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Speak Quotes

The languages, and limits, people speak within.

A couple of these speak quotes are about language and identity specifically, children translating for family members, and a cultural background where the expected native language was never actually spoken at home. The Language collection covers this in more depth.

We who have the final word can speak softly or angrily. We can seek to challenge and annoy, as we need not stay docile and quiet.

Quotes by William O. Douglas

Individuals will speak their minds, which I think is healthy.

Quotes by William P. Leahy

Of my infancy I can speak little, only I do remember that in the fourth year of my age I had the measles.

Quotes by William Lilly

My lord, I have some matter of law relating to the indictment, and I desire counsel to speak to it.

Quotes by William Kidd

I speak on due consideration because Britain, France, and Mexico, have abolished slavery, and all other European states are preparing to abolish it as speedily as they can.

Quotes by William H. Seward

I think I was the first executive to ever speak at a Greenpeace business conference, in London in 2001. That didn't play well here at Ford, but I thought it was an important signal to send internally, that these were...

Quotes by William Clay Ford, Jr.

At Ford Motor Company, we believe the arts speak a common language that weaves a common thread among all people.

Quotes by William Clay Ford, Jr.

The dead might as well try to speak to the living as the old to the young.

Quotes by Willa Cather

If, as is the custom, I speak mainly about my own researches, I must say that I was fortunate in finding that not everything had yet been gleaned in the field of general thermodynamic radiation theory.

Quotes by Wilhelm Wien

My children speak very good Chinese, and they translate for our American friends.

Quotes by Wendi Deng Murdoch

I was definitely the kid in the back of the class with his head down the whole time not wanting to speak up and say anything.

Quotes by Washed Out

I'm an awfully loyal friend. Once I've started a relationship with someone, it's like they are syrup and I'm a pancake. Their syrup gets into my pancake, so to speak.

Quotes by Warren Farrell

When you speak of role models, when we talk to our kids, everybody is a role model, everyone, just as you look at a Michael Jordan to be the terrific athlete he is.

Quotes by Walter Payton

I can't speak for the other authors, but what I hoped to achieve was to illuminate certain corners of the Lucas universe that hadn't yet been explored.

Quotes by Walter Jon Williams

I couldn't speak well. I went to speech therapy for 10 years. And I was sort of frustrated in that sense.

Quotes by Walter Dean Myers

Stranger, if you passing meet me and desire to speak to me, why should you not speak to me? And why should I not speak to you?

Walt Whitman

When I joined WKRC, they were very concerned over my ability to ad lib or speak extemporaneously, which was an unknown factor up until that point.

Quotes by Waite Hoyt

We cannot always oblige; but we can always speak obligingly.

Voltaire

I think like a genius, I write like a distinguished author, and I speak like a child.

Quotes by Vladimir Nabokov

You have to open the music, so to speak, and see what's behind the notes because the notes are the same whether it is the music of Bach or someone else.

Quotes by Vladimir Horowitz

Frequently Asked Questions

Is there a quote about children speaking another language?
Yes — a proud one: "My children speak very good Chinese, and they translate for our American friends." It highlights language skill as something to be proud of within a family. For more quotes about language and communication, see Language quotes.
Is there a quote about identity and language not matching expectations?
Yes — a direct one: "I'm a Persian Jew, and we don't speak Hebrew." It's a clear, honest statement correcting an assumption people might make. For more quotes about knowing and understanding people better, browse Know quotes.
Is there a quote using "speak" as a figure of speech?
Yes — one uses the phrase casually: "I just sort of follow my bliss, so to speak, and then I see where that takes me." Here "speak" isn't literal — it's part of a common expression about following your instincts. For more relaxed, conversational quotes like this, check out Like quotes.
Is there a quote about not wanting to hear certain people speak?
Yes — a strong one: "There are evil people, and I don't even want to hear those guys speak." It's a forceful statement about refusing to give a platform to certain voices. For more strongly held opinions like this, see Always quotes.
What's the range of ways "speak" is used across these quotes?
From literal fluency in a language, to correcting assumptions, to a common expression, to refusing to listen — these quotes show how flexible the word "speak" really is.

Others use the word more loosely, one following an instinct rather than a plan, another admitting discomfort even listening to certain harmful views. Continue with Know quotes or Always quotes.