Benjamin Franklin (1706–1790) was an American polymath who was active as a writer, scientist, inventor, statesman, diplomat, printer, publisher, and political philosopher.
Here is a collection of Benjamin Franklin most inspiring quotes: Benjamin Franklin quotes about life, happiness, love, freedom, education, success, knowledge and reading. Quotes and sayings on determination, patience, liberty, time, democracy by Benjamin Franklin.
Benjamin Franklin Quotes and Sayings
Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing.
Three may keep a secret, if two of them are dead.
Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise.
They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.
Without continual growth and progress, such words as improvement, achievement, and success have no meaning.
Tell me and I forget, teach me and I may remember, involve me and I learn.
War is when the government tells you who the bad guy is. Revolution is when you decide that for yourself.
He that can have patience can have what he will.
If everyone is thinking alike, then no one is thinking.
You may delay, but time will not.
Whoever would overthrow the liberty of a nation must begin by subduing the freeness of speech.
A Penny Saved is a Penny Earned.
Make yourself sheep and the wolves will eat you.
Happiness depends more on the inward disposition of mind than on outward circumstances.
Many people die at twenty five and aren't buried until they are seventy five.
Remember not only to say the right thing in the right place, but far more difficult still, to leave unsaid the wrong thing at the tempting moment.
In wine there is wisdom, in beer there is Freedom, in water there is bacteria.
Tricks and treachery are the practice of fools, that don't have brains enough to be honest.
Never ruin an apology with an excuse.
Security without liberty is called prison.
We are all born ignorant, but one must work hard to remain stupid.
Genius is the ability to hold one's vision steady until it becomes reality.
Justice will not be served until those who are unaffected are as outraged as those who are.
Freedom is not a gift bestowed upon us by other men, but a right that belongs to us by the laws of God and nature.
Fear not death for the sooner we die, the longer we shall be immortal.
In free governments the rulers are the servants, and the people their superiors and sovereigns.
I didn't fail the test, I just found 100 ways to do it wrong.
I never knew a man who was good at making excuses who was good at anything else.
Keep your eyes wide open before marriage, half shut afterwards.
By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.
Common sense is something that everyone needs, few have, and none think they lack.
How many observe Christ's birthday! How few, His precepts!
Those things that hurt, instruct.
When the well is dry, we know the worth of water.
Eat to live, don't live to eat.
All mankind is divided into three classes: those that are immovable, those that are movable, and those that move.
If you do tomorrow what you did today, you will get tomorrow what you got today.
Being ignorant is not so much a shame, as being unwilling to learn.
For every minute spent in organizing, an hour is earned.
An investment in knowledge always pays the best interest.
Those who beat their swords into plowshares usually end up plowing for those who kept their swords.
Well done is better than well said.
Where liberty dwells there is my country.
Hide not your talents, they for use were made, What's a sundial in the shade?
Be at war with your vices, at peace with your neighbors, and let every new year find you a better man.
It is the first responsibility of every citizen to question authority.
The Constitution only guarantees the American people the right to pursue happiness. You have to catch it yourself.
Women are books, and men the readers be.
Lost Time is never found again.
Money has never made man happy, nor will it; There is nothing in its nature to produce happiness. The more of it one has, the more one wants.
Instead of cursing the darkness, light a candle.
A Brother may not be a Friend, but a Friend will always be a Brother.
Contentment makes poor men rich, Discontent makes rich men poor.
It takes many good deeds to build a good reputation, and only one bad one to lose it.
Fear God, and your enemies will fear you.
If all printers were determined not to print anything till they were sure it would offend nobody, there would be very little printed.
How few there are who have courage enough to own their faults, or resolution enough to mend them.
Who is wise? He that learns from everyone. Who is powerful? He that governs his passions. Who is rich? He that is content. Who is that? Nobody.
The best thing to give to your enemy is forgiveness; to an opponent, tolerance; to a friend, your heart; to your child, a good example; to a father, deference; to your mother, conduct that will make her proud of you; to yourself, respect; to all others, charity.
Educate your children to self-control, to the habit of holding passion and prejudice and evil tendencies subject to an upright and reasoning will, and you have done much to abolish misery from their future and crimes from society.
I am for doing good to the poor, but...I think the best way of doing good to the poor, is not making them easy in poverty, but leading or driving them out of it. I observed... that the more public provisions were made for the poor, the less they provided for themselves, and of course became poorer. And, on the contrary, the less was done for them, the more they did for themselves, and became richer.
While we may not be able to control all that happens to us, we can control what happens inside us.
Be civil to all; sociable to many; familiar with few; friend to one; enemy to none.
A slip of the foot you may soon recover, but a slip of the tongue you may never get over.
Be slow in choosing a friend, slower in changing.
Work as if you were to live a thousand years, play as if you were to die tomorrow.
The only thing that is more expensive than education is ignorance.
Beware of little expenses; a small leak will sink a great ship.
A house is not a home unless it contains food and fire for the mind as well as the body.
Never confuse Motion with Action.
Trouble knocked at the door, but, hearing laughter, hurried away.
He that is good for making excuses is seldom good for anything else.
Love your Enemies, for they tell you your Faults.
Speak ill of no man, but speak all the good you know of everybody.
Tis a great confidence in a friend to tell him your faults; greater to tell him his.
Whatever is begun in anger, ends in shame.
If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail!
The person who deserves most pity is a lonesome one on a rainy day who doesn't know how to read.
Never leave till tomorrow that which you can do today.
We must all hang together, or assuredly we shall all hang separately.
Do not anticipate trouble, or worry about what may never happen. Keep in the sunlight.
When you are finished changing, you're finished.
If a man could have half of his wishes, he would double his troubles.
Dost thou love life? Then do not squander time, for that's the stuff life is made of.
To find out a girl's faults, praise her to her girlfriends.
The heart of a fool is in his mouth, but the mouth of a wise man is in his heart.
When you're testing to see how deep water is, never use two feet.
Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise.
If you would not be forgotten, as soon as you are dead and rotten, either write things worth reading, or do things worth writing.
There was never a bad peace or a good war.
Life biggest tragedy is that we get old too soon and wise too late.
Also read: