Mark Twain
Writer, Humorist
"Why waste your money looking up your family tree? Just go into politics and your opponent will do it for you."
Opponents quotes
Opponents
436 quotes on this topic — from poets, philosophers, and thinkers across history.
Jay-Z
Rapper, Businessman
"I look in the mirror, my only opponent"
Dean Martin
Singer
"When your opponent's sittin' there holdin' all the aces, there's only one thing to do: kick over the table."
Kevin Gates
Rapper, singer, songwriter
"Let me hear the music. I'ma let the music instruct me on which way to go. Forwards, backwards, left, right. It's like boxing. I'm only as strong as my opponent."
Andy Murray
Tennis Player
"In tennis, it is not the opponent you fear, it is the failure itself, knowing how near you were but just out of reach."
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Browse quotes that often appear alongside opponents — connected by shared ideas and recurring themes.
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Opponents quotes (page 1 of 22)
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"Boxing isn't just about brute strength; it's about skill and outwitting your opponent."
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"Hamas, the opponents of Arafat, the opponents of peace, urged a boycott of the election, and yet there was an 85 percent turnout where Hamas is supposed to be strong. Isnt that really quite incredible?"
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"The best humor is offered up to you by the stupidity of your opponents."
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"Do not be afraid to get close to your opponent. The closer you are, the more you will learn."
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"I have always felt that a politician is to be judged by the animosities he excites among his opponents."
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"Fear comes from uncertainty; we can eliminate the fear within us when we know ourselves better. As the great Sun Tzu said: “When you know yourself and your opponent, you will win every time. When you know yourself but not your opponent, you will win one and lose one. However, when you do not know yourself or your opponent, you will be imperiled every time."
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"You must have complete determination. The worst opponent you can come across is one whose aim has become an obsession."
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"When arguing with a fool, make sure the opponent isn't doing the exact same thing."
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"You can prevent your opponent from defeating you through defense, but you cannot defeat him without taking the offensive."
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"Don't take the wrong side of an argument just because your opponent has taken the right side."
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"It is better to be the recipient of violence than the inflicter of it, since the latter only multiplies the existence of violence and bitterness in the universe, while the former may develop a sense of shame in the opponent, and thereby bring about a transformation and change of heart."
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"Never take your eyes off your opponent, even when you bow."
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"The more you attack, the more your opponent will make mistakes."
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"My toughest opponent has always been me."
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"You and your opponent are one. There is a coexisting relationship between you. You coexist with your opponent and become his complement, absorbing his attack and using his force to overcome him."
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"When we dehumanise and demonise our opponents, we abandon the possibility of peacefully resolving our differences, and seek to justify violence against them."
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"Build your opponent a golden bridge to retreat across."
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"The satyagrahi should not have any hatred in his heart against the opponent."
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"Success in fighting means not coming at your opponent the way he wants to fight you."
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"Lack of fairness to an opponent is essentially a sign of weakness."
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