Umberto Eco Quotes

A proverb is much matter distilled into few words.

I'm obsessed with proverbs because, to me, flexing is being able to say the most with the least amount of words.

In an aphorism, aptness counts for more than truth.

A proverb is good sense brought to a point.

Somewhere in the world there is an epigram for every dilemma.

A short saying often contains much wisdom.

APHORISM, n. Predigested wisdom. The flabby wine-skin of his brain Yields to some pathologic strain, And voids from its unstored abysm The driblet of an aphorism. "The Mad Philosopher," 1697

ADAGE, n. Boned wisdom for weak teeth.

You can cram a truth into an epigram - the truth, never.

An aphorism is never exactly true; it is either a half-truth or one-and-a-half truths.

A trite popular saying, or proverb. (Figurative and colloquial.) So called because it makes its way into a wooden head. Following are examples of old saws fitted with new teeth.

APHORISM, n. Predigested wisdom.

An epigram is a flashlight of a truth; a witticism, truth laughing at itself.

Old saws have no teeth.

It is a cliche that most cliches are true, but then like most cliches, that cliche is untrue.

An apt quotation is like a lamp which flings its light over the whole sentence.

An aphorism ought to be entirely isolated from the surrounding world like a little work of art and complete in itself like a hedgehog.

A fine quotation is a diamond in the hand of a man of wit and a pebble in the hand of a fool.

Aphorisms are food for thought - like sushi, they come in small portions that are both delicious and exquisitely formed. And, like sushi, I can never get enough.

A witty saying proves nothing.

Someone who can write aphorisms should not fritter away his time in essays.

What is a epigram? A dwarfish whole. Its body brevity, and wit its soul.

An aphorism is true where it has fixed the impression of a genuine experience.

If I've made myself clear, I've misspoken.

There is an old American saying 'He who lives in a glass house should not try to kill two birds with one stone.