top of page

"Lyrics have to be underwritten. That's why poets generally make poor lyric writers because the language is too rich. You get drowned in it."

Stephen Sondheim, American Composer

Language, Poets, Poor, Writers

46

Create Your Own Wallpaper

Standard

Customized

"Lyrics have to be underwritten. That's why poets generally make poor lyric writers because the language is too rich. You get drowned in it."

Exlpore more Language quotes

"Belladonna, n.: In Italian a beautiful lady; in English a deadly poison. A striking example of the essential identity of the two tongues."

Ambrose Bierce, American Journalist

Language, English, Example, Lady, Identity

"Cussing like a commoner wasn't something I was tested on. I picked that habit up outside of high school."

S. A. Tawks, British Author

Language, Behavior, Rebellion, Youth

"It is very useful, when one is young, to learn the difference between "literally" and "figuratively." If something happens literally, it actually happens; if something happens figuratively, it feels like it is happening. If you are literally jumping for joy, for instance, it means you are leaping in the air because you are very happy. If you are figuratively jumping for joy, it means you are so happy that you could jump for joy, but are saving your energy for other matters."

Lemony Snicket, American Author

Language, Meaning, Understanding, Communication

"Words are not static.Language shape our memories, and it is also shaped by our memories."

John Green, American Author

Language, Memory, Communication, Change

"Know that diamonds and roses are as uncomfortable when they tumble from one's lips as toads and frogs: colder, too, and sharper, and they cut."

Neil Gaiman, British Author

Language, Metaphor, Truth, Emotion

"Although profanity is part of our language that we speak everyday, it can simultaneity be used as a weapon to demoralize other people if it is offensive within its meaning."

Saaif Alam, Indian Writer

Language, Profanity, Respect, Communication

"Language is memory and metaphor."

Storm Jameson, English Writer

Language, Memory, Metaphor

"English is not merely a language anymore, it has become a way of life for millions of non-native English speakers around the world."

M.F. Moonzajer, Afghan Author

Language, Culture, Globalization, Identity

"Words rich in meaning can be cheap in sound effects."

Dejan Stojanovic, Serbian Philosopher

Language, Word, Meaning, Sound, Communication

"Words are sacred. They deserve respect. If you get the right ones, in the right order, you can nudge the world a little."

Tom Stoppard, English Dramatist

Language, Word, Truth, Power, Respect

Explore more quotes by Stephen Sondheim

"Everyone I used to play with has either given up or is dead."

"Art, in itself, is an attempt to bring order out of chaos."

"So many good songs get written fast, because you know exactly what has to work."

"If you're dealing with a musical in which you're trying to tell a story, it's got to sound like speech. At the same time it's got to be a song."

"I played the organ when I went to military school, when I was 10. They had a huge organ, the second-largest pipe organ in New York State. I loved all the buttons and the gadgets. I've always been a gadget man."

"If people have split views about your work, I think it's flattering. I'd rather have them feel something about it than dismiss it."

"Oscar Hammerstein was a surrogate father during all those many days, and weeks and months when I didn't see my own father."

"My personal life and my artistic life do not interfere with each other."

"Musicals are, by nature, theatrical, meaning poetic, meaning having to move the audience's imagination and create a suspension of disbelief, by which I mean there's no fourth wall."

"I really don't want to write a score until the whole show is cast and staged."

bottom of page