--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When doctors and undertakers meet, they…" description: "\"When doctors and undertakers meet, they wink at each other.\" — W. C. Fields" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/230/w-c-fields-1625_doctors_when-doctors-and-undertakers-meet-they-w_3120368.png" --- # When doctors and undertakers meet, they wink at each other. ![“When doctors and undertakers meet, they wink at each other.” quote by W. C. Fields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/230/w-c-fields-1625_doctors_when-doctors-and-undertakers-meet-they-w_3120368.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/230/w-c-fields-1625_doctors_when-doctors-and-undertakers-meet-they-w_3120368.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/230/w-c-fields-1625_doctors_when-doctors-and-undertakers-meet-they-w_3120368.png) > “When doctors and undertakers meet, they wink at each other.” [W. C. Fields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-c-fields/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Professionals in opposing fields share a dark humor about mortality. **In simple terms:** Even grim jobs can find humor. Key Takeaway Find levity in unlikely places. Themes humor mortality professional rivalry Mood wry playful Type satirical observational When to use this quote - hospital staff interactions - funeral services - media satire Key Concepts dark comedy social commentary Questions to Reflect On - Why do we joke about death? - What does this reveal about coping mechanisms? A Different Perspective Humor may trivialize serious subjects. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Doctors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doctors/) [Doctors Undertakers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doctors-undertakers-5476280/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Medicine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/medicine/) [Meet Wink](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/meet-wink-5476281/) [Undertaker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/undertaker/) [Undertakers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/undertakers-1313463/) [Undertakers Meet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/undertakers-meet-5476279/) [Wink](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wink/) ## Related quotes > [You can't judge the ability of a doctor by the amount of praise the undertakers give him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evan-esar/you-can-t-judge-the-ability-of-a-doctor-by-the-amount-of-praise-the/) [Evan Esar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evan-esar/) > [Philosophy always buries its undertakers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/etienne-gilson/philosophy-always-buries-its-undertakers/) [Etienne Gilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/etienne-gilson/) > [It was plain to see the Hollywood undertakers take care of everything. If you die you don't have to lift a finger.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-paar/it-was-plain-to-see-the-hollywood-undertakers-take-care-of-everything/) [Jack Paar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-paar/) > [Our Grub-street biographers watch for the death of a great man like so many undertakers on purpose to make a penny of him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/our-grub-street-biographers-watch-for-the-death-of-a-great-man-like/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [There is a great supply of amateur undertakers in show business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ethel-waters/there-is-a-great-supply-of-amateur-undertakers-in-show-business/) [Ethel Waters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ethel-waters/) > [It is great fun dying in the United States of America. It is great fun first of all for the undertakers who make a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-mikes/it-is-great-fun-dying-in-the-united-states-of-america-it-is-great-fun/) [George Mikes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-mikes/) > [“Anthony Lynch, the Cork corner-back, would be the last person to let you down - his people are undertakers”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-che-l-muircheartaigh/anthony-lynch-the-cork-corner-back-would-be-the-last-person-to-let/) [Mícheál Ó Muircheartaigh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-che-l-muircheartaigh/) > [I have nothing against undertakers personally. It's just that I wouldn't want one to bury my sister.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessica-mitford/i-have-nothing-against-undertakers-personally-it-s-just-that-i-wouldn/) [Jessica Mitford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessica-mitford/) > [So long as there is one pretty girl left on the stage, the professional undertakers may hold up their burial of the theater.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-jean-nathan/so-long-as-there-is-one-pretty-girl-left-on-the-stage-the/) [George Jean Nathan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-jean-nathan/) > [I do not think I should care to go on worshipping a Madonna even if she did wink. One cannot make much out of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-spurgeon/i-do-not-think-i-should-care-to-go-on-worshipping-a-madonna-even-if/) [Charles Spurgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-spurgeon/) > [The eye is the casement at which the heart generally looks out. Many a woman who will not show herself at the door, has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-richardson/the-eye-is-the-casement-at-which-the-heart-generally-looks-out-many-a/) [Samuel Richardson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-richardson/) > [Baby, not a wink I could go for days.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clay-walker/baby-not-a-wink-i-could-go-for-days/) [Clay Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clay-walker/) > [“Gotta concentrate, honey,” he smiled, then glanced at her with a wink. “And you looking at me the way you’re looking at me really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sibylla-matilde/gotta-concentrate-honey-he-smiled-then-glanced-at-her-with-a-wink-and/) [Sibylla Matilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sibylla-matilde/) > [Wink and shut their apprehensions up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-marston/wink-and-shut-their-apprehensions-up/) [John Marston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-marston/) > [“And eventually I realized that the reason I felt so peaceful was because Wink wasn’t taking stock. She wasn’t trying to figure out if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/april-genevieve-tucholke/and-eventually-i-realized-that-the-reason-i-felt-so-peaceful-was/) [April Genevieve Tucholke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/april-genevieve-tucholke/) ## More by W. C. Fields > [Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's house unless they have a well-stocked bar.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-c-fields/thou-shalt-not-covet-thy-neighbor-s-house-unless-they-have-a-well/) [W. C. Fields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-c-fields/) > [Take me down to the bar! We'll drink breakfast together!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-c-fields/take-me-down-to-the-bar-we-ll-drink-breakfast-together/) [W. C. Fields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-c-fields/) > [There comes a time in the affairs of man when he must take the bull by the tail and face the situation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-c-fields/there-comes-a-time-in-the-affairs-of-man-when-he-must-take-the-bull/) [W. C. Fields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-c-fields/) > [If pigs had wings, they would be pigeons.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-c-fields/if-pigs-had-wings-they-would-be-pigeons/) [W. C. Fields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-c-fields/) > [I feel like a midget with muddy feet had been walking over my tongue all night.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-c-fields/i-feel-like-a-midget-with-muddy-feet-had-been-walking-over-my-tongue/) [W. C. Fields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-c-fields/) > [What would you do if you were President, and, on the first day of May, the Russian Ambassador presented you with a beautiful cake…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-c-fields/what-would-you-do-if-you-were-president-and-on-the-first-day-of-may/) [W. C. Fields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-c-fields/) > [My illness is due to my doctor's insistence that I drink milk, a whitish fluid they force down helpless babies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-c-fields/my-illness-is-due-to-my-doctor-s-insistence-that-i-drink-milk-a/) [W. C. Fields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-c-fields/) > [I am an expert of electricity. My father occupied the chair of applied electricity at the state prison.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-c-fields/i-am-an-expert-of-electricity-my-father-occupied-the-chair-of-applied/) [W. C. Fields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-c-fields/) > [Bert Williams was the funniest man I ever saw and the saddest man I ever knew.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-c-fields/bert-williams-was-the-funniest-man-i-ever-saw-and-the-saddest-man-i/) [W. C. Fields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-c-fields/) > [A comic should suffer as much over a single line as a man with a hernia would in picking up a heavy barbell.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-c-fields/a-comic-should-suffer-as-much-over-a-single-line-as-a-man-with-a/) [W. C. Fields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-c-fields/) > [All my available funds are completely tied up in cash.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-c-fields/all-my-available-funds-are-completely-tied-up-in-cash/) [W. C. Fields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-c-fields/) > [Back in my rummy days, I would tremble and shake for hours upon arising. It was the only exercise I got.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-c-fields/back-in-my-rummy-days-i-would-tremble-and-shake-for-hours-upon/) [W. C. Fields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-c-fields/) > [Happiness means quiet nerves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-c-fields/happiness-means-quiet-nerves/) [W. C. Fields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-c-fields/) > [W. C. Fields, a lifetime agnostic, was discovered reading a Bible on his deathbed. ''I'm looking for a loop-hole,'' he explained.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-c-fields/w-c-fields-a-lifetime-agnostic-was-discovered-reading-a-bible-on-his/) [W. C. Fields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-c-fields/) > [The movie people would have nothing to do with me until they heard me speak in a Broadway play, then they all wanted to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-c-fields/the-movie-people-would-have-nothing-to-do-with-me-until-they-heard-me/) [W. C. Fields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-c-fields/) [Explore all 221 W. C. Fields quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-c-fields/) ## More Doctors quotes > [When other boys dreamt of going to the moon or becoming doctors, I wanted to be a designer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olivier-theyskens/when-other-boys-dreamt-of-going-to-the-moon-or-becoming-doctors-i/) [Olivier Theyskens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olivier-theyskens/) > [Every patient carries her or his own doctor inside.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-schweitzer/every-patient-carries-her-or-his-own-doctor-inside/) [Albert Schweitzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-schweitzer/) > [One reason for the tremendous increase in health-care costs in the U.S. is managerial neglect of the "hotel services" by the people who dominate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-drucker/one-reason-for-the-tremendous-increase-in-health-care-costs-in-the-u/) [Peter Drucker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-drucker/) > [being asked to decide between your passion for work and your passion for children was like being asked by your doctor whether you preferred…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-bevington/being-asked-to-decide-between-your-passion-for-work-and-your-passion/) [Helen Bevington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-bevington/) > [I want to roll my eyes right now, but the doctor says that if I keep doing it, my ocular muscles might spasm and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liz/i-want-to-roll-my-eyes-right-now-but-the-doctor-says-that-if-i-keep/) [LIZ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liz/) > [Heart surgeons do not have the world's smallest egos: when you ask them to name the world's three leading practitioners, they never can remember…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-paretsky/heart-surgeons-do-not-have-the-world-s-smallest-egos-when-you-ask/) [Sara Paretsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-paretsky/) > [Do you think that was kind? Do you think it was godlike? What would you think of a physician, if a woman came to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-h-gardener/do-you-think-that-was-kind-do-you-think-it-was-godlike-what-would-you/) [Helen H. Gardener](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-h-gardener/) > [I always wanted to be a fireman, a cop, an Indian chief, a doctor, a lawyer. I always wanted to be all these things,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morgan-freeman/i-always-wanted-to-be-a-fireman-a-cop-an-indian-chief-a-doctor-a/) [Morgan Freeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morgan-freeman/) > [You know, in playing a role like this, you really want to get it right, because this is a person who was revered by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-stuart-masterson/you-know-in-playing-a-role-like-this-you-really-want-to-get-it-right/) [Mary Stuart Masterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-stuart-masterson/) > [I've always been interested in medicine and was pleased when my brother became a doctor. But after thinking seriously about that field, I realized…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-lowry/i-ve-always-been-interested-in-medicine-and-was-pleased-when-my/) [Lois Lowry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-lowry/) > [Two things suck about becoming an adult male - paying taxes and getting a finger in your butt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-code/two-things-suck-about-becoming-an-adult-male-paying-taxes-and-getting/) [Guy Code](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-code/) > [There are many good (medical) doctors, but very few good diagnostics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/florya99/there-are-many-good-medical-doctors-but-very-few-good-diagnostics/) [Florya99](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/florya99/) > [If Christian scientists had more science and doctors more Christianity, it wouldn't make any difference which you called in - if you had a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/finley-peter-dunne/if-christian-scientists-had-more-science-and-doctors-more/) [Finley Peter Dunne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/finley-peter-dunne/) > [“In quixotically trying to conquer death doctors all too frequently do no good for their patients’ “ease” but at the same time they do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kevorkian/in-quixotically-trying-to-conquer-death-doctors-all-too-frequently-do/) [Jack Kevorkian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kevorkian/) > [“Medicare rewards doctors far better for doing procedures than for assessing whether they should be done at all.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwidge-danticat/medicare-rewards-doctors-far-better-for-doing-procedures-than-for/) [Edwidge Danticat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwidge-danticat/) [Browse all 2,887 Doctors quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doctors/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "When doctors and undertakers meet, they wink at each other.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "W. 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