--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I have nothing but contempt for anyone…" description: "\"I have nothing but contempt for anyone who can spell a word in only one way.\" — Thomas Jefferson" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f76/thomas-jefferson-43_contempt_i-have-nothing-but-contempt-for-anyone-w_2596739.jpg" --- # I have nothing but contempt for anyone who can spell a… ![“I have nothing but contempt for anyone who can spell a word in only one way.” quote by Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f76/thomas-jefferson-43_contempt_i-have-nothing-but-contempt-for-anyone-w_2596739.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f76/thomas-jefferson-43_contempt_i-have-nothing-but-contempt-for-anyone-w_2596739.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f76/thomas-jefferson-43_contempt_i-have-nothing-but-contempt-for-anyone-w_2596739.jpg) > “I have nothing but contempt for anyone who can spell a word in only one way.” [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Spelling flexibility is trivial; contempt for it reveals a narrow, pedantic mindset. **In simple terms:** Being picky about spelling shows contempt. Key Takeaway Value substance over form. Themes language education communication Mood analytical thoughtful Type literary educational When to use this quote - editing work - teaching language - academic writing Key Concepts lexicography pedantry Questions to Reflect On - Why do we sometimes prioritize form over meaning? - How can we foster more inclusive communication? A Different Perspective Over‑emphasis on form can hinder creativity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Contempt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/contempt/) [Language](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/language/) ## Related quotes > [You should never trust a man who has only one way to spell a word.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/you-should-never-trust-a-man-who-has-only-one-way-to-spell-a-word/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [My diary is a disaster...I can't spell at all...I'll spell the same word completely differently in the same sentence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liv-tyler/my-diary-is-a-disaster-i-can-t-spell-at-all-i-ll-spell-the-same-word/) [Liv Tyler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liv-tyler/) > [never trust a man who won't accept that there is more than one way to spell a word Paraphrased](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/never-trust-a-man-who-won-t-accept-that-there-is-more-than-one-way-to/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [Take care that you never spell a word wrong. Always before you write a word, consider how it is spelled, and, if you do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/take-care-that-you-never-spell-a-word-wrong-always-before-you-write-a/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [When they tell you,you will go nowhere,spell the word again and it says now here](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-buabeng/when-they-tell-you-you-will-go-nowhere-spell-the-word-again-and-it/) [Isaac Buabeng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-buabeng/) > [Did you ever spell a word so bad that your spell check has absolutely no clue what you're trying to spell? What do you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-burr/did-you-ever-spell-a-word-so-bad-that-your-spell-check-has-absolutely/) [Bill Burr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-burr/) > [Changing your entire message because you don't know how to spell one word!..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/changing-your-entire-message-because-you-don-t-know-how-to-spell-one/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I don't give a damn for a man that can only spell a word one way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/i-don-t-give-a-damn-for-a-man-that-can-only-spell-a-word-one-way/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [Have you ever changed a whole text message just because you didn't know how to spell one word?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/itsme867/have-you-ever-changed-a-whole-text-message-just-because-you-didn-t/) Itsme867 > [Anyone who can only think of one way to spell a word obviously lacks imagination.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/anyone-who-can-only-think-of-one-way-to-spell-a-word-obviously-lacks/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [That awkward moment when you spell a word right, but it looks so wrong. So to solve the problem, you just stare at it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/obviously-me/that-awkward-moment-when-you-spell-a-word-right-but-it-looks-so-wrong/) Obviously Me > [Marines don't know how to spell the word defeat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/marines-don-t-know-how-to-spell-the-word-defeat/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Did I spell the word “did” right? Of course not! I got my D’s mixed up.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/did-i-spell-the-word-did-right-of-course-not-i-got-my-d-s-mixed-up/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > [“When you "spell" a word correctly, you are in effect casting a spell, charging these abstract, arbitrary symbols with meaning and power.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-vogler/when-you-spell-a-word-correctly-you-are-in-effect-casting-a-spell/) [Christopher Vogler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-vogler/) > [“It pleases him how Spell is how the word is made but also, in the hands of the magician, how the world is changed.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lambert/it-pleases-him-how-spell-is-how-the-word-is-made-but-also-in-the/) Charles Lambert ## More by Thomas Jefferson > [A man has a right to use a saw, an axe, a plane, separately; may he not combine their uses on the same piece…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/a-man-has-a-right-to-use-a-saw-an-axe-a-plane-separately-may-he-not/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [Believing with you that religion is a matter which lies solely between man and his God, that he owes account to none other for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/believing-with-you-that-religion-is-a-matter-which-lies-solely/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [ \[States and the Federal government are\] coordinate departments of one simple and integral whole... The one is the domestic, the other the foreign branch… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/states-and-the-federal-government-are-coordinate-departments-of-one/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [I am for freedom of religion, and against all maneuvers to bring about a legal ascendency of one sect over another.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/i-am-for-freedom-of-religion-and-against-all-maneuvers-to-bring-about/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [Single acts of tyranny may be ascribed to the accidental opinion of a day; but a series of oppressions, begun at a distinguished period…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/single-acts-of-tyranny-may-be-ascribed-to-the-accidental-opinion-of-a/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [“Perceiving the order of nature to be that individual happiness shall be inseparable from the practice of virtue, I am willing to hope it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/perceiving-the-order-of-nature-to-be-that-individual-happiness-shall/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [Free government is founded in jealousy, and not in confidence; it is jealousy, and not confidence, which prescribes limited constitutions, to bind down those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/free-government-is-founded-in-jealousy-and-not-in-confidence-it-is/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [Though you cannot see, when you take one step, what will be the next, yet follow truth, justice, and plain dealing, and never fear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/though-you-cannot-see-when-you-take-one-step-what-will-be-the-next/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [A well informed citizenry is the best defense against tyranny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/a-well-informed-citizenry-is-the-best-defense-against-tyranny/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [The two principles on which our conduct towards the Indians should be founded are justice and fear. After the injuries we have done them,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/the-two-principles-on-which-our-conduct-towards-the-indians-should-be/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [Knowledge is power...knowled ge is safety...knowle dge is happiness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/knowledge-is-power-knowled-ge-is-safety-knowle-dge-is-happiness/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [There is... an artificial aristocracy founded on wealth and birth, without either virtue or talents... The artificial aristocracy is a mischievous ingredient in government,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/there-is-an-artificial-aristocracy-founded-on-wealth-and-birth/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [Nothing but free argument, raillery and even ridicule will preserve the purity of religion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/nothing-but-free-argument-raillery-and-even-ridicule-will-preserve/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [When the people are afraid of the government, that's tyranny. But when the government is afraid of the people, that's liberty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/when-the-people-are-afraid-of-the-government-that-s-tyranny-but-when/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed, by their Creator, with certain unalienable Rights,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/we-hold-these-truths-to-be-self-evident-that-all-men-are-created/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) [Explore all 2,098 Thomas Jefferson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) ## More Contempt quotes > [Too much familiarity breeds contempt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikrant-parsai/too-much-familiarity-breeds-contempt/) [Vikrant Parsai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikrant-parsai/) > [The contempt for law and the contempt for the human consequences of lawbreaking go from the bottom to the top of American society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mead/the-contempt-for-law-and-the-contempt-for-the-human-consequences-of/) [Margaret Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mead/) > [Our security depends on having good relationships with our allies. Donald Trump mainly shows contempt for them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-wolfowitz/our-security-depends-on-having-good-relationships-with-our-allies/) [Paul Wolfowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-wolfowitz/) > [Show your contempt for the problem and your concern for the person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-rohn/show-your-contempt-for-the-problem-and-your-concern-for-the-person/) [Jim Rohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-rohn/) > [There is no real elevation of mind in a contempt of little things; it is, on the contrary, from too narrow views that we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francois-fenelon/there-is-no-real-elevation-of-mind-in-a-contempt-of-little-things-it/) [Francois Fenelon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-fenelon/) > [Boasting and bravado may exist in the breast even of the coward, if he is successful through a mere lucky hit; but a just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thucydides/boasting-and-bravado-may-exist-in-the-breast-even-of-the-coward-if-he/) [Thucydides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thucydides/) > [Somebody once told me that if you laugh at a George Bush joke, or you send an email cartoon to your friends that makes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-ramis/somebody-once-told-me-that-if-you-laugh-at-a-george-bush-joke-or-you/) [Harold Ramis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-ramis/) > [Unless a man gives himself entirely to the Cross, in a spirit of humility and self-abasement; unless he casts himself down to be trampled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-the-evangelist/unless-a-man-gives-himself-entirely-to-the-cross-in-a-spirit-of/) [Mark the Evangelist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-the-evangelist/) > [Much of the same sort of degraded and filthy talk can still be heard among the orc-minded; dreary and repetitive with hatred and contempt,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-r-r-tolkien-2/much-of-the-same-sort-of-degraded-and-filthy-talk-can-still-be-heard/) [J. R. R. Tolkien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-r-r-tolkien-2/) > [Contempt for an assailant is best shown by bravery in action.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thucydides/contempt-for-an-assailant-is-best-shown-by-bravery-in-action/) [Thucydides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thucydides/) > [Statuettes of drunken sailors, velvet pictures of island maidens, plastic seashell lamps made in Taiwan. What contempt the people who think up souvenirs have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-johnson/statuettes-of-drunken-sailors-velvet-pictures-of-island-maidens/) [Diane Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-johnson/) > [Every person of any rank in the left, from voter on up to cabinet member to elected official in the Democrat Party, has contempt.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/every-person-of-any-rank-in-the-left-from-voter-on-up-to-cabinet/) [Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/) > [Those with a gift for action, for their part, often express contempt for those whose gifts are more reflective. Men of action like to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ignatieff/those-with-a-gift-for-action-for-their-part-often-express-contempt/) [Michael Ignatieff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ignatieff/) > [“opprobrious term, employed to impose contempt upon”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jabari-asim/opprobrious-term-employed-to-impose-contempt-upon/) [Jabari Asim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jabari-asim/) > [Heterosexual intercourse is the pure, formalized expression of contempt for women's bodies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrea-dworkin/heterosexual-intercourse-is-the-pure-formalized-expression-of/) [Andrea Dworkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrea-dworkin/) [Browse all 1,034 Contempt quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/contempt/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I have nothing but contempt for anyone who can spell a word in only one way.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Thomas Jefferson" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/i-have-nothing-but-contempt-for-anyone-who-can-spell-a-word-in-only/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Contempt" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/i-have-nothing-but-contempt-for-anyone-who-can-spell-a-word-in-only/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f76/thomas-jefferson-43_contempt_i-have-nothing-but-contempt-for-anyone-w_2596739.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f76/thomas-jefferson-43_contempt_i-have-nothing-but-contempt-for-anyone-w_2596739.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f76/thomas-jefferson-43_contempt_i-have-nothing-but-contempt-for-anyone-w_2596739.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I have nothing but contempt for anyone who can spell a word in only one way.” — Thomas Jefferson", "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 Jefferson", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I have nothing but contempt for...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/i-have-nothing-but-contempt-for-anyone-who-can-spell-a-word-in-only/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/i-have-nothing-but-contempt-for-anyone-who-can-spell-a-word-in-only/#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 } } ] } ```