Misconception Sayings and Quotes

Below you will find our collection of inspirational, wise, and humorous old misconception quotes, misconception sayings, and misconception proverbs, collected over the years from a variety of sources.

The misconception which has haunted philosophic literature throughout the centuries is the notion of 'independent existence.' There is no such mode of existence; every entity is to be understood in terms of the way it is interwoven with the rest of the universe. Alfred North Whitehead
There's a common misconception that wealth is a fixed pie, and that therefore for one person to have a lot of wealth requires somebody else to have less (the narrative often goes that wealthy people stole their wealth from poor and middle class people) ... [but] wealth can grow, so that even if someone's percentage of the pie remains the same, they will benefit from that individual slice getting bigger. Ian Tartt
Criticism is a misconception: we must read not to understand others but to understand ourselves. Emil Cioran
THE MISCONCEPTION: You are a rational, logical being who sees the world as it really is. THE TRUTH: You are as deluded as the rest of us, but that's OK, it keeps you sane. David McRaney
There's that popular misconception of man as something between a brute and an angel. Actually man is in transit between brute and God. Norman Mailer
It is a misconception to think that during evolution humans sacrificed physical skill in exchange for intelligence: wielding one's body is a mental activity. Ted Chiang
Every misconception is a poison: there are no harmless misconceptions. Leo Tolstoy
It became a lucrative misconception, that movement in any direction is progression. Canibus
There is no offense by which we are excited to a livelier or more just indignation, than by the misinterpretation of our own motives. F. Wayland
There seems to be a great misunderstanding on the part of a great many people to the effect that when you cease to believe you may cease to behave. Louis Kronenberger
Aristotle maintained that women have fewer teeth than men although he was twice married, it never occured to him to verify this statement by examining his wives' mouths. Bertrand Russell
Misconceptions are like cockroaches: you have no idea where they came from, but they're everywhere—often where you don't expect them—and they're impervious to nuclear weapons. Alex Reinhart
The notion of implied meaning is the root of misunderstanding. Eric Parslow
Stupidity is a talent for misconception. Edgar Allan Poe
The final portrait is often furthest from the truth. Dave Cullen
Nothing is more dangerous for a new truth than an old misconception. Goethe
Why is it that there is this misconception that dark equals good. That only applies to chocolate. Rhys Bowen
The miracle of your mind isn't that you can see the world as it is. It's that you can see the world as it isn't. Kathryn Schulz
The misconception that a victory can be worth its price, has in the nuclear age become a total illusion. Alva Myrdal
Only misconceptions need to be supported by elaborate arguments. Truth can always stand alone. Leo Tolstoy
Misunderstanding is generally simpler than true understanding, and hence has more potential for popularity. Raheel Farooq
The biggest misconception about work is that you need to spend the majority of your time doing it. Tim Ferriss
Facts are stubborn things, but statistics are pliable. Mark Twain
The delusions of self-love cannot be prevented, but intellectual misconceptions as to the means of achieving success may be corrected. George Henry Lewes
A man's free will cannot cure him even of the toothache, or a sore finger; and yet he madly thinks it is in its power to cure his soul. Augustus Toplady
The trouble with the world is not that people know too little; it's that they know so many things that just aren't so. Mark Twain
In a society that judges self-worth on productivity, it's no wonder we fall prey to the misconception that the more we do, the more we're worth. Ellen Stern
Any man who knows all the answers most likely misunderstood the questions. Anonymous
To feed the hungry, to clothe the naked, to visit the ill in the hospital—these are acts of mercy, but there is one charitable deed which cannot be compared to them: to free your brother from misconception. Leo Tolstoy
Where misunderstanding serves others as an advantage, one is helpless to make oneself understood. Lionel Trilling