110 Wisdom Quotes to Help You Live a Meaningful Life

Become a better person and live a life worth living with the help of this collection made up of the best and most inspiring wisdom quotes!

Wisdom is the result of a combination of experience, bravery, and intelligence. It helps us in making rational decisions and making fair judgments in life.

Through wisdom, we realize that forgiving others, looking beyond their flaws, and being kind and accepting to all are the highest and truest virtues of all human beings.

Developing wisdom allows us to shape our character more meaningfully.

Wisdom Quotes to Help You Live a Meaningful Life

So, if you want help in improving yourself, make sure you read and ponder on these quotes that will encourage you as you go through life.

Start here.

And don’t forget to check out these knowledge quotes and deep meaningful quotes.

Best Wisdom Quotes

1. “Knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom.” – Aristotle

2. “It is better to remain silent at the risk of being thought a fool than to talk and remove all doubt of it.” – Maurice Switzer

3. “Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it is time to reform—or pause and reflect.” – Mark Twain

4. “You’ve heard that it’s wise to learn from experience, but it is wiser to learn from the experience of others.” – Rick Warren

5. “Self-improvement and success go hand in hand. Taking the steps to make yourself a better and more well-rounded individual will prove to be a wise decision.” – Frank Long

6. “Pain can change you, but that doesn’t mean it has to be a bad change. Take that pain and turn it into wisdom.” – Dalai Lama

7. “Count your age by friends, not years. Count your life by smiles, not tears.” – John Lennon

8. “Seek the wisdom of the ages, but look at the world through the eyes of a child.” – Ron Wild

9. “The wise man hath his thoughts in his head; the fool, on his tongue.” – Ivan Panin

10. “The invariable mark of wisdom is to see the miraculous in the common.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

Inspirational Quotes on Wisdom

11. “By three methods we may learn wisdom: first, by reflection, which is noblest; second, by imitation, which is easiest; and third by experience, which is the bitterest.” – Confucious

12. “Think before you speak. Read before you think.” – Fran Lebowitz

13. “A man doesn’t begin to attain wisdom until he recognizes he is no longer indispensable.” – Richard E. Byrd

14. “We are made wise not by the recollection of our past, but by the responsibility for our future.” – George Bernard Shaw

15. “The measure of intelligence is the ability to change.” – Albert Einstein

16. “Knowing others is intelligence; knowing yourself is true wisdom. Mastering others is strength; mastering yourself is true power.” – Lao Tzu

17. “Yesterday I was clever, so I wanted to change the world. Today I am wise, so I am changing myself.” – Rumi

18. “Be blessed. The simple things are also the most extraordinary things, and only the wise can see them.” – Paulo Coelho

19. “Wisdom is not a product of schooling but of the lifelong attempt to acquire it.” – Albert Einstein

20. “Happy is the man who finds wisdom and the man who gains understanding.” – Anonymous

21. “Nurture your mind with great thoughts, for you will never go any higher than you think.” – Benjamin Disraeli

22. “The greatest obstacle to discovery is not ignorance—it is the illusion of knowledge.” – Daniel J. Boorstin

Also read: Inspirational Quotes

Short Quotes to Show You the True Meaning of Wisdom

23. “The only true wisdom is in knowing you know nothing.” – Socrates

24. “Wisdom is the daughter of experience.” – Anonymous

25. “Silence is the sleep that nourishes wisdom.” – Francis Bacon

26. “Honesty is the first book of wisdom.” – Thomas Jefferson

27. “It is said that wisdom lies not in seeing things, but seeing through things.” – Manly P. Hall

28. “It is characteristic of wisdom not to do desperate things.” – Henry David Thoreau

29. “Wisdom is not wisdom when it is derived from books alone.” – Anonymous

30. “A loving heart is the truest wisdom.” – Charles Dickens

31. “Wisdom is knowing the right path to take. Integrity is taking it.” – Anonymous

32. “Patience is the companion of wisdom.” – Saint Augustine

33. “Wonder is the beginning of wisdom.” – Socrates

34. “When anger enters the mind, wisdom departs.” – Thomas A Kempis

35. “Wisdom is the supreme part of happiness.” – Sophocles

36. “To conquer fear is the beginning of wisdom.” – Bertrand Russell

37. “It requires wisdom to understand wisdom: the music is nothing if the audience is deaf.” – Walter Lippmann

Interesting Quotes That Zoom in on Wisdom and Knowledge

38. “The saddest aspect of life right now is that science gathers knowledge faster than society gathers wisdom.” – Isaac Asimov

39. “Knowledge is the crown of the wise, folly is an inheritance of a fool.” – Vusi Mxolisi Zitha

40. “Science is organized knowledge. Wisdom is organized life.” – Immanuel Kant

41. “Knowledge is knowing what to say. Wisdom is knowing when to say it.” – Anonymous

42. “Wisdom is knowledge that is guided by understanding; we have to have the wisdom and the knowledge to understand why certain things happen in our lives and trust that God will lead us over any obstacles that come in our way.” – Anonymous

43. “Knowledge speaks, but wisdom listens.” – Jimi Hendrix

44. “It is the province of knowledge to speak, and it is the privilege of wisdom to listen.” – Oliver Wendall Holmes

45. “Knowledge comes from learning. Wisdom comes from living.” – Anthony Douglas Williams

46. “Knowledge is learning something every day. Wisdom is letting go of something every day.” – Zen Proverb

47. “Wisdom is the right use of knowledge.” – Charles Spurgeon

Insightful Quotes on Being a Wise Person

48. “The wise person feels the pain of one arrow. The unwise feels the pain of two.” – Kate Carne

49. “By three things the wise person may be known. What three? He sees a shortcoming as it is. When he sees it, he tries to correct it. And when another acknowledges a shortcoming, the wise one forgives it as he should.” – Buddha

50. “A clever person solves a problem. A wise person avoids it.” – Albert Einstein

51. “A wise man can learn more from a foolish question than a fool can learn from a wise answer.” – Bruce Lee

52. “The nature of life is such that the fool does not always fail, nor is the wise man always successful.” – Janice Manning

53. “That is ever the difference between the wise and the unwise: the latter wonders at what is unusual; the wise man wonders at the usual.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

54. “A wise man is superior to any insults which can be put upon him, and the best reply to unseemly behavior is patience and moderation.” – Moliere

55. “Thus, a wise individual is the one who learns to see the positive even in unfavorable events and unanticipated behavior of people.” – Lindsay J. Hallie

56. “The wise lack for nothing. The foolish, meanwhile, cannot make good use of anything.” – Camille Alice

57. “A man is not called wise because he talks and talks again; but if he is peaceful, loving, and fearless then he is in truth called wise.” – Buddha

Wise Quotes to Give You Useful Pieces of Advice

58. “When looking for wise words, the best ones often come from our elders.” – Catherine Pulsifer

59. “Do not be wise in words, be wise in deeds.” – Jewish Proverb

60. “The wisest man is he who does not believe he is wise.” – Anonymous

61. “The wise does at once what the fool does at last.” – Baltasar Gracian

62. “A good friend is precious, even more precious is a wise good friend.” – V. Ashiedu

63. “The wisest mind has something yet to learn.” – George Santayana

64. “The wise ones fashioned speech with their thought, sifting it as grain is sifted through a sieve.” – Buddha

65. “To be wise, we must seek Jesus, for we will not find wisdom apart from him.” – Kim Brenneman

66. “Be wiser than other people, if you can; but do not tell them so.” – Lord Chesterfield

67. “Be kind and virtuous, you’ll be best and wise.” – Benjamin Franklin

Wisdom Quotes You Can Use in Life

68. “What we think determines what happens to us, so if we want to change our lives, we need to stretch our minds.” – Wayne Dyer

69. “Never mistake knowledge for wisdom. One helps you make a living; the other helps you make a life.” – Sandra Carey

70. “Judge a man by his questions rather than by his answers.” – Voltaire

71. “You do not write your life with words—you write it with actions. What you think is not important. It is only important what you do.” – Patrick Ness

72. “Anyone who stops learning is old, whether at 20 or 80. Anyone who keeps learning stays young. The greatest thing in life is to keep your mind young.” – Henry Ford

73. “The quality of a person’s life is in direct proportion to their commitment to excellence, regardless of their chosen field of endeavor.” – Vince Lombardi

74. “Educating the mind without educating the heart is no education at all.” – Aristotle

75. “A wise person knows that there is something to be learned from everyone.” – Anonymous

76. “The greatest wisdom is seeing through appearances.” – Buddha

77. “A wise person is not always silent, but they know when to be.” – Anonymous

78. “Knowing when to walk away is wisdom. Being able to is courage. Walking away with your head held high is dignity.” – Anonymous

79. “Each life is made up of mistakes and learning, waiting and growing, practicing patience and being persistent.” – Billy Graham

80. “The true mark of maturity is when somebody hurts you and you try to understand their situation instead of trying to hurt them back.” – Anonymous

81. “Never stop learning because life never stops teaching.” – Anonymous

82. “Always follow your heart, but always bring your brain along.” – Anonymous

Powerful Quotes to Give You Profound Pieces of Wisdom

83. “Never seem wiser, nor more learned, than the people you are with. Wear your learning, like your watch, in a private pocket: and do not merely pull it out and strike it; merely to show that you have one.” – Lord Chesterfield

84. “The man of knowledge must be able not only to love his enemies but also to hate his friends.” – Friedrich Nietzsche

85. “Reading is one of the most important activities, which helps to educate genius and develop creative abilities.” – Samuel Greenberg

86. “A man is but a product of his thoughts. What he thinks he becomes.” – Mahatma Gandhi

87. “The wise always speak of what, with exactitude, cannot be put into words. Therefore, it is necessary to have ears and subtleness to hear these words.” – Marià Corbí

88. “When you are in conversation with other people, choose your words wisely. Your words have great power and you should be aware of this.” – Daniel Smith

89. “Never, no, never did nature say one thing and wisdom say another.” – Edmund Burke

90. “If you have the guts to keep making mistakes, your wisdom and intelligence leap forward with huge momentum.” – Holly Near

91. “Trust the path, trust yourself, and ultimately follow your inner voice over the chatter of external rationalisings.” – John Francis King

92. “A word from the wise—from those who have had experience in life—is far more valuable than many realize. If we are wise we will take it and make use of it, thus saving ourselves much time and grief.” – Dorothea S. Kopplin

93. “One of the greatest problems of our time is that many are schooled but few are educated.” – Thomas More

94. “A wise owl sat on an oak, the more he saw the less he spoke, the less he spoke the more he heard. Why aren’t we like the wise old bird?” – Charles M Schulz

Bible Verses and Quotes About Wisdom

95. “Do not forsake wisdom, and she will protect you; love her, and she will watch over you. Wisdom is supreme; therefore get wisdom. Though it costs all you have, get understanding.” – Proverbs 4:6-7

96. “For wisdom is a defense as money is a defense, But the excellence of knowledge is that wisdom gives life to those who have it.” – Ecclesiastes 7:12

97. “Wisdom belongs to the aged, and understanding to the old.” – Job 12:12

More Quotes to Help You Become a Wiser Person

98. “A kind person is very wise because they—consciously or unconsciously—have realised what it is all about: that what we do to our fellows, we also do to ourselves.” – Stefan Einhorn

99. “The ability to communicate fluidly and effectively is more than just a skill that one develops over time. It is a combination of skill, and wisdom, and the ability to connect to the perception of another that will allow them to see things the way you do and follow along with your will.” – Gerald Campbell

100. “Learning allows for more wisdom and knowledge. Additional knowledge about any situation increases the strength of an opinion.” – Faye Horton

101. “Do not say a little in many words but a great deal in a few.” – Pythagoras

102. “An investment in knowledge pays the best interest.” – Benjamin Franklin

103. “We are what our thoughts have made us; so take care about what you think. Words are secondary. Thoughts live; they travel far.” – Swami Vivekananda

104. “Learning is a treasure that will follow its owner everywhere.” – Chinese Proverb

105. “We tend to think of great thinkers and innovators as soloists, but the truth is that the greatest innovative thinking doesn’t occur in a vacuum. Innovation results from collaboration.” – John C. Maxwell

106. “If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his language, that goes to his heart.” – Nelson Mandela

107. “He who is afraid of asking is afraid of learning.” – Danish Proverb

108. “Intelligence without wisdom brings destruction.” – Erol Ozan

109. “Sorrow is knowledge, those that know the most must mourn the deepest, the tree of knowledge is not the tree of life.” – Lord Byron

110. “A smart person knows what to say. A wise person knows whether or not to say it.” – Anonymous

How Did Our Collection Change Your Views on Wisdom?

Wisdom can only be gained by experiencing all facets of life and recognizing that life isn’t always about happiness and satisfaction. Sorrow, pain, tragedy, and self-control are all a part of it.

Morals are brought to life by wisdom. Remember that wisdom cannot be achieved only by talking and thinking. To be a wise person is to cultivate our morals and souls.

Because of this, it’s essential to feed our minds with meaningful messages that will improve the quality of our lives and bring light to the people around us. We hope that you were able to find exactly what you need to live a more meaningful life filled with wisdom through our list above!

Do you have any more wise quotes to share? Which quote is your favorite? Comment down below.

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Karen Danao

Hi, I’m Karen, a content curator and writer for Quote Ambition; I’m also a marketing and advertising professional. Beyond the keyboard and the screen, I’m someone who’s out to enjoy every bit that life has to offer!

Poetry, philosophy, history, and movies are all topics I love writing about! However, my true passion is in traveling, photography, and finding common ground to which everyone from different cultures can relate.

With the many places I’ve been to, I found that love, inspiration, and happiness are some things that bring people together. No matter how different we are on the outside, I’m a true believer that our emotions don’t lie; if you dig deep into our psyche, we’re all the same inside.

This belief was further amplified when I joined Quote Ambition. Through the quotes I’ve read, collected, organized, and written about, I found that humans are resilient, creative, and compassionate.

We take from each others’ hearts and courage, and it’s through our individual experiences that we learn how to rise above our challenges and pain. In so many ways, Quote Ambition is a platform that allows people from all over the world to gain the inspiration they need anytime, anywhere!

You can find me on MuckRack and LinkedIn.