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Ambrose Bierce Quotes - Page 3

All Quotes Accidents Adversity Affection Age Aging Alcohol Army Art Assumption Atheism Attitude Authority Beauty Belief Boundaries Business Certainty Change Character Cheating Childhood Children Choices Church Clarinet Confusion Cooking Country Creation Critics Culture Cynicism Death Democracy Desire Devil Diplomacy Disappointment Doubt Drinking Dying Earth Education Ego Energy Envy Eternity Evidence Evil Excellence Expectations Failure Faith Fame Family Fashion Fear Feelings Finance Food Friendship Funeral Funny Future Genius Giving God Gold Growth Guilt Happiness Hatred Heart Heaven Hell History Home Honor Hope House Ignorance Imagination Independence Injustice Insanity Inspiration Inspirational Joy Judging Judgment Justice Kindness Knowledge Labor Language Latin Leadership Learning Liars Liberty Life Literature Logic Losing Love Lying Marriage Math Military Money Morality Motherhood Music Nature Nihilism Office Opportunity Optimism Passion Past Patriotism Peace Philosophy Pleasure Politics Power Prejudice Preparation Pride Property Prosperity Purpose Quality Reality Religion Responsibility Revenge Revolution Running Sacrifice School Science Silence Sin Skins Son Soul Spirituality Spring Stupidity Style Success Suffering Taxes Temptation Theology Time Truth Understanding Violence Virtue Wall War Water Wealth Wife Wine Wisdom Work Worship Writing Youth

Liberty is one of the imagination's most precious possessions.

Liberty is one of the imagination's most precious possessions.

Imagination, Liberty, Precious Possessions

GUNPOWDER, n. An agency employed by civilized nations for the settlement of disputes which might become troublesome if left unadjusted. By most writers the invention of gunpowder is ascribed to the Chinese, but not upon very convincing evidence. Milton says it was invented by the devil to dispel angels with, and this opinion seems to derive some support from the scarcity of angels.

Angel, Science, Agency

Ambrose Bierce (2001). “The Unabridged Devil's Dictionary”, p.102, University of Georgia Press

He laughs best who laughs least.

Laughing

Ambrose Bierce (2013). “The Best Of Ambrose Bierce: The Damned Thing + An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge + The Devil's Dictionary + Chickamauga (4 Classics in 1 Book)”, p.210, e-artnow

Creditor. One of a tribe of savages dwelling beyond the Financial Straits and dreaded for their desolating incursions.

Fear, Dwelling, Savages

Ambrose Bierce (2016). “The Devil's Dictionary: The Devil World”, p.36, 谷月社

Liar: A lawyer with a roving commission.

Liars, Roving, Lawyer

Ambrose Bierce (2016). “The Devil's Dictionary: The Devil World”, p.126, 谷月社

Think twice before you speak to a friend in need

Friendship, Thinking, Advice

Ambrose Bierce (2009). “The Devil's Dictionary: Easyread Large Bold Edition”, p.276, ReadHowYouWant.com

REPARATION, n. Satisfaction that is made for a wrong and deducted from the satisfaction felt in committing it.

Satisfaction, Made, Felt

Ambrose Bierce (2016). “The Devil's Dictionary: The Devil World”, p.181, 谷月社

They say that hens do cackle loudest when there is nothing vital in the eggs they have laid.

Vanity, Eggs, Hens

Ambrose Bierce (2009). “The Devil's Dictionary: Easyread Super Large 18pt Edition”, p.379, ReadHowYouWant.com

Honorable, adj.: Afflicted with an impediment in one's reach. In legislative bodies, it is customary to mention all members as honorable; as, "the honorable gentleman is a scurvy cur.".

Gentleman, Affliction, Body

Ambrose Bierce (2001). “The Unabridged Devil's Dictionary”, p.112, University of Georgia Press

UNIVERSALIST, n. One who forgoes the advantage of a Hell for persons of another faith.

Faith, Hell, Advantage

Ambrose Bierce (2013). “Delphi Complete Works of Ambrose Bierce (Illustrated)”, p.2534, Delphi Classics

MAGNETISM, n. Something acting upon a magnet. The two definitions immediately foregoing are condensed from the works of one thousand eminent scientists, who have illuminated the subject with a great white light, to the inexpressible advancement of human knowledge.

Science, Light, Two

Ambrose Bierce (2016). “The Devil's Dictionary: The Devil World”, p.137, 谷月社

PHONOGRAPH, n. An irritating toy that restores life to dead noises.

Life, Noise, Toys

Ambrose Bierce (2012). “The Devil's Dictionary”, p.93, Courier Corporation

OPIATE, n. An unlocked door in the prison of Identity. It leads into the jail yard.

Science, Jail, Doors

Ambrose Bierce (2016). “The Devil's Dictionary: The Devil World”, p.154, 谷月社

An appellate court which reverses the judgment of a popular author's contemporaries, the appellant being his obscure competitor.

Judgment, Popularity, Obscure

Ambrose Bierce (2016). “The Devil's Dictionary: The Devil World”, p.167, 谷月社

Distress: A disease incurred by exposure to the prosperity of a friend.

Disease, Prosperity, Exposure

Ambrose Bierce (2001). “The Unabridged Devil's Dictionary”, p.58, University of Georgia Press

REALITY, n. The dream of a mad philosopher. That which would remain in the cupel if one should assay a phantom. The nucleus of a vacuum.

Dream, Philosophy, Reality

Ambrose Bierce (2016). “The Devil's Dictionary: The Devil World”, p.177, 谷月社

Genealogy, n. An account of one's descent from a man who did not particularly care to trace his own.

Family, Men, Care

We submit to the majority because we have to. But we are not compelled to call our attitude of subjection a posture of respect.

Attitude, Majority, Posture

Ambrose Bierce (2013). “Delphi Complete Works of Ambrose Bierce (Illustrated)”, p.2692, Delphi Classics

Platitude: All that is mortal of a departed truth.

Departed, Platitudes, Mortals

Ambrose Bierce (2001). “The Unabridged Devil's Dictionary”, p.183, University of Georgia Press

EMOTION, n. A prostrating disease caused by a determination of the heart to the head. It is sometimes accompanied by a copious discharge of hydrated chloride of sodium from the eyes.

Determination, Heart, Eye

Ambrose Bierce (2001). “The Unabridged Devil's Dictionary”, p.66, University of Georgia Press

REPORTER, n. A writer who guesses his way to the truth and dispels it with a tempest of words.

Truth, Way, Tempest

Ambrose Bierce (2001). “The Unabridged Devil's Dictionary”, p.197, University of Georgia Press

KISS, n. A word invented by the poets as a rhyme for "bliss." It is supposed to signify, in a general way, some kind of rite or ceremony appertaining to a good understanding; but the manner of its performance is unknown to this lexicographer.

Kissing, Understanding, Lexicographer

Ambrose Bierce (2016). “The Devil's Dictionary: The Devil World”, p.120, 谷月社

ROSTRUM, n. In Latin, the beak of a bird or the prow of a ship. In America, a place from which a candidate for office energetically expounds the wisdom, virtue and power of the rabble.

Wisdom, Latin, America

Ambrose Bierce (2013). “Delphi Complete Works of Ambrose Bierce (Illustrated)”, p.2504, Delphi Classics

STORY, n. A narrative, commonly untrue.

Stories, Narrative, Untrue

Ambrose Bierce (2016). “The Devil's Dictionary: The Devil World”, p.210, 谷月社

MISDEMEANOR, n. An infraction of the law having less dignity than a felony and constituting no claim to admittance into the best criminal society.

Law, Criminals, Dignity

Ambrose Bierce (2001). “The Unabridged Devil's Dictionary”, p.164, University of Georgia Press

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