---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Imagination, which in truth Is but…"
description: "\"Imagination, which in truth Is but another name for absolute power And clearest insight, amplitude of mind, And reason, in her most exalted mood.\" — Wi..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7ae/william-wordsworth-403_absolute-power_imagination-which-in-truth-is-but-anothe_1666392.jpg"
---

#  Imagination, which in truth Is but another name for…

![“Imagination, which in truth Is but another name for absolute power And clearest insight, amplitude of mind, And reason, in her most exalted mood.” quote by William Wordsworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7ae/william-wordsworth-403_absolute-power_imagination-which-in-truth-is-but-anothe_1666392.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7ae/william-wordsworth-403_absolute-power_imagination-which-in-truth-is-but-anothe_1666392.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7ae/william-wordsworth-403_absolute-power_imagination-which-in-truth-is-but-anothe_1666392.jpg)

> “Imagination, which in truth Is but another name for absolute power And clearest insight, amplitude of mind, And reason, in her most exalted mood.”

[William Wordsworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-wordsworth/)

## About This Quote

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

Imagination is equated with ultimate power, insight, and elevated reasoning, highlighting its supreme creative force.

**In simple terms:** Imagination is powerful and insightful.

Key Takeaway

Cultivate imagination.

Themes

creativity power insight

Mood

inspirational thoughtful

Type

literary philosophical

When to use this quote

- artistic creation
- scientific innovation
- problem solving

Key Concepts

philosophy aesthetics cognitive science

Questions to Reflect On

- How can you balance imagination with reality?
- When does imagination hinder progress?

A Different Perspective

Imagination alone cannot replace practical execution.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Absolute power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/absolute-power/) [Absolutes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/absolutes/) [Imagination](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/imagination/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) [Mood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mood/) [Power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/power/) [Psychology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychology/) [Reason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reason/) [Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth/) [Vision](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vision/) [Wisdom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wisdom/)

## Related quotes

> [“I know that I am going to meet a personal variation on reality; a partial view of reality. But I know also that by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-k-le-guin/i-know-that-i-am-going-to-meet-a-personal-variation-on-reality-a/)

[Ursula K. Le Guin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-k-le-guin/)

> [“In this world we come across poetic imagination and not Truth.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohan-gaitonde/in-this-world-we-come-across-poetic-imagination-and-not-truth/)

Mohan Gaitonde

> [The artist's imagination may wander far from nature. But as long as it is a living, moving power in his brain, isn't it just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-vaughan/the-artist-s-imagination-may-wander-far-from-nature-but-as-long-as-it/)

[Bill Vaughan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-vaughan/)

> [Art is the response to the demand for entertainment, for the stimulation of our senses and imagination, and truth enters into it only as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-santayana/art-is-the-response-to-the-demand-for-entertainment-for-the/)

[George Santayana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-santayana/)

> [It is the human condition to question one god after another, one appearance after another, or better, one apparition after another, always pursuing the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emile-chartier/it-is-the-human-condition-to-question-one-god-after-another-one/)

[Emile Chartier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emile-chartier/)

> [It always amuses me that the biggest praise for my work comes for the imagination, while the truth is that there's not a single…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabriel-garc-a-m-rquez/it-always-amuses-me-that-the-biggest-praise-for-my-work-comes-for-the/)

[Gabriel Garcia Marquez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabriel-garc-a-m-rquez/)

> [God cannot approve of a system of servitude, in which the master is guilty of assuming absolute power - of assuming God's place and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerrit-smith/god-cannot-approve-of-a-system-of-servitude-in-which-the-master-is/)

[Gerrit Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerrit-smith/)

> [The Book of Job is advice on how to live in terms of the absolute power of nature. Leviathan is advice on how to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-phillip-verene/the-book-of-job-is-advice-on-how-to-live-in-terms-of-the-absolute/)

[Donald Phillip Verene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-phillip-verene/)

> [Unlimited power is apt to corrupt the minds of those who possess it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-pitt-1st-earl-of-chatham/unlimited-power-is-apt-to-corrupt-the-minds-of-those-who-possess-it/)

[William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-pitt-1st-earl-of-chatham/)

> [A nation of slaves is always prepared to applaud the clemency of their master who, in the abuse of absolute power, does not proceed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-gibbon/a-nation-of-slaves-is-always-prepared-to-applaud-the-clemency-of/)

[Edward Gibbon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-gibbon/)

> [Absolute power, as we have always known, corrupts absolutely; it corrupts because it does not do the trick for the individual. Reality always creeps…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/irvin-d-yalom/absolute-power-as-we-have-always-known-corrupts-absolutely-it/)

[Irvin D. Yalom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/irvin-d-yalom/)

> [Sometimes we like to think if we had power, that we would be different, and we would be omnipotent, but the truth is absolute…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-ackie/sometimes-we-like-to-think-if-we-had-power-that-we-would-be-different/)

[Naomi Ackie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-ackie/)

> [“As Israel made the wants of his national existence the law of the world, as under the dominance of these wants he deified even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-feuerbach/as-israel-made-the-wants-of-his-national-existence-the-law-of-the/)

[Ludwig Feuerbach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-feuerbach/)

> [Anarchy is the stepping stone to absolute power.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/napoleon-bonaparte/anarchy-is-the-stepping-stone-to-absolute-power/)

[Napoleon Bonaparte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/napoleon-bonaparte/)

> [“Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Great men are almost always bad men, even when they exercise influence and not authority,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-emerich-edward-dalberg-acton/power-tends-to-corrupt-and-absolute-power-corrupts-absolutely-great/)

[John Emerich Edward Dalberg-Acton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-emerich-edward-dalberg-acton/)

## More by William Wordsworth

> [Spade! Thou art a tool of honor in my hands. I press thee, through a yielding soil, with pride.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-wordsworth/spade-thou-art-a-tool-of-honor-in-my-hands-i-press-thee-through-a/)

[William Wordsworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-wordsworth/)

> [Brothers all In honour, as in one community, Scholars and gentlemen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-wordsworth/brothers-all-in-honour-as-in-one-community-scholars-and-gentlemen/)

[William Wordsworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-wordsworth/)

> [The eye— it cannot choose but see; we cannot bid the ear be still; our bodies feel, where'er they be, against or with our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-wordsworth/the-eye-it-cannot-choose-but-see-we-cannot-bid-the-ear-be-still-our/)

[William Wordsworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-wordsworth/)

> [“Dreams, books, are each a world; and books, we know, Are a substantial world, both pure and good.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-wordsworth/dreams-books-are-each-a-world-and-books-we-know-are-a-substantial/)

[William Wordsworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-wordsworth/)

> [Now when the primrose makes a splendid show, And lilies face the March-winds in full blow, And humbler growths as moved with one desire…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-wordsworth/now-when-the-primrose-makes-a-splendid-show-and-lilies-face-the-march/)

[William Wordsworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-wordsworth/)

> [“Where are your books? - that light bequeathed To beings else forlorn and blind! Up! up! and drink the spirit breathed From dead men…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-wordsworth/where-are-your-books-that-light-bequeathed-to-beings-else-forlorn-and/)

[William Wordsworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-wordsworth/)

> [Knowledge and increase of enduring joy From the great Nature that exists in works Of mighty Poets.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-wordsworth/knowledge-and-increase-of-enduring-joy-from-the-great-nature-that/)

[William Wordsworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-wordsworth/)

> [The common growth of Mother Earth Suffices me,-her tears, her mirth, Her humblest mirth and tears.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-wordsworth/the-common-growth-of-mother-earth-suffices-me-her-tears-her-mirth-her/)

[William Wordsworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-wordsworth/)

> [And he is oft the wisest manWho is not wise at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-wordsworth/and-he-is-oft-the-wisest-manwho-is-not-wise-at-all/)

[William Wordsworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-wordsworth/)

> [The oldest man he seemed that ever wore grey hairs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-wordsworth/the-oldest-man-he-seemed-that-ever-wore-grey-hairs/)

[William Wordsworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-wordsworth/)

> [“She was a Phantom of delight When first she gleam'd upon my sight; A lovely Apparition, sent To be a moment's ornament: Her eyes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-wordsworth/she-was-a-phantom-of-delight-when-first-she-gleam-d-upon-my-sight-a/)

[William Wordsworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-wordsworth/)

> [“If the time should ever come when what is now called science, thus familiarised to men, shall be ready to put on, as it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-wordsworth/if-the-time-should-ever-come-when-what-is-now-called-science-thus/)

[William Wordsworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-wordsworth/)

> [Truth takes no account of centuries.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-wordsworth/truth-takes-no-account-of-centuries/)

[William Wordsworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-wordsworth/)

> [I have felt a presence that disturbs me with the joy of elevated thoughts; a sense sublime of something far more deeply interfused, whose…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-wordsworth/i-have-felt-a-presence-that-disturbs-me-with-the-joy-of-elevated/)

[William Wordsworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-wordsworth/)

> [Like thoughts whose very sweetness yielded proof that they were born for immortality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-wordsworth/like-thoughts-whose-very-sweetness-yielded-proof-that-they-were-born/)

[William Wordsworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-wordsworth/)

[Explore all 587 William Wordsworth quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-wordsworth/)

## More Absolute power quotes

> [“Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Great men are almost always bad men, even when they exercise influence and not authority,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-emerich-edward-dalberg-acton/power-tends-to-corrupt-and-absolute-power-corrupts-absolutely-great/)

[John Emerich Edward Dalberg-Acton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-emerich-edward-dalberg-acton/)

> [Anarchy is the stepping stone to absolute power.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/napoleon-bonaparte/anarchy-is-the-stepping-stone-to-absolute-power/)

[Napoleon Bonaparte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/napoleon-bonaparte/)

> [“As Israel made the wants of his national existence the law of the world, as under the dominance of these wants he deified even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-feuerbach/as-israel-made-the-wants-of-his-national-existence-the-law-of-the/)

[Ludwig Feuerbach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-feuerbach/)

> [Sometimes we like to think if we had power, that we would be different, and we would be omnipotent, but the truth is absolute…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-ackie/sometimes-we-like-to-think-if-we-had-power-that-we-would-be-different/)

[Naomi Ackie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-ackie/)

> [Absolute power, as we have always known, corrupts absolutely; it corrupts because it does not do the trick for the individual. Reality always creeps…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/irvin-d-yalom/absolute-power-as-we-have-always-known-corrupts-absolutely-it/)

[Irvin D. Yalom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/irvin-d-yalom/)

> [A nation of slaves is always prepared to applaud the clemency of their master who, in the abuse of absolute power, does not proceed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-gibbon/a-nation-of-slaves-is-always-prepared-to-applaud-the-clemency-of/)

[Edward Gibbon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-gibbon/)

> [Unlimited power is apt to corrupt the minds of those who possess it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-pitt-1st-earl-of-chatham/unlimited-power-is-apt-to-corrupt-the-minds-of-those-who-possess-it/)

[William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-pitt-1st-earl-of-chatham/)

> [The Book of Job is advice on how to live in terms of the absolute power of nature. Leviathan is advice on how to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-phillip-verene/the-book-of-job-is-advice-on-how-to-live-in-terms-of-the-absolute/)

[Donald Phillip Verene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-phillip-verene/)

> [God cannot approve of a system of servitude, in which the master is guilty of assuming absolute power - of assuming God's place and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerrit-smith/god-cannot-approve-of-a-system-of-servitude-in-which-the-master-is/)

[Gerrit Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerrit-smith/)

> [“With absolute power, corruption and evil seep in humanity, and that evil continues to flourish as the good of humankind lies idle in darkness,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/with-absolute-power-corruption-and-evil-seep-in-humanity-and-that/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [If you are an eighteen or nineteen-year-old with little education, as is often the case, and you're put in charge of many, many people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yaroslav-trofimov/if-you-are-an-eighteen-or-nineteen-year-old-with-little-education-as/)

[Yaroslav Trofimov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yaroslav-trofimov/)

> [“As history has also shown, especially in the twentieth century, one of the first things an ideologue will do after achieving absolute power is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sowell/as-history-has-also-shown-especially-in-the-twentieth-century-one-of/)

[Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/)

> [We're taught Lord Acton's axiom: all power corrupts, absolute power corrupts absolutely. I believed that when I started these books, but I don't believe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-caro/we-re-taught-lord-acton-s-axiom-all-power-corrupts-absolute-power/)

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

> [Absolute power can only be supported by error, ignorance and prejudice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/absolute-power-can-only-be-supported-by-error-ignorance-and-prejudice/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Has justice ever grown in the soil of absolute power? Has not justice always come from the ... heart and spirit of men who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woodrow-wilson/has-justice-ever-grown-in-the-soil-of-absolute-power-has-not-justice/)

[Woodrow Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woodrow-wilson/)

[Browse all 180 Absolute power quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/absolute-power/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Imagination, which in truth Is but another name for absolute power And clearest insight, amplitude of mind, And reason, in her most exalted mood.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "William Wordsworth"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-wordsworth/imagination-which-in-truth-is-but-another-name-for-absolute-power-and/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Absolute power"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-wordsworth/imagination-which-in-truth-is-but-another-name-for-absolute-power-and/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7ae/william-wordsworth-403_absolute-power_imagination-which-in-truth-is-but-anothe_1666392.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7ae/william-wordsworth-403_absolute-power_imagination-which-in-truth-is-but-anothe_1666392.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7ae/william-wordsworth-403_absolute-power_imagination-which-in-truth-is-but-anothe_1666392.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Imagination, which in truth Is but another name for absolute power And clearest insight, amplitude of mind…” — William Wordsworth",
                "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 Wordsworth",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-wordsworth/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Imagination, which in truth Is but...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-wordsworth/imagination-which-in-truth-is-but-another-name-for-absolute-power-and/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-wordsworth/imagination-which-in-truth-is-but-another-name-for-absolute-power-and/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
