To fill our mind with the brightest pearls of wisdom from the greatest men and women of letters is one of the best things you can do for yourself. As the actress Marlene Dietrich memorably put it: “I love quotations because it is a joy to find thoughts one might have, beautifully expressed with much authority by someone recognized wiser than oneself.” So, let’s see how well-up on your quotations you are, by testing your knowledge of these oft-misquoted expressions with BabaMail’s ultimate quotation quiz! Simply fill in the missing blanks.
Classical Athenian philosopher Socrates was wont to repeat the phrase, the “unexamined life is not worth living.”
good
Briefest
Unexamined
Unwanted
2 of 15
“A journey of a thousand miles begins with a ______.” Lao Tzu
The following Chinese adage: “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step”, was written by Lao Tzu.
Single step
Positive attitude
First step
Firm resolution
3 of 15
“The ____shall inherit the Earth.” Jesus of Nazareth
Jesus Christ in the sermon on the mount proclaimed the good news that the “meek shall inherit the Earth.”
Meek
Poor
Good
Saints
Wikipedia
4 of 15
“If I have seen further, it is from _______.” Sir Isaac Newton
The physicist Sir Isaac Newton wrote that he may have furthered science, but only by “standing on the shoulders of giants.”
Standing on the shoulders of giants
Careful thought and reflection
Hard work and perspicacity
Learning from the best teachers
5 of 15
“Give the Devil ______.” Miguel de Cervantes
The correct quotation from Spain’s greatest writer, Cervantes, ends thus: “Give the Devil his due.”
Some credit
His due
A good kicking
A wide berth
6 of 15
“____ is the soul of wit.” William Shakespeare
Shakespeare’s full quotation “brevity is the soul of wit” comes from Hamlet, ironically it’s found in a tediously long speech.
Brevity
Learned
Lepidity
Courtesy
7 of 15
“Hope springs eternal ______.” Alexander Pope
These words “Hope springs eternal in the human breast” come from Pope’s Essay on Man, which was a huge sensation across Europe.
I’ve heard it said
In the human breast
Come what may
To a Christian man
8 of 15
“’Tis better to have ______ than never to have loved at all.” Alfred Lord Tennyson
The following words, “'Tis better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all” come from In Memoriam A.H.H. written on the occasion of Tennyson’s friend Arthur Hallam dying suddenly.
Lost one’s love
Loved once
Loved and lost
Been in love
9 of 15
“A room without _____ is like a body without a soul.” G.K. Chesterton
Actually, there is some debate whether Chesterton coined the phrase “A room without books is like a body without a soul” himself, rather than the Roman statesman, Cicero.
A view
Joy
Windows
Books
10 of 15
“Man is born free and_____.” Jean Jacques Rousseau
Rousseau’s quote here - “Man is born free and everywhere he is in chains” - sums up the chief argument in “The Social Contract”.
Blessed by God
Noble
Righteous
Everywhere he is in chains
11 of 15
“Nothing can be said to be certain, except _____.” Benjamin Franklin
When talking about the establishment of US constitution, Franklin expressed doubt that it would remain for long, saying: “in this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.”
Everyman thinks himself wise
Death and taxes
This: I think therefore I am
Little is in doubt
12 of 15
“Hitch your wagon ____” Ralph Waldo Emerson
American writer Ralph Waldo Emerson coined the inspiring expression: “Hitch your wagon to a star.”
To a comet
To a star
To the moon
To a thoroughbred
13 of 15
“God is in his heaven; __________” Robert Browning
In the dramatic poem Pippa Passes, we find the memorable line: “God's in his Heaven/All's right with the world!”
The world is in its place
Christ is by his side
We are down below
All’s right with the world
14 of 15
“East is east and west is west and _______.” Rudyard Kipling
The opening line “East is East and West is West, and never the twain shall meet” in the Ballad of East and West is contradicted later in the poem, when Kipling writes: “But there is neither East nor West, Border, nor Breed, nor Birth.”
Never the twain shall meet
This much I know for sure
North and south are separate
Let that be a lesson to you
15 of 15
“____ the ultimate aphrodisiac.” Henry Kissinger
Former US Secretary of State, Henry Kissinger was once quoted in the New York Times exclaiming that “Power” was the “ultimate aphrodisiac.”
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Tony A.
3/24/2020
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