Pride, a complex and often contentious emotion, has long been a subject of fascination and exploration across literature, philosophy, and psychology. It can manifest as a source of strength and confidence, driving individuals to achieve great feats and assert their worth. Yet, it can also lead to arrogance, stubbornness, and even isolation, blinding individuals to their own shortcomings and hindering personal growth.
Throughout history, thinkers, writers, and leaders have grappled with the nuances of pride, offering insights that shed light on its multifaceted nature. From ancient wisdom to modern reflections, quotes on pride capture the essence of this intricate emotion, exploring its role in shaping human behavior and relationships. Whether celebrated as a mark of self-respect or cautioned against as a potential pitfall, these quotes invite contemplation and dialogue, inviting us to examine our own attitudes towards pride and its impact on our lives.
Below, you will find a curated collection of quotes on pride, sourced from a diverse array of voices and perspectives. Feel free to draw inspiration from these words, whether to reflect on your own experiences, share wisdom with others, or simply appreciate the profound insights they offer.
Pride is an admission of weakness; it secretly fears all competition and dreads all rivals. Fulton J. Sheen
It’s my privilege and honor to cook three meals a day for my family, and it’s a luxury on a level that I didn’t even realize, because it can be relentless for me on some days. You have pride in how you take care of your family. Julia Roberts
Pride, to me, is a celebration of the past because we have come such a long way from the very first Pride parade marking the anniversary of the Stonewall riots, so it’s a celebration of all that we’ve accomplished. Sasha Velour
In general, pride is at the bottom of all great mistakes. John Ruskin
I love what I do. I take great pride in what I do. And I can’t do something halfway, three-quarters, nine-tenths. If I’m going to do something, I go all the way. Tom Cruise
Five enemies of peace inhabit with us – avarice, ambition, envy, anger, and pride; if these were to be banished, we should infallibly enjoy perpetual peace. Petrarch
No one has a greater asset for his business than a man’s pride in his work. Hosea Ballou
My aim, then, was to whip the rebels, to humble their pride, to follow them to their inmost recesses, and make them fear and dread us. Fear is the beginning of wisdom. William Tecumseh Sherman
I still take a lot of pride in being able to write my own songs. My story’s coming from me. Dua Lipa
All money means to me is a pride in accomplishment. Ray Kroc
There are two kinds of pride, both good and bad. ‘Good pride’ represents our dignity and self-respect. ‘Bad pride’ is the deadly sin of superiority that reeks of conceit and arrogance. John C. Maxwell
Pride or ego is not important to me. What is more important is common sense, the welfare of the company, and the objective reality that we need to be cautious during difficult times. One should not make decisions based on emotions or ego. Henry Sy
A man who is eating or lying with his wife or preparing to go to sleep in humility, thankfulness and temperance, is, by Christian standards, in an infinitely higher state than one who is listening to Bach or reading Plato in a state of pride. C. S. Lewis
Our vanity is hardest to wound precisely when our pride has just been wounded. Friedrich Nietzsche
Pride and excess bring disaster for man. Xun Kuang
Pride in the case of a rich man is bad, but pride in the case of a poor man is worse. Abu Bakr
There is magic in Scotland. It’s country with a lot of pride and bravery. I feel lucky to have been born into that. Gayle Rankin
Humility was considered a great virtue in my family household. No show of complacency or self-satisfaction was ever tolerated. Patting yourself on the back was definitely not encouraged, and pleasure or pride would be punishable by death. Hugh Laurie
Recognizing your talents doesn’t mean believing they’re limitless. Accepting your strengths doesn’t lead to pride, but instead to humility; you’re less likely to resent what others have if you understand your own bounty. Gina Barreca
Pride is an independent, me-oriented spirit. It makes people arrogant, rude and hard to get along with. When our heart is prideful, we don’t give God the credit and we mistreat people, looking down on them and thinking we deserve what we have. Joyce Meyer
We live in a society that wants to label you with a color, sexuality, religion, or ethnicity. It divides us, but it also allows us to find pride in our identity. Logan Browning
I want the great masses of my people to take a greater pride in their appearance and to give their hair proper attention. Madam C. J. Walker
One of the best temporary cures for pride and affectation is seasickness; a man who wants to vomit never puts on airs. Josh Billings
There is no cure for the pride of a virtuous nation but pure religion. Reinhold Niebuhr
Take pride in your work at all times. Remember, respect for an umpire is created off the field as well as on. Ford Frick
It is difficult to express in words the feelings of happiness and pride which fill me. Gherman Titov
Self-centered indulgence, pride and a lack of shame over sin are now emblems of the American lifestyle. Billy Graham
We were on welfare, and my mom thought you needed the government to survive. ‘Don’t try to make it on your own, because it won’t be enough. The kids won’t be fed:’ My mom believed that lie. So I’ve lived with a poverty mentality. But after I got my first job, at a local McDonald’s, and I got my first check, I felt such a sense of pride. Lauren Boebert
If you believe in yourself and have dedication and pride – and never quit, you’ll be a winner. The price of victory is high but so are the rewards. Bear Bryant
I would say I’m a nice person, and I take pride in the fact that I treat everyone really well, so there’s no reason for anyone to ever come at me because I only want the best for everybody else. Miley Cyrus
Pride, envy, avarice – these are the sparks have set on fire the hearts of all men. Dante Alighieri
The passions grafted on wounded pride are the most inveterate; they are green and vigorous in old age. George Santayana
There are some lawyers who think of themselves as basically instruments of whoever their clients are, and they pride themselves on their professional craft. Cass Sunstein
All free men, wherever they may live, are citizens of Berlin. And therefore, as a free man, I take pride in the words ‘Ich bin ein Berliner!’ John F. Kennedy
What is pride? A rocket that emulates the stars. William Wordsworth
Poor nations are hungry, and rich nations are proud; and pride and hunger will ever be at variance. Jonathan Swift
If we have built on the fragile cornerstones of human wisdom, pride, and conditional love, things may look good for a while, but a weak foundation causes collapse when storms hit. Charles Stanley
Besides pride, loyalty, discipline, heart, and mind, confidence is the key to all the locks. Joe Paterno
Through pride we are ever deceiving ourselves. But deep down below the surface of the average conscience a still, small voice says to us, something is out of tune. Carl Jung
Revenge, lust, ambition, pride, and self-will are too often exalted as the gods of man’s idolatry; while holiness, peace, contentment, and humility are viewed as unworthy of a serious thought. Charles Spurgeon
It’s only when you grow up, and step back from him, or leave him for your own career and your own home – it’s only then that you can measure his greatness and fully appreciate it. Pride reinforces love. Margaret Truman
Pride slays thanksgiving, but a humble mind is the soil out of which thanks naturally grow. A proud man is seldom a grateful man, for he never thinks he gets as much as he deserves. Henry Ward Beecher
I believe that people should take pride in what they do, even if it is scorned or misunderstood by the public at large. Tony Hawk
Whatever you do, take pride in it and be great at it. Dolph Ziggler
It’s good to be proud of your heritage and your culture, but pride can be perverted. Sam Hunt
The real pride, the real present, is your health and your longevity. My whole career, I have never done anything where competition was involved with weight loss. Richard Simmons
You need to be humble, play with pride but also aggression. Gianluca Vialli
In reality, there is, perhaps, no one of our natural passions so hard to subdue as pride. Benjamin Franklin
My pride fell with my fortunes. William Shakespeare
Holy humility confounds pride and all the men of this world and all things that are in the world. Francis of Assisi
It is the pride of my heart to have been one of the earliest adopted sons of America. Marquis de Lafayette
The English are predisposed to pride, the French to vanity. Jean-Jacques Rousseau
The dinosaurs aren’t remembered for much more than their bones. When humanity’s gone, what do we give to this little planet that we’re on, and what could we do collectively, removing the pride? Kanye West
There is a danger that threatens everyone in the church, all of us. The danger of worldliness. It leads us to vanity, arrogance and pride. Pope Francis
There’s this misconception that the Navy is this cruise ship, and you get to go out and sail around, and every now and then, you have to swab the deck. But, no, it is a very impressive group of young people that live at sea, in this place that’s very uncomfortable. They exude a pride that is well-deserved. Tom Hanks
Music is made one of Satan’s most attractive agencies to ensnare souls; but, when turned to a good account, it is a blessing. When abused, it leads the unconsecrated to pride, vanity, and folly. Ellen G. White
Anger is the enemy of non-violence and pride is a monster that swallows it up. Mahatma Gandhi
There is no arguing with the pretenders to a divine knowledge and to a divine mission. They are possessed with the sin of pride, they have yielded to the perennial temptation. Walter Lippmann
The American flag is the symbol of our freedom, national pride and history. Mike Fitzpatrick
With pride, there are many curses. With humility, there come many blessings. Ezra Taft Benson
Professional farmworkers who know how to do a number of different jobs, whether it be pruning or picking or crafting, they see themselves as professionals, and they take a lot of pride in that work. They don’t see themselves as doing work that is demeaning. Dolores Huerta
I think I’m slightly OCD. I’ll be desperate to get a part, but as soon as I do, the sense of pride wears off almost immediately, and fear of not doing a good job sets in. I’ll think, ‘This is a dream come true,’ and then, ‘It’s not OK until I get a good review.’ Will Poulter
Pampered vanity is a better thing perhaps than starved pride. Joanna Baillie
Remembering that I’ll be dead soon is the most important tool I’ve ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life. Because almost everything – all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure – these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important. Steve Jobs
Cats are the runes of beauty, invincibility, wonder, pride, freedom, coldness, self-sufficiency, and dainty individuality – the qualities of sensitive, enlightened, mentally developed, pagan, cynical, poetic, philosophic, dispassionate, reserved, independent, Nietzschean, unbroken, civilised, master-class men. H. P. Lovecraft
Bad food is made without pride, by cooks who have no pride, and no love. Bad food is made by chefs who are indifferent, or who are trying to be everything to everybody, who are trying to please everyone… Bad food is fake food… food that shows fear and lack of confidence in people’s ability to discern or to make decisions about their lives. Anthony Bourdain
I was full of pride when President Obama talked about coding in his last State of the Union address. I was proud when Chicago recently made computer science mandatory as a requirement for graduation. To see this elevate to the level of a bigger conversation is progress. Reshma Saujani
A portion of mankind take pride in their vices and pursue their purpose; many more waver between doing what is right and complying with what is wrong. Horace
The records in the house I really remember were, well, Glen Campbell’s ‘Wichita Lineman’ and ‘Galveston.’ Even as a kid, I knew these songs were glorious. My dad also had records by Merle Haggard, Charley Pride, Waylon Jennings, and then there was also the Eagles and Don Henley. Anything Texas, which includes Don Henley, was big. Keith Urban
Part of the core information that I’ve been purveying is that identity politics is a sick game. You don’t play racial, ethnic, and gender identity games. The Left plays them on behalf of the oppressed, let’s say, and the Right tends to play them on behalf of nationalism and ethnic pride. I think they’re equally dangerous. Jordan Peterson
The appellation of a Scottish Bard is by far my highest pride; to continue to deserve it is my most exalted ambition. Robert Burns
It was pride that changed angels into devils; it is humility that makes men as angels. Saint Augustine
Swallow your pride and admit that we all need help at times. Huston Smith
I take a lot of pride in being myself. I’m comfortable with who I am. James McAvoy
Humility and knowledge in poor clothes excel pride and ignorance in costly attire. William Penn
The things that have always been important: to be a good man, to try to live my life the way God would have me, to turn it over to Him that His will might be worked in my life, to do my work without looking back, to give it all I’ve got, and to take pride in my work as an honest performer. Johnny Cash
The truest characters of ignorance are vanity and pride and arrogance. Samuel Butler
Every man of action has a strong dose of egoism, pride, hardness, and cunning. But all those things will be regarded as high qualities if he can make them the means to achieve great ends. Giorgos Seferis
There can be no greater error than to expect, or calculate, upon real favors from nation to nation. It is an illusion which experience must cure, which a just pride ought to discard. George Washington
Oh I love gadgets and I pride myself on keeping at the cutting edge of technology. Alexander McCall Smith
I’ve always been someone who believes in being real and embraced my imperfections with pride rather than covering it up. Zareen Khan
There is no country in the world with the diversity, confidence and talent and black pride like Nigeria. Binyavanga Wainaina
A military man can scarcely pride himself on having smitten a sleeping enemy; it is more a matter of shame, simply, for the one smitten. Isoroku Yamamoto
Pride makes us artificial and humility makes us real. Thomas Merton
What is a wife and what is a harlot? What is a church and what is a theatre? are they two and not one? Can they exist separate? Are not religion and politics the same thing? Brotherhood is religion. O demonstrations of reason dividing families in cruelty and pride! William Blake
There is a secret pride in every human heart that revolts at tyranny. You may order and drive an individual, but you cannot make him respect you. William Hazlitt
Quality is pride of workmanship. W. Edwards Deming
I’m a black American, I am proud of my race. I am proud of who I am. I have a lot of pride and dignity. Michael Jackson
Festivals promote diversity, they bring neighbors into dialogue, they increase creativity, they offer opportunities for civic pride, they improve our general psychological well-being. In short, they make cities better places to live. David Binder
I am impelled, not to squeak like a grateful and apologetic mouse, but to roar like a lion out of pride in my profession. John Steinbeck
Most of us think of pride as self-centeredness, conceit, boastfulness, arrogance, or haughtiness. All of these are elements of the sin, but the heart, or core, is still missing. The central feature of pride is enmity – enmity toward God and enmity toward our fellowmen. Ezra Taft Benson
More enduringly than any other sport, wrestling teaches self-control and pride. Some have wrestled without great skill – none have wrestled without pride. Dan Gable
Muhammad Ali struck us in the middle of America’s darkest night, in the heart of its most threatening gathering storm. His power toppled the mightiest of foes, and his intense light shined on America, and we were able to see clearly injustice, inequality, poverty, pride, self realization, courage, laughter, love, joy and religious freedom for all. Billy Crystal
Vanity and pride are different things, though the words are often used synonymously. A person may be proud without being vain. Pride relates more to our opinion of ourselves; vanity, to what we would have others think of us. Jane Austen
Those who desire to rise as high as our human condition allows, must renounce intellectual pride, the omnipotence of clear thinking, belief in the absolute power of logic. Alexis Carrel
Our lack of forgiveness makes us hate, and our lack of compassion makes us hard-hearted. Pride in our hearts makes us resentful and keeps our memory in a constant whirlwind of passion and self-pity. Mother Angelica
To the Muslim woman, the hijab provides a sense of empowerment. It is a personal decision to dress modestly according to the command of a genderless Creator; to assert pride in self, and embrace one’s faith openly, with independence and courageous conviction. Randa Abdel-Fattah
The greatest pride, or the greatest despondency, is the greatest ignorance of one’s self. Baruch Spinoza
The God of this world is riches, pleasure and pride. Martin Luther
He didn’t come out of my belly, but my God, I’ve made his bones, because I’ve attended to every meal, and how he sleeps, and the fact that he swims like a fish because I took him to the ocean. I’m so proud of all those things. But he is my biggest pride. John Lennon