things…” quote by Thomas Hobbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f2a/thomas-hobbes-1127_chapters_by-this-we-may-understand-there-be-two-s_2959384.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f2a/thomas-hobbes-1127_chapters_by-this-we-may-understand-there-be-two-s_2959384.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f2a/thomas-hobbes-1127_chapters_by-this-we-may-understand-there-be-two-s_2959384.jpg)

> “By this we may understand, there be two sorts of knowledge, whereof the one is nothing else but sense, or knowledge original (as I have said at the beginning of the second chapter), and remembrance of the same; the other is called science or knowledge of the truth of propositions, and how things are called, and is derived from understanding.”

[Thomas Hobbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hobbes/)

## About This Quote

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

Two knowledge types: sensory experience and propositional truth derived from understanding.

**In simple terms:** We have sense‑based and truth‑based knowledge.

Key Takeaway

Recognize limits of each knowledge type.

Themes

epistemology philosophy logic

Mood

inquisitive analytical

Type

philosophical educational

When to use this quote

- learning
- scientific research
- everyday decision‑making
- education

Key Concepts

empiricism rationalism ontology

Questions to Reflect On

- What do you trust: experience or theory?
- How do you verify truth?

A Different Perspective

Sensory knowledge can be deceptive without reasoning.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Knowledge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knowledge/) [Learning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/learning/) [Remembrance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/remembrance/) [Science](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science/) [Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth/) [Understanding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/understanding/)

## Related quotes

> [ Science \[is\] knowledge of the truth of Propositions and how things are called. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hobbes/science-is-knowledge-of-the-truth-of-propositions-and-how-things-are/)

[Thomas Hobbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hobbes/)

> [One original thought is worth the sum total of human knowledge, because it advances the sum total of human knowledge by that one original…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacob-bronowski/one-original-thought-is-worth-the-sum-total-of-human-knowledge/)

[Jacob Bronowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacob-bronowski/)

> [Science is the knowledge of Consequences, and dependence of one fact upon another: by which, out of that we can presently do, we know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hobbes/science-is-the-knowledge-of-consequences-and-dependence-of-one-fact-2/)

[Thomas Hobbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hobbes/)

> [Science is the knowledge of consequences, and dependence of one fact upon another.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hobbes/science-is-the-knowledge-of-consequences-and-dependence-of-one-fact/)

[Thomas Hobbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hobbes/)

> [In a sense, knowledge shrinks as wisdom grows, for details are swallowed up in principles. The details for knowledge which are important, will be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/in-a-sense-knowledge-shrinks-as-wisdom-grows-for-details-are-2/)

[Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/)

> [“Knowledge about society is thus a realization in the double sense of the word, in the sense of apprehending the objectivated social reality, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-l-berger/knowledge-about-society-is-thus-a-realization-in-the-double-sense-of/)

[Peter L. Berger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-l-berger/)

> [For many ages it has been allowed by sensible men, Nihil est in intellectu quod non fuit prius in sensu: That is, There is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-wesley/for-many-ages-it-has-been-allowed-by-sensible-men-nihil-est-in/)

[John Wesley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-wesley/)

> [In a sense, knowledge shrinks as wisdom grows: for details are swallowed up in principles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/in-a-sense-knowledge-shrinks-as-wisdom-grows-for-details-are/)

[Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/)

> [Common-sense knowledge is prompt, categorical, and inexact.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susanne-katherina-langer/common-sense-knowledge-is-prompt-categorical-and-inexact/)

[Susanne Katherina Langer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susanne-katherina-langer/)

> [Science is knowledge arranged and classified according to truth, facts, and the general laws of nature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luther-burbank/science-is-knowledge-arranged-and-classified-according-to-truth-facts/)

[Luther Burbank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luther-burbank/)

> [In science one must search for ideas. If there are no ideas, there is no science. A knowledge of facts is only valuable in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vissarion-belinsky/in-science-one-must-search-for-ideas-if-there-are-no-ideas-there-is/)

[Vissarion Belinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vissarion-belinsky/)

> [Pursue science because it is knowledge, because it broadens our horizons. There is so much more to be discovered.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerhard-herzberg/pursue-science-because-it-is-knowledge-because-it-broadens-our/)

[Gerhard Herzberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerhard-herzberg/)

> [Science can give us knowledge, but it cannot give us wisdom. Nor can religion, until it puts aside nonsense and distraction and becomes itself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilynne-robinson/science-can-give-us-knowledge-but-it-cannot-give-us-wisdom-nor-can/)

[Marilynne Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilynne-robinson/)

> [Science is the knowledge of constant things, not merely of passing events, and is properly less the knowledge of general laws than of existing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ruskin/science-is-the-knowledge-of-constant-things-not-merely-of-passing/)

[John Ruskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ruskin/)

> [Is there anything science should not try to explain? Science is knowledge and knowledge is power - power to do good or evil. Sometimes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-davies/is-there-anything-science-should-not-try-to-explain-science-is/)

[Paul Davies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-davies/)

## More by Thomas Hobbes

> [“Give an inch, he'll take an ell.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hobbes/give-an-inch-he-ll-take-an-ell/)

[Thomas Hobbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hobbes/)

> [Do not that to another, which thou wouldst not have done to thyself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hobbes/do-not-that-to-another-which-thou-wouldst-not-have-done-to-thyself/)

[Thomas Hobbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hobbes/)

> [For it is with the mysteries of our religion, as with wholesome pills for the sick, which swallowed whole, have the virtue to cure;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hobbes/for-it-is-with-the-mysteries-of-our-religion-as-with-wholesome-pills/)

[Thomas Hobbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hobbes/)

> [Intemperance is naturally punished with diseases; rashness, with mischance; injustice; with violence of enemies; pride, with ruin; cowardice, with oppression; and rebellion, with slaughter.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hobbes/intemperance-is-naturally-punished-with-diseases-rashness-with/)

[Thomas Hobbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hobbes/)

> [A man's conscience and his judgment is the same thing; and as the judgment, so also the conscience, may be erroneous.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hobbes/a-man-s-conscience-and-his-judgment-is-the-same-thing-and-as-the/)

[Thomas Hobbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hobbes/)

> [He that is to govern a whole Nation , must read in himself, not this, or that particular man; but Mankind; which though it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hobbes/he-that-is-to-govern-a-whole-nation-must-read-in-himself-not-this-or/)

[Thomas Hobbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hobbes/)

> [If men are naturally in a state of war, why do they always carry arms and why do they have keys to lock their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hobbes/if-men-are-naturally-in-a-state-of-war-why-do-they-always-carry-arms/)

[Thomas Hobbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hobbes/)

> [Let a man (as most men do) rate themselves as the highest Value they can; yet their true Value is no more than it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hobbes/let-a-man-as-most-men-do-rate-themselves-as-the-highest-value-they/)

[Thomas Hobbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hobbes/)

> [A free man is he that, in those things which by his strength and wit he is able to do, is not hindered to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hobbes/a-free-man-is-he-that-in-those-things-which-by-his-strength-and-wit/)

[Thomas Hobbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hobbes/)

> [“Covenants, without the sword, are but words and of no strength to secure a man at all.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hobbes/covenants-without-the-sword-are-but-words-and-of-no-strength-to/)

[Thomas Hobbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hobbes/)

> [Fear of things invisible in the natural seed of that which everyone in himself calleth religion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hobbes/fear-of-things-invisible-in-the-natural-seed-of-that-which-everyone/)

[Thomas Hobbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hobbes/)

> [Because silver and gold have their value from the matter itself, they have first this privilege, that the value of them cannot be altered…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hobbes/because-silver-and-gold-have-their-value-from-the-matter-itself-they/)

[Thomas Hobbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hobbes/)

> [What reason is there that he which laboreth much, and, sparing the fruits of his labor, consumeth little, should be more charged than he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hobbes/what-reason-is-there-that-he-which-laboreth-much-and-sparing-the/)

[Thomas Hobbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hobbes/)

> [The cause of Sense, is the External Body, or Object, which presseth the organ proper to each Sense, either immediately, as in theTaste and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hobbes/the-cause-of-sense-is-the-external-body-or-object-which-presseth-the/)

[Thomas Hobbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hobbes/)

> [The characters of man's heart, blotted and confounded as they are with dissembling, lying, counterfeiting, and erroneous doctrines, are legible only to him that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hobbes/the-characters-of-man-s-heart-blotted-and-confounded-as-they-are-with/)

[Thomas Hobbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hobbes/)

[Explore all 285 Thomas Hobbes quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hobbes/)

## More Chapters quotes

> [What comes to mind when you think of heaven? Heaven is referred to in fifty-four of the Bible's sixty-six books, and the final two…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-jeremiah/what-comes-to-mind-when-you-think-of-heaven-heaven-is-referred-to-in/)

[David Jeremiah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-jeremiah/)

> [John Lane has long been recognized as one of the South's finest poets and memoirists. This debut establishes him as one of our finest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-rash/john-lane-has-long-been-recognized-as-one-of-the-south-s-finest-poets/)

[Ron Rash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-rash/)

> [I'm as much my own master as anyone can be, without being the master of others. I can write anywhere - all I need…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stuart-woods/i-m-as-much-my-own-master-as-anyone-can-be-without-being-the-master/)

[Stuart Woods](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stuart-woods/)

> [There are something like 300 anti-genocide chapters on college campuses around the country. It's bigger than the anti-apartheid movement. There are something like 500…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samantha-power/there-are-something-like-300-anti-genocide-chapters-on-college/)

[Samantha Power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-power/)

> [If you're feeling pain, express that to the Lord. If you're feeling worried, express those worries. One passage that gives me comfort is in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-lucado/if-you-re-feeling-pain-express-that-to-the-lord-if-you-re-feeling/)

[Max Lucado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-lucado/)

> [The issue of civil rights was too much for the establishment to handle. One of the chapters of history that's least studied by historians…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-hayden/the-issue-of-civil-rights-was-too-much-for-the-establishment-to/)

[Tom Hayden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-hayden/)

> [I learned that you can't write a book in the margins of your life. I'd forgotten how much uninterrupted time it takes to write…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melissa-harris-perry/i-learned-that-you-can-t-write-a-book-in-the-margins-of-your-life-i-d/)

[Melissa Harris-Perry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melissa-harris-perry/)

> [If you tell me, I will leave you alone," I said. "And if you don't tell me, I am going to grab the nearest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/if-you-tell-me-i-will-leave-you-alone-i-said-and-if-you-don-t-tell-me/)

[David Levithan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-levithan/)

> [“Stop revisiting chapters, That you know, How they ended.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aquib-ali/stop-revisiting-chapters-that-you-know-how-they-ended/)

[Aquib Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aquib-ali/)

> [Real life is a story, too, only much more complicated. It’s still got a beginning, a middle, and an end. Everyone follows the same…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-wooding/real-life-is-a-story-too-only-much-more-complicated-it-s-still-got-a/)

[Chris Wooding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-wooding/)

> [Don´t be unnecessarily burdened by the past. Go on closing the chapters that you have read; there is no need to go back again…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/don-t-be-unnecessarily-burdened-by-the-past-go-on-closing-the/)

[Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/)

> [The agency is who it is because of many, many, many chapters that needed to happen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-droga/the-agency-is-who-it-is-because-of-many-many-many-chapters-that/)

[David Droga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-droga/)

> [No book is a chapter, no chapter tells the whole story, no mistake defines who we are. Hope makes our lives page turners.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-goff/no-book-is-a-chapter-no-chapter-tells-the-whole-story-no-mistake/)

[Bob Goff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-goff/)

> [I pay tribute to John Major's achievement in persuading the other 11 Community Heads of Government that they could move ahead to a Social…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-thatcher/i-pay-tribute-to-john-major-s-achievement-in-persuading-the-other-11/)

[Margaret Thatcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-thatcher/)

> [I try to have a mood or a rhythm for a chapter,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-caro/i-try-to-have-a-mood-or-a-rhythm-for-a-chapter/)

[Robert Caro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-caro/)

Browse all 751 Chapters quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "By this we may understand, there be two sorts of knowledge, whereof the one is nothing else but sense, or knowledge original (as I have said at the beginning of the second chapter), and remembrance of the same; the other is called science or knowledge of the truth of propositions, and how things are called, and is derived from understanding.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Thomas Hobbes"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hobbes/by-this-we-may-understand-there-be-two-sorts-of-knowledge-whereof-the/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Chapters"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hobbes/by-this-we-may-understand-there-be-two-sorts-of-knowledge-whereof-the/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f2a/thomas-hobbes-1127_chapters_by-this-we-may-understand-there-be-two-s_2959384.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f2a/thomas-hobbes-1127_chapters_by-this-we-may-understand-there-be-two-s_2959384.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f2a/thomas-hobbes-1127_chapters_by-this-we-may-understand-there-be-two-s_2959384.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“By this we may understand, there be two sorts of knowledge, whereof the one is nothing else but sense, or…” — Thomas Hobbes",
                "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 Hobbes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hobbes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "By this we may understand, there...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hobbes/by-this-we-may-understand-there-be-two-sorts-of-knowledge-whereof-the/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hobbes/by-this-we-may-understand-there-be-two-sorts-of-knowledge-whereof-the/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
