Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak out and remove all doubt

Meaning: Staying quiet is often wiser than speaking and confirming your ignorance.

Origin: Attributed to Abraham Lincoln and Mark Twain; the sentiment echoes Proverbs 17:28.

Translations

French: Mieux vaut se taire et passer pour un idiot que de parler et en lever tout doute (literally: Better to keep quiet and seem a fool than to speak and remove all doubt)
Spanish: Mejor guardar silencio y que te crean tonto, que hablar y confirmarlo (literally: Better to keep quiet and be thought a fool than to speak and confirm it)
Japanese: 黙って賢者と思われる方が、口を開いて愚者と証明するよりましだ (Damatte kenja to omowareru hō ga, kuchi wo hirate gūsha to shōmei suru yori mashi da) (literally: It is better to be silent and thought wise than to open your mouth and prove you're a fool)

Speak little, do much — Let your actions speak louder than your words; promise less and deliver more.
The louder the thunder, the less the rain — The most dramatic announcements often yield the least substance.
Do what I say, not what I do — Hypocrisy acknowledged: the speaker recognizes their own failures but knows the correct p…
It's not what you say but how you say it — Tone and delivery shape message impact more powerfully than words alone.
Live by the sword, die by the sword — Violence begets violence; those who choose aggressive means should expect equally brutal…
No one ever went broke underestimating the intelligence of the American public — Mass audiences reward simplicity over substance, making mediocrity perpetually profitable.

Loading the full interactive collection…