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Language Quotes

The words we reach for, and the ones we lack.

This set explores where language falls short, from the struggle to describe atomic structure in everyday words to a preference for scientific clarity over diplomatic phrasing. It connects to our More quotes on related themes of expression.

I discovered how science is truly a universal language, one that forges new connections among individuals and opens the mind to ideas that go far beyond the classroom.

Quotes by Ahmed Zewail

We might possess every technological resource... but if our language is inadequate, our vision remains formless, our thinking and feeling are still running in the old cycles, our process may be 'revolutionary' but not transformative.

Quotes by Adrienne Rich

Many scholars are not used to perceiving natural knowledge expressed in mythological language. If the study of fossils was not mentioned by Aristotle or Thucydides, and it wasn't, then it just didn't exist for many classicists and ancient historians.

Quotes by Adrienne Mayor

I use the language I use to my friends. They wouldn't believe me if I used some high-flown literary language. I want them to believe me.

Quotes by Adrian Mitchell

Like Quotes

My dad taught me that language was a powerful tool.

Quotes by Adrian Nicole LeBlanc

The course that I have uniformly pursued, ever since I became a missionary, has been rather peculiar. In order to become an acceptable and eloquent preacher in a foreign language, I deliberately abjured my own. When I crossed the river,...

Quotes by Adoniram Judson

I don't think art is bound by language or country.

Quotes by Aditi Rao Hydari

The whole point of creativity is that it has no boundaries of language, region, and age.

Quotes by Aditi Rao Hydari

During my career I've come back to clubs after the summer break to see one of my team-mates not really at it because he's been denied a move to a bigger club for whatever reason, and you can see in...

Quotes by Adebayo Akinfenwa

Love Quotes

So much of the language that surrounds us - from things like economics, management theory, and the algorithms built into computer systems - appears to be objective and neutral. But in fact, it is loaded with powerful, and very debatable,...

Quotes by Adam Curtis

A conveyor belt of Think Tank pundits and allied operatives poured into the TV studios, and together they built a fortress around Mrs. Thatcher's memory that was rooted in theories about economics. They did this because economics is the only...

Quotes by Adam Curtis

A lot of the language about Millennials is extremely gendered.

Quotes by Adam Conover

DNA is a code of four letters; proteins are made up of amino acids which come in 20 forms. So the ribosome is a very clever machine that reads one language and operates in another.

Quotes by Ada Yonath

A new, a vast, and a powerful language is developed for the future use of analysis, in which to wield its truths so that these may become of more speedy and accurate practical application for the purposes of mankind than...

Quotes by Ada Lovelace

Me Quotes

Mathematical science shows what is. It is the language of unseen relations between things. But to use and apply that language, we must be able fully to appreciate, to feel, to seize the unseen, the unconscious.

Quotes by Ada Lovelace

But behavior in the human being is sometimes a defense, a way of concealing motives and thoughts, as language can be a way of hiding your thoughts and preventing communication.

Quotes by Abraham Maslow

In China, I realized that if you visit often enough and learn the language, you will be assimilated, but you'll still be kept at arm's length; you'll always be looked on as a foreigner.

Quotes by Abigail Washburn

I know Sanskrit, which has similarities with Tamil, so it helps me understand the language.

Quotes by Abhimanyu Singh

I had zero connection to Bollywood or movies when I started out. I worked in theatre for eight years where luckily Makarand Deshpande mentored me, helped me to improve my body language and voice modulation.

Quotes by Abhimanyu Singh

More Quotes

Never impose your language on people you wish to reach.

Quotes by Abbie Hoffman

Frequently Asked Questions

What do these Language quotes explore?
This set looks at the limits of ordinary language for describing science, the case for more scientific language in public discourse, feeling outmatched by the sheer size of the English language, and wanting to master the technical language of a craft like directing. If you like exploring how words shape meaning, so is our Like collection.
Is there a quote about language struggling to describe science?
Yes — one quote says, "The problems of language here are really serious. We wish to speak in some way about the structure of the atoms. But we cannot speak about atoms in ordinary language."
Is there a quote calling for more scientific language in public life?
There is. One quote argues, "More scientific language and less diplomatic rhetoric may make this world even better." For more ideas along these lines, see our More collection.
Is there a quote about the English language being hard to keep up with?
Yes — one quote admits, "Shakespeare's taught me that there are more words in the English language than I have got in my head." Shakespeare is famous for exploring love as much as language, and you can see more of that in our Love collection.
Is there a quote about wanting to master a craft's technical language?
Yes — one quote shares, "The producing thing has come quite naturally to me. I feel like for directing, I would like to be more technically-savvy. I want to have the language under my belt." For more reflections framed in first person, see our Me collection.

One entry marvels at how much vocabulary Shakespeare drew on compared to an average speaker, a theme also touched on in our Love quotes, while a closing line on wanting fluency in a technical craft links to Like quotes.