Plato
Philosopher
"The bees can abide no drones amongst them; but as soon as they begin to be idle, they kill them."
Idle quotes
Idle
54 quotes on this topic — from poets, philosophers, and thinkers across history.
Henry David Thoreau
Writer, Philosopher
"To have done anything just for money is to have been truly idle."
Ralph Waldo Emerson
Essayist, Philosopher, Poet
"That man is idle who can do something better."
Robert Louis Stevenson
Author, Poet
"To be idle requires a strong sense of personal identity."
William Faulkner
Novelist, Poet, Playwright
"It's always the idle habits you acquire which you will regret."
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Topics related to Idle
Browse quotes that often appear alongside idle — connected by shared ideas and recurring themes.
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Idle quotes (page 1 of 3)
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"I call that man idle who might be better employed."
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"I live an idle burden to the ground."
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"An idle reason lessens the weight of the good ones you gave before."
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"Arguments derived from probabilities are idle."
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"Be ashamed to catch yourself idle."
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"Perhaps man is the only being that can properly be called idle."
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"And, indeed, I will at this point ask an idle question on my own account: which is better — cheap happiness or exalted sufferings? Well, which is better?"
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"I would rather be sick than idle."
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"Purification is never for the selfishly idle, it accrues only to the selflessly industrious."
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"How idle is this prating about natural rights as though still containing all that had been forfeited."
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"But who are we, where do we come from When all those years Nothing but idle talk is left And we are nowhere in the world?" = MEETING ="
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"What's worse: to be idle while someone dies, or to be exiled and empty-handed?"
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"Nothing is more idle than to inquire after happiness, which nature has kindly placed within our reach."
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"An idle head is a boxe for the winde."
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"Bee not idle and you shall not bee longing."
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"These are questions for action, not speculation, which is idle."
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