--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It depends upon what the meaning of the…" description: "\"It depends upon what the meaning of the word 'is' is.\" — William J. Clinton" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5e4/william-j-clinton-302_depends_it-depends-upon-what-the-meaning-of-the_545130.jpg" --- # It depends upon what the meaning of the word 'is' is. ![“It depends upon what the meaning of the word 'is' is.” quote by William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5e4/william-j-clinton-302_depends_it-depends-upon-what-the-meaning-of-the_545130.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5e4/william-j-clinton-302_depends_it-depends-upon-what-the-meaning-of-the_545130.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5e4/william-j-clinton-302_depends_it-depends-upon-what-the-meaning-of-the_545130.jpg) > “It depends upon what the meaning of the word 'is' is.” [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The significance of a statement hinges on how we define its key terms. **In simple terms:** Meaning depends on definitions. Key Takeaway Clarify key terms before arguing. Themes language philosophy communication Mood analytical critical Type philosophical political When to use this quote - legal debates - academic discussions - political speeches Key Concepts semantics truth interpretation Questions to Reflect On - How do you decide which definition to use? - What happens when definitions shift over time? A Different Perspective If definitions are contested, agreement may be impossible. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Funny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/funny/) [Impeachment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/impeachment/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Language](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/language/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Meaning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/meaning/) [Perjury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/perjury/) [Purpose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/purpose/) [Really dumb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/really-dumb/) [Stupidity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stupidity/) ## Related quotes > [If you take out the killings, Washington actually has a very low crime rate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marion-barry/if-you-take-out-the-killings-washington-actually-has-a-very-low-crime/) [Marion Barry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marion-barry/) > [It depends upon what the meaning of the word 'is' means](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-clinton/it-depends-upon-what-the-meaning-of-the-word-is-means/) [Bill Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-clinton/) > [African Americans watch the same news at night that ordinary Americans do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/african-americans-watch-the-same-news-at-night-that-ordinary/) [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) > [I have never had sexual relations with Monica Lewinsky. I've never had an affair with her.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/i-have-never-had-sexual-relations-with-monica-lewinsky-i-ve-never-had/) [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) > [I'm going to be honest with you - I don't know a lot about Cuba's healthcare system. Is it a government-run system?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-f-kerry/i-m-going-to-be-honest-with-you-i-don-t-know-a-lot-about-cuba-s/) [John F. Kerry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-f-kerry/) > [We know that no one person can succeed unless everybody else succeeds.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-dean/we-know-that-no-one-person-can-succeed-unless-everybody-else-succeeds/) [Howard Dean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-dean/) > [There is no terrorist threat. Yes, there have been horrific acts of terrorism and, yes, there will be acts of terrorism again. But that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-moore/there-is-no-terrorist-threat-yes-there-have-been-horrific-acts-of/) [Michael Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-moore/) > [Get the hell out of Palestine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-thomas/get-the-hell-out-of-palestine/) [Helen Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-thomas/) > [If a young fella has an option of having a decent career or joining the army to fight in Iraq, you can bet your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-rangel/if-a-young-fella-has-an-option-of-having-a-decent-career-or-joining/) [Charles Rangel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-rangel/) > [If I lived in Massachusetts, I'd try to vote ten times ... Yeah that's right, I'd cheat to keep these bastards out. I would.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-schultz/if-i-lived-in-massachusetts-i-d-try-to-vote-ten-times-yeah-that-s/) [Ed Schultz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-schultz/) > [I propose a limitation be put on how many sqares of toilet paper can be used in any one sitting. Now, I don't want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheryl-crow/i-propose-a-limitation-be-put-on-how-many-sqares-of-toilet-paper-can/) [Sheryl Crow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheryl-crow/) > [This war is lost and the surge is not accomplishing anything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-reid/this-war-is-lost-and-the-surge-is-not-accomplishing-anything/) [Harry Reid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-reid/) > [I love these members, they get up and say, 'Read the bill ... What good is reading the bill if it's a thousand pages…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-conyers/i-love-these-members-they-get-up-and-say-read-the-bill-what-good-is/) [John Conyers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-conyers/) > [I propose a limitation be put on how many squares of toilet paper can be used in any one sitting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheryl-crow/i-propose-a-limitation-be-put-on-how-many-squares-of-toilet-paper-can/) [Sheryl Crow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheryl-crow/) > [The Republican health care plan: don't get sick ... The Republicans have a back up plan in case you do get sick ... This…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-grayson/the-republican-health-care-plan-don-t-get-sick-the-republicans-have-a/) [Alan Grayson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-grayson/) ## More by William J. Clinton > [When personal freedom's being abused, you have to move to limit it. That's what we did in the announcement I made last weekend on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/when-personal-freedom-s-being-abused-you-have-to-move-to-limit-it/) [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) > [Almost makes you want to go to jail out here, doesn't it?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/almost-makes-you-want-to-go-to-jail-out-here-doesn-t-it/) [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) > [I take full responsability...for what we did. It was the right thing to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/i-take-full-responsability-for-what-we-did-it-was-the-right-thing-to/) [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) > [Undeniably, character does count for our citizens, out communities, and our Nation, and this week we celebrate the importance of character in our individual…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/undeniably-character-does-count-for-our-citizens-out-communities-and/) [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) > [Even as people take pride in their national independence, we know we are becoming more and more interdependent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/even-as-people-take-pride-in-their-national-independence-we-know-we/) [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) > [To build a twenty-first-century economy, America must revive a nineteenth-century habit--investing in the common, national economic resources that enable every person and every firm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/to-build-a-twenty-first-century-economy-america-must-revive-a/) [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) > [One of the things that I think we have learned is that we should all be very careful about making predictions about the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/one-of-the-things-that-i-think-we-have-learned-is-that-we-should-all/) [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) > [Only astrophysicists new about the Internet 20 years ago. Today my cat has a website.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/only-astrophysicists-new-about-the-internet-20-years-ago-today-my-cat/) [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) > [Our military superiority is so great - it's far greater than it was in the Gulf War, and the Gulf War was over in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/our-military-superiority-is-so-great-it-s-far-greater-than-it-was-in/) [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) > [You know, I've always been really interested in this stuff, and I'm going to read this.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/you-know-i-ve-always-been-really-interested-in-this-stuff-and-i-m/) [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) > [If you believe in making change from the bottom up, if you believe the measure of change is how many people's lives are better,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/if-you-believe-in-making-change-from-the-bottom-up-if-you-believe-the/) [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) > [ We \[Democrats\] have got to be strong. When we look weak in a time where people feel insecure, we lose. when people feel uncertain,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/we-democrats-have-got-to-be-strong-when-we-look-weak-in-a-time-where/) [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) > [It's the economy, stupid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/it-s-the-economy-stupid/) [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) > [The Republicans could mess up a two car parade](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/the-republicans-could-mess-up-a-two-car-parade/) [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) > [We're all in this together is a far better philosophy than you're on your own.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/we-re-all-in-this-together-is-a-far-better-philosophy-than-you-re-on/) [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) [Explore all 712 William J. Clinton quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) ## More Depends quotes > [It all depends on you. You can go on sleeping forever, you can wake up right this moment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/it-all-depends-on-you-you-can-go-on-sleeping-forever-you-can-wake-up/) [Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/) > [Surely to root politics out of art is a highly necessary undertaking: for the freedom of art, like that of science, depends entirely upon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wyndham-lewis/surely-to-root-politics-out-of-art-is-a-highly-necessary-undertaking/) [Wyndham Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wyndham-lewis/) > [Peace is an ongoing process. It begins with the first step and it does not end. We, all of us alive today, are the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-krieger/peace-is-an-ongoing-process-it-begins-with-the-first-step-and-it-does/) [David Krieger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-krieger/) > [The average condition of the people improving or deteriorating, depends upon whether population is advancing faster than improvement, or improvement than population.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-stuart-mill/the-average-condition-of-the-people-improving-or-deteriorating/) [John Stuart Mill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-stuart-mill/) > [India may be overtaking China as the world's most polluted country. Even now, which country is worse depends on the day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-inskeep/india-may-be-overtaking-china-as-the-world-s-most-polluted-country/) [Steve Inskeep](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-inskeep/) > [What my day is like depends on where I am.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniela-pestova/what-my-day-is-like-depends-on-where-i-am/) [Daniela Pestova](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniela-pestova/) > [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/) > [Politics...You see, it depends on what kind of politics. What we did during my father's generation was a duty. And it was beautiful because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/indira-gandhi/politics-you-see-it-depends-on-what-kind-of-politics-what-we-did/) [Indira Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/indira-gandhi/) > [A free society depends upon a high degree of mutual trust. The public will not give that trust to officials who are not seen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/archibald-cox/a-free-society-depends-upon-a-high-degree-of-mutual-trust-the-public/) [Archibald Cox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/archibald-cox/) > [In proportion as our inward life fails, we go more constantly and desperately to the post office. You may depend on it, that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/in-proportion-as-our-inward-life-fails-we-go-more-constantly-and/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [Nothing will happen automatically. Change depends on what you and I do every day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/nothing-will-happen-automatically-change-depends-on-what-you-and-i-do/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [Every crucial experience can be regarded either as a setback, or the start of a wonderful new adventure, it depends on your perspective!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-roberts-rinehart/every-crucial-experience-can-be-regarded-either-as-a-setback-or-the/) [Mary Roberts Rinehart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-roberts-rinehart/) > [Unless we are prepared to search our souls to discover what to say, and then how to say it effectively, we cannot expect to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/everett-case/unless-we-are-prepared-to-search-our-souls-to-discover-what-to-say/) Everett Case > [What you can do and what it became the Depends are Only your Attitude](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mak-786/what-you-can-do-and-what-it-became-the-depends-are-only-your-attitude/) Mak\_786 > [Every man will have his own criterion in forming his judgment of others. I depend very much on the effect of affliction. I consider…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-cecil/every-man-will-have-his-own-criterion-in-forming-his-judgment-of/) [Richard Cecil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-cecil/) Browse all 3,689 Depends quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It depends upon what the meaning of the word 'is' is.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "William J. Clinton" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/it-depends-upon-what-the-meaning-of-the-word-is-is/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Depends" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/it-depends-upon-what-the-meaning-of-the-word-is-is/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5e4/william-j-clinton-302_depends_it-depends-upon-what-the-meaning-of-the_545130.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5e4/william-j-clinton-302_depends_it-depends-upon-what-the-meaning-of-the_545130.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5e4/william-j-clinton-302_depends_it-depends-upon-what-the-meaning-of-the_545130.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It depends upon what the meaning of the word 'is' is.” — William J. Clinton", "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": "William J. Clinton", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "It depends upon what the meaning...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/it-depends-upon-what-the-meaning-of-the-word-is-is/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/it-depends-upon-what-the-meaning-of-the-word-is-is/#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 } } ] } ```