A quotation from Ambrose Bierce
ADAM’S APPLE, n. A protuberance on the throat of a man, thoughtfully provided by Nature to keep the rope in place.Ambrose Bierce (1842-1914?) American writer and journalist
“Adam’s Apple,” “Devil’s Dictionary” column, San Francisco Wasp (1881-05-05)
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A quotation from Ambrose Bierce
ADAGE, n. A hoary-headed platitude that is kicked along the centuries until nothing is left of it but its clothes. A “saw” which has worn out its teeth on the human understanding.Ambrose Bierce (1842-1914?) American writer and journalist
“Adage,” “Devil’s Dictionary” column, San Francisco Wasp (1881-03-05)
More about this quote: wist.info/bierce-ambrose/81811…
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ADAGE, n. A hoary-headed platitude that is kicked along the centuries until nothing is left of it but its clothes. A “saw” which has worn out its teeth on the human understanding. Not collected in later books. Instead, in The Cynic's Word Book (1906), he changed it to "Boned wisdom…
A quotation from Ambrose Bierce
ABATTOIR, n. A place where cattle slaughter kine. It is commonly placed at some distance from the haunts of our species, in order that they who devour the flesh may not be shocked by the site of blood.Ambrose Bierce (1842-1914?) American writer and journalist
“Abattoir,” “Demon’s Dictionary” column, San Francisco News Letter (1875-12-11)
More about this quote: wist.info/bierce-ambrose/81667…
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ABATTOIR, n. A place where cattle slaughter kine. It is commonly placed at some distance from the haunts of our species, in order that they who devour the flesh may not be shocked by the site of blood. Not collected in later books.
A quotation from Ambrose Bierce
INCORPORATION, n. The act of uniting several persons into one fiction called a corporation, in order that they may be no longer responsible for its actions. A, B and C are a corporation. A robs, B steals and C (it is necessary that there be one gentleman in the concern) cheats. It is a plundering, thieving, swindling corporation. But A, B and C, who have jointly determined and severally executed every crime of the corporation, are blameless. It is wrong to mention them by name when censuring their acts as a corporation, but right when praising.Ambrose Bierce (1842-1914?) American writer and journalist
“Incorporation,” “Devil’s Dictionary” column, San Francisco Wasp (1885-10-03)
More about this quote: wist.info/bierce-ambrose/81536…
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INCORPORATION, n. The act of uniting several persons into one fiction called a corporation, in order that they may be no longer responsible for its actions. A, B and C are a corporation. A robs, B steals and C (it is necessary that there be one gentleman in the concern)…
A quotation from Ambrose Bierce
OBLIVION, n. The state or condition in which the wicked cease from struggling and the dreary are at rest. Fame’s eternal dumping ground. Cold storage for high hopes. A place where ambitious authors meet their works without pride and their betters without envy. A dormitory without an alarm clock.Ambrose Bierce (1842-1914?) American writer and journalist
“Oblivion,” The Devil’s Dictionary (1911)
More about this quote: wist.info/bierce-ambrose/81216…
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OBLIVION, n. The state or condition in which the wicked cease from struggling and the dreary are at rest. Fame’s eternal dumping ground. Cold storage for high hopes. A place where ambitious authors meet their works without pride and their betters without envy. A dormitory without an alarm clock. Originally…
A quotation from Ambrose Bierce
IMAGINATION, n. A warehouse of facts, with poet and liar in joint ownership.Ambrose Bierce (1842-1914?) American writer and journalist
“Imagination,” The Cynic’s Word Book (1906)
More about this quote: wist.info/bierce-ambrose/81085…
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IMAGINATION, n. A warehouse of facts, with poet and liar in joint ownership. Included in The Devil's Dictionary (1911). Originally published in the "Devil's Dictionary" column in the San Francisco Wasp (1885-08-29).
A quotation from Ambrose Bierce
BOOK-LEARNING, n. The dunce’s derisive term for all knowledge that transcends his own impenitent ignorance.Ambrose Bierce (1842-1914?) American writer and journalist
“Book-learning,” “Devil’s Dictionary” column, San Francisco Wasp (1881-05-14)
More about this quote: wist.info/bierce-ambrose/80990…
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A quotation from Ambrose Bierce
TELEPHONE, n. An invention of the devil which abrogates some of the advantages of making a disagreeable person keep his distance.Ambrose Bierce (1842-1914?) American writer and journalist
“Telephone,” The Devil’s Dictionary (1911)
More about this quote: wist.info/bierce-ambrose/80820…
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TELEPHONE, n. An invention of the devil which abrogates some of the advantages of making a disagreeable person keep his distance. Originally published in The Devil's Dictionary [A-Z] as Vol. 7 of his Collected Works.
A quotation from Ambrose Bierce
TRINITY, n. […] The Trinity is one of the most sublime mysteries of our holy religion. In rejecting it because it is incomprehensible, Unitarians betray their inadequate sense of theological fundamentals. In religion we believe only what we do not understand, except in the instance of an intelligible doctrine that contradicts an incomprehensible one. In that case we believe the former as a part of the latter.Ambrose Bierce (1842-1914?) American writer and journalist
“Trinity,” The Devil’s Dictionary (1911)
More about this quote: wist.info/bierce-ambrose/1056/
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TRINITY, n. [...] The Trinity is one of the most sublime mysteries of our holy religion. In rejecting it because it is incomprehensible, Unitarians betray their inadequate sense of theological fundamentals. In religion we believe only what we do not understand, except in the instance of an intelligible doctrine that…
A quotation from Ambrose Bierce
TURKEY, n. A large bird whose flesh when eaten on certain religious anniversaries has the peculiar property of attesting piety and gratitude. Incidentally, it is pretty good eating.Ambrose Bierce (1842-1914?) American writer and journalist
“Turkey,” The Devil’s Dictionary (1911)
More about this quote: wist.info/bierce-ambrose/80542…
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TURKEY, n. A large bird whose flesh when eaten on certain religious anniversaries has the peculiar property of attesting piety and gratitude. Incidentally, it is pretty good eating. Originally published in The Devil's Dictionary [A-Z] as Vol. 7 of his Collected Works.
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