--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: True and false are attributes of speech…" description: "\"True and false are attributes of speech not of things. And where speech is not, there is neither truth nor falsehood. Error theremay be, as when we exp..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93d/thomas-hobbes-1127_attributes_true-and-false-are-attributes-of-speech_1304753.jpg" --- # True and false are attributes of speech not of things. And… ![“True and false are attributes of speech not of things. And where speech is not, there is neither truth nor falsehood. Error theremay be, as when we expect that which shall not be; or suspect what has not been: but in neither case can a man be charged with untruth.” quote by Thomas Hobbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93d/thomas-hobbes-1127_attributes_true-and-false-are-attributes-of-speech_1304753.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93d/thomas-hobbes-1127_attributes_true-and-false-are-attributes-of-speech_1304753.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93d/thomas-hobbes-1127_attributes_true-and-false-are-attributes-of-speech_1304753.jpg) > “True and false are attributes of speech not of things. And where speech is not, there is neither truth nor falsehood. Error theremay be, as when we expect that which shall not be; or suspect what has not been: but in neither case can a man be charged with untruth.” [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. Truth and falsehood belong to language, not to objects; without language there is no truth or falsehood. **In simple terms:** Truth is a property of speech, not things. Key Takeaway Consider how language shapes reality. Themes philosophy language ontology Mood contemplative analytical Type philosophical theoretical When to use this quote - debates about reality - analysis of discourse - legal arguments - ethical reasoning Key Concepts metaphysics epistemology Questions to Reflect On - How does language create truth? - Can something be true without being spoken? A Different Perspective Truth claims depend on linguistic context, not objective facts. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Attributes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attributes/) [Cases](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cases/) [Communication](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communication/) [Errors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/errors/) [False Attributes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/false-attributes-2492613/) [Falsehood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/falsehood/) [Lying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lying/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Speech](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/speech/) [Speech Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/speech-truth-514205/) [Suspects](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/suspects/) [True and false](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/true-and-false/) [Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth/) [Truth Falsehood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth-falsehood/) [Untruth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/untruth/) ## Related quotes > [True and False are attributes of speech, not of things. And where speech is not, there is neither Truth nor Falsehood.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hobbes/true-and-false-are-attributes-of-speech-not-of-things-and-where/) [Thomas Hobbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hobbes/) > [It is a dangerous and fateful presumption, besides the absurd temerity that it implies, to disdain what we do not comprehend. For after you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-is-a-dangerous-and-fateful-presumption-besides-the-absurd-temerity/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“So spake Israel's true king, and to the Fiend Made answer meet, that made void all his wiles. So fares it, when with truth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-milton/so-spake-israel-s-true-king-and-to-the-fiend-made-answer-meet-that/) [John Milton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-milton/) > [Since I wasn't able to leave a succession of beautiful lies, I want to leave the smidgen of truth that the falsehood of everything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fernando-pessoa/since-i-wasn-t-able-to-leave-a-succession-of-beautiful-lies-i-want-to/) [Fernando Pessoa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fernando-pessoa/) > [He tells so many lies that he convinces himself after a while that he's telling the truth. He just doesn't recognize truth or falsehood.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kennedy/he-tells-so-many-lies-that-he-convinces-himself-after-a-while-that-he/) [Robert Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kennedy/) > [All genuinely noble women prefer truth to falsehood. As the Russians with their Czar, they are unwilling to see their idol degraded; they want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/honor-de-balzac/all-genuinely-noble-women-prefer-truth-to-falsehood-as-the-russians/) [Honore de Balzac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/honor-de-balzac/) > [Belief is with them mechanical, voluntary: they believe what they are paid for - they swear to that which turns to account. Do you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-hazlitt/belief-is-with-them-mechanical-voluntary-they-believe-what-they-are/) [William Hazlitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-hazlitt/) > [A man does not need to be a wizard to know truth from falsehood, not if he has eyes. You need only learn to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-man-does-not-need-to-be-a-wizard-to-know-truth-from-falsehood-not/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Truth and falsehood pass through the same lips and leave no mark, the devil does not cease to be the devil just because he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jos-saramago/truth-and-falsehood-pass-through-the-same-lips-and-leave-no-mark-the/) [José Saramago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jos-saramago/) > [Truth and falsehood are opposed; but truth is the norm not of truth only but of falsehood also.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis/truth-and-falsehood-are-opposed-but-truth-is-the-norm-not-of-truth/) [C. S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis/) > [There are questions so indiscreet, that they deserve neither truth nor falsehood in reply.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophie-swetchine/there-are-questions-so-indiscreet-that-they-deserve-neither-truth-nor/) [Sophie Swetchine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophie-swetchine/) > [Our analysis of truth and falsehood, or of the nature of judgment, is not very likely to be influenced by our hopes and fears.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-d-broad/our-analysis-of-truth-and-falsehood-or-of-the-nature-of-judgment-is/) [Charles D. Broad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-d-broad/) > [Now what I love in women is, they won't Or can't do otherwise than lie, but do it. So well, the very truth seems…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lord-byron/now-what-i-love-in-women-is-they-won-t-or-can-t-do-otherwise-than-lie/) [Lord Byron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lord-byron/) > [There is truth and falsehood in a comma.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-stoppard/there-is-truth-and-falsehood-in-a-comma/) [Tom Stoppard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-stoppard/) > [Philosophers talk about truth and falsehood. People in life talk about payoff, exposure, and consequences (risks and rewards), hence fragility and antifragility. And sometimes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nassim-nicholas-taleb/philosophers-talk-about-truth-and-falsehood-people-in-life-talk-about/) [Nassim Nicholas Taleb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nassim-nicholas-taleb/) ## 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 Attributes quotes > [Lutherans, whose arguments and mistakes will not be difficult to contest or discover, do not want to attribute any value to works, and they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-servetus/lutherans-whose-arguments-and-mistakes-will-not-be-difficult-to/) [Michael Servetus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-servetus/) > [If, for instance, they have heard something from the postman, they attribute it to a semi-official statement; if they have fallen into conversation with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evelyn-waugh/if-for-instance-they-have-heard-something-from-the-postman-they/) [Evelyn Waugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evelyn-waugh/) > [The love for all living creatures is the most noble attribute of man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/the-love-for-all-living-creatures-is-the-most-noble-attribute-of-man/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [I think the greatest imagination we can exercise is one that imagines how someone else feels. Because you know how you feel, but so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-gelbart/i-think-the-greatest-imagination-we-can-exercise-is-one-that-imagines/) [Larry Gelbart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-gelbart/) > [A lover asked his beloved, Do you love yourself more than you love me? Beloved replied, I have died to myself and I live…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-lover-asked-his-beloved-do-you-love-yourself-more-than-you-love-me/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [One of the greatest attributes of jazz, I think, is that it is that open.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbie-hancock/one-of-the-greatest-attributes-of-jazz-i-think-is-that-it-is-that-open/) [Herbie Hancock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbie-hancock/) > [God is compassionate and just, loving and holy, wrathful and forgiving. WE can't sideline His more difficult attributes to make room for the palatable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-chan/god-is-compassionate-and-just-loving-and-holy-wrathful-and-forgiving/) [Francis Chan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-chan/) > [I'm Irish and always will be, but America has taught me so much. Maybe it's here in the U.S. that we find a healing,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fionnula-flanagan/i-m-irish-and-always-will-be-but-america-has-taught-me-so-much-maybe/) [Fionnula Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fionnula-flanagan/) > [“It is this spirit of godliness that will bring forth the attributes, the principles and the life style of godliness.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sunday-adelaja/it-is-this-spirit-of-godliness-that-will-bring-forth-the-attributes/) [Sunday Adelaja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sunday-adelaja/) > [My Calvinism persuades me that we are open to God, in the sense that we are not delimited, not organisms with fixed attributes in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilynne-robinson/my-calvinism-persuades-me-that-we-are-open-to-god-in-the-sense-that/) [Marilynne Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilynne-robinson/) > [A pivotal spiritual attribute is that of self-mastery-th e strength to place reason over appetite. Self-mastery builds a strong conscience. And your conscience determines…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-m-nelson/a-pivotal-spiritual-attribute-is-that-of-self-mastery-th-e-strength/) [Russell M. Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-m-nelson/) > [I have often noticed that the two nuclear powers on the Indian subcontinent, India and Pakistan, attribute to Kashmiris an inferior intellect, a lineage,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nyla-ali-khan/i-have-often-noticed-that-the-two-nuclear-powers-on-the-indian/) [Nyla Ali Khan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nyla-ali-khan/) > [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/) > [Developing Christlike attributes in our lives is not an easy task, especially when we move away from generalities and abstractions and begin to deal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dieter-f-uchtdorf/developing-christlike-attributes-in-our-lives-is-not-an-easy-task/) [Dieter F. Uchtdorf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dieter-f-uchtdorf/) > [If I have any attribute that serves me well, it's I don't have a long-range plan in life. I have no idea. I just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-wilbon/if-i-have-any-attribute-that-serves-me-well-it-s-i-don-t-have-a-long/) [Michael Wilbon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-wilbon/) [Browse all 852 Attributes quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attributes/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "True and false are attributes of speech not of things. And where speech is not, there is neither truth nor falsehood. Error theremay be, as when we expect that which shall not be; or suspect what has not been: but in neither case can a man be charged with untruth.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Thomas Hobbes" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hobbes/true-and-false-are-attributes-of-speech-not-of-things-and-where-2/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Attributes" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hobbes/true-and-false-are-attributes-of-speech-not-of-things-and-where-2/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93d/thomas-hobbes-1127_attributes_true-and-false-are-attributes-of-speech_1304753.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93d/thomas-hobbes-1127_attributes_true-and-false-are-attributes-of-speech_1304753.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93d/thomas-hobbes-1127_attributes_true-and-false-are-attributes-of-speech_1304753.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“True and false are attributes of speech not of things. And where speech is not, there is neither truth nor…” — 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": "True and false are attributes of...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hobbes/true-and-false-are-attributes-of-speech-not-of-things-and-where-2/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hobbes/true-and-false-are-attributes-of-speech-not-of-things-and-where-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 } } ] } ```