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Never Quotes

Quotes on what never happens.

This page gathers quotes centered on absence and limits - books that stayed unpublished, and a pointed line arguing that secrecy is fundamentally undesirable, merely tolerated when unavoidable. Related reading includes Life Quotes.

You will never stub your toe standing still. The faster you go, the more chance there is of stubbing your toe, but the more chance you have of getting somewhere.

Quotes by Charles Kettering

Keep on going and the chances are you will stumble on something, perhaps when you are least expecting it. I have never heard of anyone stumbling on something sitting down.

Quotes by Charles Kettering

We influence singing but never really songwriting.

Quotes by Charles King

It is only the great hearted who can be true friends. The mean and cowardly, Can never know what true friendship means.

Quotes by Charles Kingsley

The world goes up and the world goes down, the sunshine follows the rain; and yesterday's sneer and yesterday's frown can never come over again.

Quotes by Charles Kingsley

In the liberal remake of 'Casablanca,' the police captain comes upon the scene of the shooting and orders his men to 'round up the usual weapons.' It's always the weapon and never the shooter.

Quotes by Charles Krauthammer

I have a horror of the blank page. I simply cannot write on a blank page or screen. Because once I do, I start to fix it, and I never get past the first sentence.

Quotes by Charles Krauthammer

Never leave a crossword unfinished.

Quotes by Charles Krauthammer

I don't think one should ever come to my stage of life and have to look back and say, Gosh. I wish I hadn't spent all those years doing that job I was never really interested in.

Quotes by Charles Kuralt

It was so much fun to have the freedom to wander America, with no assignments. For 25 or 30 years I never had an assignment. These were all stories I wanted to do myself.

Quotes by Charles Kuralt

I could never hate anyone I knew.

Quotes by Charles Lamb

Civilization must be based on life. We should never forget that human life was created in and for millions of centuries, was nourished by primitive wildness. We cannot separate ourselves from this ancestral background.

Quotes by Charles Lindbergh

To be absolutely alone for the first time in the cockpit of a plane hundreds of feet above the ground is an experience never to be forgotten.

Quotes by Charles Lindbergh

Never in the way, and never out of the way.

Quotes by Charles II

I always admired virtue - but I could never imitate it.

Quotes by Charles II

Bonfire of the Vanities: The lesson of that book is, never start believing your own press.

Quotes by Charles James

Science is a victim of its own reductive metaphors: 'Big Bang,' 'selfish gene' and so on. Richard Dawkins' selfish gene fitted with the Thatcherite politics of the time. It should actually be the 'altruistic gene,' but he'd never have sold...

Quotes by Charles Jencks

Computers rather frighten me, because I never did learn to type, so the whole thing seems extraordinarily complicated to me.

Quotes by Charles Keating

I see too many celebrity kids who can't sing. If you don't have it, give it up, because people are brutal. I never want my kids to feel like they have to live up to what I've done.

Quotes by Charles Kelley

I never want to cut music ever again that I'm just kind of into, because we definitely didn't do that in the beginning.

Quotes by Charles Kelley

Frequently Asked Questions

What kind of quotes are gathered under "Never"?
These quotes explore things that haven't happened, aren't wanted, or weren't anticipated — unpublished books that never found a marketing angle, the idea that secrets are "never desirable" even when needed, and a reflection on how it "never occurred" to anyone that private conversation might need protecting.
Are these quotes mostly about regret?
Not exactly regret, more observation — noticing gaps, oversights, or things that didn't come to pass, like unpublished books or an unanticipated need for privacy protections.
Is there a quote about problem-solving here?
Yes — one notes that "people constantly face problems they've never seen before" and have to improvise solutions, which is a nice contrast to the other, more resigned quotes on this page.
How is "Never" different from <a href="/always-quotes">Always</a> quotes?
They're natural opposites — "Always" quotes are about consistency and long-held habits, while "Never" quotes are about absence, gaps, and things that haven't happened.
What should I read if I want something more upbeat?
Good quotes or Like quotes lean lighter, while "Never" quotes tend to be more contemplative. For a broader reflective read, Life quotes is also worth checking.

Other quotes touch on constitutional rights never explicitly written down, and the constant stream of new problems people have never faced before. See also Always Quotes and Good Quotes.