What Quote » Philosopher Quotes » Quotes by Francis Bacon »

A bachelor's life is a fine breakfast, a flat lunch, and a miserable d...  
A little philosophy inclineth man's mind to atheism, but depth in phil...  
A man must make his opportunity, as oft as find it.  
A man that studieth revenge keeps his own wounds green.  
A prudent question is one-half of wisdom.  
A sudden bold and unexpected question doth many times surprise a man a...  
A wise man will make more opportunities than he finds.  
Acorns were good until bread was found.  
All rising to great place is by a winding stair.  
Anger makes dull men witty, but it keeps them poor.  
Antiquities are history defaced, or some remnants of history which hav...  
As the births of living creatures are at first ill-shapen, so are all ...  
Beauty itself is but the sensible image of the Infinite.  
Boldness is ever blind, for it sees not dangers and inconveniences whe...  
Books will speak plain when counsellors blanch.  
But men must know, that in this theatre of man's life it is reserved o...  
By indignities men come to dignities.  
Certainly the best works, and of greatest merit for the public, have p...  
Children sweeten labours, but they make misfortunes more bitter.  
Choose the life that is most useful, and habit will make it the most a...  
Cure the disease and kill the patient.  
Discretion of speech is more than eloquence, and to speak agreeably to...  
Fame is like a river, that beareth up things light and swollen, and dr...  
Fashion is only the attempt to realize art in living forms and social ...  
For my name and memory I leave to men's charitable speeches, and to fo...  
Fortitude is the marshal of thought, the armor of the will, and the fo...  
Fortune is like the market, where, many times, if you can stay a littl...  
Friends are thieves of time.  
Friendship increases in visiting friends, but in visiting them seldom.  
God hangs the greatest weights upon the smallest wires.  
God has placed no limits to the exercise of the intellect he has given...  
God's first creature, which was light.  
Good fame is like fire; when you have kindled you may easily preserve ...  
He that gives good advice, builds with one hand; he that gives good co...  
He that hath knowledge spareth his words.  
He that hath wife and children hath given hostages to fortune; for the...  
He that will not apply new remedies must expect new evils; for time is...   Change
Histories make men wise; poets, witty; the mathematics, subtle; natura...  
Hope is a good breakfast, but it is a bad supper.  
I do not believe that any man fears to be dead, but only the stroke of...  
I had rather believe all the Fables in the Legend, and the Talmud, and...  
I will never be an old man. To me, old age is always 15 years older th...   Age
If a man be gracious and courteous to strangers, it shows he is a citi...  
If a man will begin with certainties, he shall end in doubts, but if h...  
If a man's wit be wandering, let him study the mathematics.   Science
If thou would'st have that stream of hard-earn'd knowledge, of Wisdom ...  
If we do not maintain justice, justice will not maintain us.  
Imagination was given to man to compensate him for what he is not; a s...   Humor
In order for the light to shine so brightly, the darkness must be pres...  
In taking revenge, a man is but even with his enemy; but in passing it...  
It is as natural to die as to be born; and to a little infant, perhaps...  
It is impossible to love and to be wise.  
It is in life as it is in ways, the shortest way is commonly the foule...  
It is natural to die as to be born.  
It was prettily devised of Aesop, "The fly sat on the axle tree of the...  
Judges must beware of hard constructions and strained inferences, for ...  
Judges ought to be more leaned than witty, more reverent than plausibl...  
Knowledge and human power are synonymous.  
Knowledge is power.  
Lies are sufficient to breed opinion, and opinion brings on substance.  
Life, an age to the miserable, and a moment to the happy.  
Little do men perceive what solitude is, and how far it extendeth. For...  
Many a man's strength is in opposition, and when he faileth, he grows ...  
Men fear death as children fear to go in the dark; and as that natural...   Death
Money is like manure, of very little use except it be spread.  
Money is like muck, not good except it be spread.  
Nakedness is uncomely, as well in mind as body, and it addeth no small...  
Natural abilities are like natural plants, that need pruning by study;...  
Nature is often hidden, sometimes overcome, seldom extinguished.  
Nature, to be commanded, must be obeyed.   Nature
Next to religion, let your care be to promote justice.  
Nothing doth more hurt in a state than that cunning men pass for wise.  
Nothing is pleasant that is not spiced with variety.  
Of all virtues and dignities of the mind, goodness is the greatest, be...  
Oh! death will find me long before I tire of watching you.  
Opportunity makes a thief.  
People have discovered that they can fool the devil; but they can't fo...  
People usually think according to their inclinations, speak according ...  
Pictures and shapes are but secondary objects and please or displease ...  
Prosperity is not without many fears and distastes; adversity not with...  
Prosperity is the blessing of the Old Testament; adversity is the bles...  
Read not to contradict and confute, nor to believe and take for grante...  
Rebellions of the belly are the worst.  
Revenge is a kind of wild justice, which the more a man's nature runs ...  
Riches are a good hand maiden, but a poor mistress.  
Science is but an image of the truth.  
Seek ye first the good things of the mind, and the rest will either be...  
Silence is the sleep that nourishes wisdom.  
Silence is the virtue of fools.  
Small amounts of philosophy lead to atheism, but larger amounts bring ...  
Some books are to be tasted, others to be swallowed, and some few to b...  
Studies perfect nature and are perfected still by experience.  
Studies serve for delight, for ornaments, and for ability.  
The best part of beauty is that which no picture can express.  
The correlative to loving our neighbors as ourselves is hating ourselv...  
The desire of excessive power caused the angels to fall; the desire of...  
The fortune which nobody sees makes a person happy and unenvied.  
The genius, wit, and the spirit of a nation are discovered by their pr...  
The great end of life is not knowledge but action.  
The job of the artist is always to deepen the mystery.  
The joys of parents are secret, and so are their grieves and fears.  
The momentous thing in human life is the art of winning the soul to go...  
The mould of a man's fortune is in his own hands.  
The pencil of the Holy Ghost hath labored more in describing the affli...  
The place of justice is a hallowed place.  
The remedy is worse than the disease.  
The root of all superstition is that men observe when a thing hits, bu...  
The subtlety of nature is greater many times over than the subtlety of...  
The way of fortune is like the milkyway in the sky; which is a number ...  
The wise man will make more opportunities than he finds.  
The worst men often give the best advice.  
The worst solitude is to have no real friendships.  
There is a difference between happiness and wisdom: he that thinks him...  
There is a wisdom in this beyond the rules of physic: a man's own obse...  
There is as much difference between the counsel that a friend giveth, ...  
There is no comparison between that which is lost by not succeeding an...  
There is no excellent beauty that hath not some strangeness in the pro...  
Therefore if a man look sharply and attentively, he shall see Fortune;...  
They are ill discoverers that think there is no land, when they can se...   Imagination
They that will not apply new remedies must expect new evils.  
Things alter for the worse spontaneously, if they be not altered for t...   Change
This communicating of a man's self to his friend works two contrary ef...  
This is certain, that a man that studieth revenge keeps his wounds gre...  
Travel, in the younger sort, is a part of education; in the elder, a p...  
Truth emerges more readily from error than from confusion.  
Truth is a good dog; but always beware of barking too close to the hee...  
Truth is so hard to tell, it sometimes needs fiction to make it plausi...  
Truth is the daughter of time, not of authority.  
Virtue is like a rich stone, best plain set.  
We are much beholden to Machiavel and others, that write what men do, ...  
We cannot command Nature except by obeying her.   Nature
What is truth? said jesting Pilate; and would not stay for an answer.  
When a man laughs at his troubles he loses a great many friends. They ...  
Who ever is out of patience is out of possession of their soul.  
Who questions much, shall learn much, and retain much.  
Wise men make more opportunities than they find.  
With a gentleman I am always a gentleman and a half, and with a fraud ...  
Without friends the world is but a wilderness. There is no man that im...  
Wives are young men's mistresses, companions for middle age, and old m...  
Write down the thoughts of the moment. Those that come unsought for ar...  
Young people are fitter to invent than to judge; fitter for execution ...