If you’re looking for the best William Shakespeare quotes then look no further.
William Shakespeare was an English poet, playwright and actor, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language.
His plays have been translated into every major living language and are performed more often than those of any other playwright.
Shakespeare produced most of his known works between 1589 and 1613. His most popular plays like Hamlet, Othello, King Lear, Macbeth and Romeo and Juliet are considered to be among the finest works in the English language.
Throughout the 20th and 21st century, Shakespeare’s work continues to remain popular and are studied, performed, and reinterpreted throughout the world.
Here you’ll find the most famous William Shakespeare quotes on life and love taken from his various plays that will also inspire you to success.
Inspirational William Shakespeare Quotes
1. “There is nothing either good or bad but thinking makes it so.” – William Shakespeare
2. “It is not in the stars to hold our destiny but in ourselves.” – William Shakespeare
3. “Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them.” – William Shakespeare
4. “Love all, trust a few, do wrong to none.” – William Shakespeare
5. “We know what we are, but know not what we may be.” – William Shakespeare
6. “Love sought is good, but given unsought, is better.” – William Shakespeare
7. “A fool thinks himself to be wise, but a wise man knows himself to be a fool.” – William Shakespeare
8. “One touch of nature makes the whole world kin.” – William Shakespeare
9. “All the world’s a stage, And all the men and women merely players: They have their exits and their entrances; And one man in his time plays many parts.” – William Shakespeare
10. “Some rise by sin, and some by virtue fall.” – William Shakespeare
11. “This above all: to thine ownself be true. And it must follow, as the night the day, Thou canst not then be false to any man.” – William Shakespeare
12. “Men at some time are masters of their fates: The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars, But in ourselves, that we are underlings.” – William Shakespeare
13. “Action is eloquence.” – William Shakespeare
14. “Come what come may, time and the hour runs through the roughest day.” – William Shakespeare
15. “Self-love, my liege, is not so vile a sin, as self-neglecting.” – William Shakespeare
16. “Our doubts are traitors, And make us lose the good we oft might win, By fearing to attempt.” – William Shakespeare
17. “The miserable have no other medicine, but only hope.” – William Shakespeare
18. “Give every man thy ear, but few thy voice.” – William Shakespeare
19. “Uneasy lies the head that wears a crown.” – William Shakespeare
20. “Better three hours too soon than a minute too late.” – William Shakespeare
21. “Pleasure and action make the hours seem short.” – William Shakespeare
22. “To do a great right do a little wrong.” – William Shakespeare
23. “There is no darkness but ignorance.” – William Shakespeare
24. “God has given you one face, and you make yourself another.” – William Shakespeare
25. “The empty vessel makes the loudest sound.” – William Shakespeare
26. “But love is blind, and lovers cannot see.” – William Shakespeare
27. “How sharper than a serpent’s tooth it is to have a thankless child!” – William Shakespeare
28. “No legacy is so rich as honesty.” – William Shakespeare
29. “We are such stuff as dreams are made on, and our little life is rounded with a sleep.” – William Shakespeare
30. “All that glitters is not gold.” – William Shakespeare
31. “Misery acquaints a man with strange bedfellows.” – William Shakespeare
32. “The course of true love never did run smooth.” – William Shakespeare
33. “Have more than you show, speak less than you know.” – William Shakespeare
34. “Always the wrong person gives you the right lesson in life.” – William Shakespeare
35. “Knowledge is the wing wherewith we fly to heaven.” – William Shakespeare
36. “Love looks not with the eyes but with the mind.” – William Shakespeare
37. “Cowards die many times before their deaths; the valiant never taste of death but once.” – William Shakespeare
38. “Be great in act, as you have been in thought.” – William Shakespeare
39. “Make not your thoughts your prisons.” – William Shakespeare
40. “Don’t waste your love on somebody who doesn’t value it.” – William Shakespeare
41. “Hell is empty and all the devils are here.” – William Shakespeare
42. “They do not love that do not show their love.” – William Shakespeare
43. “How far that little candle throws his beams! So shines a good deed in a weary world.” – William Shakespeare
44. “In time we hate that which we often fear.” – William Shakespeare
45. “If we are true to ourselves, we can not be false to anyone.” – William Shakespeare
46. “I wasted time, and now doth time waste me.” – William Shakespeare
47. “There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy.” – William Shakespeare
48. “It’s not enough to speak, but to speak true.” – William Shakespeare
49. “Things won are done; joy’s soul lies in the doing.” – William Shakespeare
50. “Let life be short; else shame will be too long.” – William Shakespeare
51. “Certain, men should be what they seem.” – William Shakespeare
52. “Talking isn’t doing. It is a kind of good deed to say well; and yet words are not deeds.” – William Shakespeare
53. “Time travels in diverse paces with diverse persons. I’ll tell you who time ambles withal, who time trots withal, who time gallops withal, and who he stands still withal.” – William Shakespeare
54. “Be patient, for the world is broad and wide.” – William Shakespeare
55. “Men at some time are masters of their fates. The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars, but in ourselves, that we are underlings.” – William Shakespeare
56. “Fortune brings in some boats that are not steer’d.” – William Shakespeare
57. “Brevity is the soul of wit.” – William Shakespeare
58. “Wisely and slow. They stumble that run fast.” – William Shakespeare
59. “Strong reasons make strong actions.” – William Shakespeare
60. “Oh what a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive.” – William Shakespeare
Did you find these quotes by William Shakespeare inspiring?
What are your favourite William Shakespeare quotes? Let me know in the comments and please share this post to help and inspire others.
