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Corrupts Quotes

Timeless lines on how power corrupts.

This page centers on the classic idea that absolute power corrupts, tracing how different speakers restate, challenge, or twist Lord Acton's famous warning. One quote even argues that fear of losing power corrupts more than power itself.

Too much liberty corrupts us all.

Quotes by Terence

Power does not corrupt. Fear corrupts... perhaps the fear of a loss of power.

John Steinbeck

Power corrupts. Absolute power is kind of neat.

Quotes by John F. Lehman, Jr.

Power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely.

Quotes by John Dalberg-Acton

Absolute Power Quotes

There cannot be peaceful coexistence in the ideological realm. Peaceful coexistence corrupts.

Quotes by Jiang Qing

But if thought corrupts language, language can also corrupt thought.

George Orwell

All Hollywood corrupts; and absolute Hollywood corrupts absolutely.

Quotes by Edmund Wilson

Flattery corrupts both the receiver and the giver.

Quotes by Edmund Burke

Waiving debts corrupts the credit culture.

Quotes by Arundhati Bhattacharya

Absolute Power Corrupts Quotes

Too many terms corrupts politicians so they only want to be reelected.

Quotes by Alice Paul

Frequently Asked Questions

What makes this corrupts quotes collection distinctive?
Nearly every quote engages, restates, or twists the famous warning that absolute power corrupts, so the page reads almost like a running conversation across different speakers rather than a random list.
Do all the quotes here agree that power corrupts?
No, one deliberately flips the script, calling absolute power kind of neat instead of dangerous. Including that line keeps the page from feeling like a one-sided lecture.
Is there a quote that questions what actually causes corruption?
Yes, one argues it isn't power itself that corrupts but fear, specifically the fear of losing power. That reframing is one of the sharper, less expected ideas on the page.
Why do people search for corrupts quotes?
The phrase is closely tied to Lord Acton's famous saying, so readers often arrive looking for the original wording or clever variations on it. Our absolute power corrupts quotes page covers that lineage in more depth.
Are these corrupts quotes mostly about politics?
Political power is the central theme, but the opening quote broadens it by blaming too much liberty, not just power, for corrupting people. See our cannot quotes for related lines on human limits.

Another take flips the saying entirely, calling absolute power kind of neat rather than dangerous. See our absolute power corrupts and cannot quotes for closely related lines.