"So avoid using the word 'very' because it's lazy. A man is not very tired, he is exhausted. Don't use very sad, use morose. Language was invented for one reason, boys - to woo women - and, in that endeavor, laziness will not do. It also won't do in your essays. What you do today is important, because you are sacrificing a day of your life for it. Anger is an acid that can do more harm to the vessel in which it is stored than to anything on which it is poured."

81 likes

Source: Mark Twain, William Dean Howells (1960). “Mark Twain-Howells Letters: The Correspondence of Samuel L. Clemens and William D. Howells, 1872-1910”, Belknap Press

About the author

Mark Twain

Writer, Humorist

Mark Twain was a prominent American writer known for his sharp wit and social critiques, particularly in 'The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.'

All quotes by Mark Twain →

Same author

More quotes by Mark Twain

See all →
Mark Twain Writer, Humorist

"Life is short, Break the Rules. Forgive quickly, Kiss slowly. Love truly. Laugh uncontrollably And never regret ANYTHING That makes you smile."

Read quote