Not everyone is naturally courteous, so read these courtesy quotes to remind you that you should always be good-mannered!
Courtesy is showing gentleness, politeness, and respect for others. But, when life isn’t going as well as we’d like, we tend to forget these traits.
It will be challenging, but we should never give up the good in the face of the bad.
As social beings, we should always treat people courteously, no matter how good or bad they treat us. This not only makes us better people, but it also results in a more peaceful and harmonious living.
We’ve compiled these quotes to help you become a more courteous individual! We’re positive you can use some of these sayings as your mantra in your everyday life.
Read on and be inspired!
And don’t forget to check out these respect quotes and positive quotes.
Best Courtesy Quotes
1. “Courtesy costs nothing, but buys everything.” – Hazrat Ali ibn Abu-Talib
2. “Nothing is ever lost by courtesy. It is the cheapest of the pleasures, costs nothing, and conveys much. It pleases him who gives and him who receives, and thus, like mercy, it is twice blessed.” – Erastus Wiman
3. “No one is more insufferable than he who lacks basic courtesy.” – Bryant McGill
4. “Courtesies of a small and trivial character are the ones which strike deepest in the grateful and appreciating heart.” – Henry Clay
5. “Courtesy should be a continuous action, not something to be turned on and off like a faucet.” – Anonymous
6. “One difference between savagery and civilization is a little courtesy.” – Cullen Hightower
7. “Courtesy is as much a mark of a gentleman as courage.” – Theodore Roosevelt
8. “Courtesy is doing that which nothing under the sun makes you do but human kindness. Courtesy springs from the heart; if the mind prompts the action, there is a reason; if there be a reason, it is not courtesy, for courtesy has no reason. Courtesy is goodwill, and goodwill is prompted by the heart full of love to be kind. Only the generous man is truly courteous. He gives freely without a thought of receiving anything in return.” – B. C. Forbes
9. “Courtesy is a science of the highest importance. It is opening a door that we may derive instruction from the example of others, and at the same time enabling us to benefit them by our example, if there be anything in our character worthy of imitation.” – Michel de Montaigne
10. “Always have a sense of humor about life—you’ll need it. But always be courteous to boot.” – Peter Jennings
Famous Quotes About Courtesy
11. “The greater person is one of courtesy.” – Lord Alfred Tennyson
12. “Courtesy is sometimes imperceptible, but its absence turns out to be poignant.” – Julita Davies
13. “Courtesy is the one coin you can never have too much of or be stingy with.” – John Wanamaker
14. “There can be no defense like elaborate courtesy.” – V. Lucas
15. “All doors open to courtesy.” – Thomas Fuller
16. “The small courtesies sweeten life; the greater ennoble it.” – Christian Nestell Bovee
17. “Courtesy is a silver lining around the dark clouds of civilization; it is the best part of refinement and in many ways, an art of heroic beauty in the vast gallery of man’s cruelty and baseness.” – Bryant McGill
18. “No one is too big to be courteous, but some are too little.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson
19. “Courtesy is contagious—let’s start an epidemic.” – Evan Esar
20. “Courtesy is a small act but it packs a mighty wallop.” – Lewis Carroll
Also read: Famous Quotes, Encouraging Quotes
Courtesy Quotes to Guide You in Life
21. “Certainly every man can be courteous, for it costs nothing, and is within the ability of all.” – Nicias Ballard Cooksey
22. “Oh, hon, it’s the little courtesies that make life bearable, I find, wouldn’t you agree?” – Andrew Ashling
23. “It is better to have too much courtesy than too little, provided you are not equally courteous to all, for that would be an injustice.” – Baltasar Gracian
24. “Courtesies cannot be borrowed like snow shovels; you must have some of your own.” – John Wanamaker
25. “I pride myself on being courteous to people, and trying to fashion good relations.” – John Bercow
26. “You can literally force yourself to be courteous, happy, and enthusiastic with every person you meet. After you have forced yourself to be so for a short period of time—the habit takes over.” – Zig Ziglar
27. “There is a courtesy of the heart; it is allied to love. From its springs the purest courtesy in the outward behavior.” – Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
28. “The knowledge of courtesy and good manners is a very necessary study. It is like grace and beauty, that which begets liking and an inclination to love one another at the first sight.” – Michel de Montaigne
29. “We must be as courteous to a man as we are to a picture, which we are willing to give the advantage of a good light.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson
30. “It may be a mistake, that man, in a state of nature, is more disposed to cruelty than courtesy.” – Mercy Otis Warren
Also read: Quotes to Live By
Courtesy Quotes to Prepare You to Face the World
31. “I am a believer in trying to treat people properly and trying to respond and making sure that I find the time to be courteous.” – Richard Branson
32. “Courtesy is simply doing unto others what you would like them to do unto you.” – Anonymous
33. “Courtesy is only a thin veneer on the general selfishness.” – Honore De Balzac
34. “Remember that you must always have a deep regard for courtesy, and you must be respectful and obedient toward your seniors.” – Gichin Funakoshi
35. “If we want people to accept us as we are, then we should accord the same courtesy to them.” – Norhafsah Hamid
36. “Courtesy is the due of man to man; not of suit-of-clothes to suit-of-clothes.” – Thomas Carlyle
37. “Courtesy goes a long way, learn to be nice and friendly even to strangers.” – Dr. Lucas D. Shallua
38. “A kindly courtesy does at least save one’s feelings, even if it is not professing to stand for a welcome.” – Mark Twain
39. “Nothing is more becoming in a great man than courtesy and forbearance.” – Cicero
40. “We will support people who have the courtesy to talk to us, and who would stop pitting us against our neighbors.” – Jim Howell
Courtesy Quotes to Remind You to Always Be Kind and Polite
41. “A tree is known by its fruit; a man by his deeds. A good deed is never lost; he who sows courtesy reaps friendship, and he who plants kindness gathers love.” – Saint Basil
42. “The true greatness of a person, in my view, is evident in the way he or she treats those with whom courtesy and kindness are not required.” – Joseph B. Wirthlin
43. “Lack of courtesy is an extreme form of disrespect.” – Khaleel Datay
44. “Not only the footwear, wear also the courtesy, respect, and gratitude in your heart while stepping out of home.” – Rupali Desai
45. “Kind words are benedictions. They are not only instruments of power, but of benevolence and courtesy; blessings both to the speaker and hearer of them.” – Frederick Saunders
More Courtesy Quotes for Work
46. “While there is nothing wrong with being ambitious, you will get along better if you temper your ambition with courtesy. It is important that other people like you for you to get ahead, and being courteous is one of the best ways to make others like you.” – Marjabelle Young Stewart
47. “The line between the public life and the private life has been erased, due to the rapid decline of manners and courtesy. There is a certain crudeness and crassness that has suddenly become accepted behavior, even desirable.” – Fannie Flagg
48. “Courtesy is one’s own affair, but decency is a debt to life.” – Rex Stout
49. “Every human being is entitled to courtesy and consideration. Constructive criticism is not only to be expected but sought.” – Margaret Chase Smith
50. “To be humble to superiors is duty, to equals courtesy, to inferiors nobleness.” – Benjamin Franklin
Also read: Quotes for Work
Did You Find Any Quotes That’ll Change the Way You Interact With Others?
When you’re courteous to someone, you communicate that you value and respect them. As a result, they’ll appreciate and treat you with the same level of respect. Given this, remember that your treatment of others reflects how you want to be treated.
Aside from that, it’s an accurate measure of character when one remains courteous despite being treated rudely. It’s hard to keep your manners intact when this happens. You see, it takes great maturity and self-control to keep one’s composure during these moments.
But, as you’ve read from the quotes above, a better person will always be gracious and well-mannered. Eventually, your grace and courtesy will be rewarded in ways you won’t expect.
With that, we hope the quotes in the collection were able to encourage you to live according to positive and moral values. More importantly, let these courtesy quotes propel you to build better and stronger relationships with others!
