Don Hewitt Quotes

The tongue is the only tool that gets sharper with use.

Neatness of phrase is so closely akin to wit that it is often accepted as its substitute.

Writing is learning to say nothing, more cleverly each day.

False eloquence is exaggeration; true eloquence is emphasis.

I am not eloquent.

Drawing on my fine command of the English language, I said nothing.

Eloquence is a painting of the thoughts.

The ability to quote is a serviceable substitute for wit.

A thing is not necessarily true because badly uttered, nor false because spoken magnificently.

In labouring to be concise, I become obscure.

A witty saying proves nothing.

They place great stress on the clarity of our language for expressing nuances and showing subtleties.

Eloquence is the poetry of prose.

The art of the parenthesis is one of the greatest secrets of eloquence in Society.

I haven't much opinion of words. They're apt to set fire to a dry tongue, that's what I say.

Language is wine upon the lips.

The point—the power to hurt—of all figures [of speech] consist in the truthfulness of their application.

word thrower … phrase maker

We love eloquence for its own sake, and not for any truth which it may utter, or any heroism it may inspire

As reason is the glory of man, so the lamp of reason is eloquence.

Choose each word as a precision tool. Consider how it sounds, not how it reads.

… sledgehammer eloquence...

Nobody can swashbuckle a quick-witted riposte like Emma Thompson. She's a writer, a real writer, and she has a relish for the well-chosen word.

I promised myself that I would write as well as I can, tell the truth, not to tell everything I know, but to make sure that everything I tell is true, as I understand it. And to use the eloquence which my language affords me.

A fine thought in fine language is a most precious jewel, and should not be hid away, but be exposed for use and ornament.