Battle quotes
1.4K quotes on this topic — from poets, philosophers, and thinkers across history.
Explore further
Browse quotes that often appear alongside battle — connected by shared ideas and recurring themes.
Quote collection
Follow a thought to its author, or read the full quote page.
"When I myself had twice or thrice made a resolute resistance unto anger, the like befell me that did the Thebans; who, having once foiled the Lacedaemonians (who before that time had held themselves invincible), never after lost so much as one battle which they fought against them."
"A discussion should be a genuine attempt to explore a subject rather than a battle between competing egos."
"My hair is a battle. It's an uphill, fine, baby-haired battle."
"I have heard of 'the dead lying in heaps', but never saw it till this battle. Whole ranks fell together."
"Anglers have a way of romanticizing their battles with fish and of forgetting that the fish has a hook in his mouth, his gullet, or his belly and that his gameness is really an extreme of panic in which he runs, leaps, and pulls to get away until he dies. It would seem to be enough advantage to the angler that the fish has the hook in his mouth rather than the angler."
"Cowards do not count in battle; they are there, but not in it."
"Their long years together had shown him that it did not so much matter if marriage was a dull duty, as long as it kept the dignity of duty: lapsing from that, it became a mere battle of ugly appetites."
"They sent forth men to battle, But no such men return; And home, to claim their welcome, Come ashes in an urn"
"Imperialism has been defeated in many partial battles. But it remains a considerable force in the world, and we cannot expect its final defeat save through effort and sacrifice on the part of all of us."
"In the heat of battle, heroes emerge, sometimes from the most unlikely of sources."
"When the Lord fights the battles of the saints, he does it so effectually that nobody gets nervous but the enemy"
"The only battle to win is the battle within, that place where we realize that we deserve to have and create all that we want in our lives."
"I Sing what was lost and dread what was won, / I walk in a battle fought over again."
"... painting a picture is like fighting a battle; and trying to paint a picture is, I suppose, like trying to fight a battle. It is, if anything, more exciting than fighting it successfully. But the principle is the same."
"What we do battle with is so small, what battles us is so large."
"They can ta'k our lives but they can never ta'k our freedom!' Now there's a battle cry not designed by a clear thinker"
"Evil, once manfully fronted, ceases to be evil; there is generous battle-hope in place of dead, passive misery; the evil itself has become a kind of good."
"Demographics show that we are entering a battle between young and old. I call it the 'Age War.' The young want to hang onto their money to grow their families, businesses, and wealth. The old want the tax and investment dollars of the young to sustain their old age."
"To perceive victory when it is known to all is not really skilful. Everyone calls victory in battle good, but it is not really good."
"All battles are won before they start."
