Dr Seuss Quotes and Sayings
These Dr. Seuss quotes and sayings might encourage you to order green eggs and ham for breakfast. Ok, not really. But these verses capture the wit and brilliance of one of our most beloved authors.
Dr. Theodor Seuss Geisel, popularly known as Dr. Seuss, was an institution (1904 – 1991). He is one of the most famous children’s book authors ever. Generations have been raised on this literary legend’s stories, characters, and poems. Only a select few literary figures have gained this much recognition.
Please start with our favorite ten best quotes.
Ten Best Dr. Seuss Quotes
1.) From there to here, and here to there, funny things are everywhere.
2.) A person’s a person, no matter how small.
3.) Being crazy isn’t enough.
4.) They say I’m old-fashioned and live in the past, but sometimes I think progress progresses too fast!
5.) You’re in pretty good shape for the shape you are in.
6.) Everything stinks till it’s finished.
7.) Step with care and great tact, and remember that life’s a great balancing act.
8.) Why fit in when you were born to stand out?
9.) Remember me and smile, for it’s better to forget than to remember me and cry.
10.) Oh the things you can find, if you don’t stay behind!
Quotations from Dr Seuss
11.) How did it get so late so soon? It’s night before afternoon. December is here before June. My goodness, how the time has flown.
12.) I have heard there are troubles of more than one kind. Some come from ahead, and some come from behind. But I’ve bought a big bat. I’m all ready, you see. Now my troubles are going to have troubles with me!
13.) If things start happening, don’t worry, don’t stew, just go right along, and you’ll start happening too.
14.) Think left and think right and think low and think high. Oh, the things you can think up if only you try!
15.) If you keep your eyes open enough, oh, the stuff you will learn. Oh, the most wonderful stuff.
16.) Fantasy is a necessary ingredient in living. It’s a way of looking at life through the wrong end of a telescope. Which is what I do. And that enables you to laugh at life’s realities.
Short Dr. Seuss Quotes
17.) It is better to know how to learn than to know.
18.) Adults are just outdated children.
19.) You’ll miss the best things if you keep your eyes shut.
20.) Sometimes, the questions are complicated, and the answers are simple.
21.) You are you. Now, isn’t that pleasant?
22.) I like nonsense; it wakes up the brain cells.
Tip: These Dr Seuss quotes make fun photo captions and great email finishes.
Whimsical Sayings
23.) Words and pictures are yin and yang. Married, they produce a progeny more interesting than either parent. Be awesome! Be a book nut!
24.) I’m afraid that sometimes
you’ll play lonely games, too.
Games you can’t win
’cause you’ll play against you.
25.) It’s a troublesome world. All the people who’re in it are troubled with troubles almost every minute. You ought to be thankful, a whole heaping lot, for the places and people you’re lucky you’re not.
26.) All alone! Whether you like it or not, alone is something you’ll be quite a lot!
27.) If you’d never been born, then you might be 6an Isn’t! An Isn’t has no fun at all. No, he didn’t!
28.) You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes – You can steer yourself any direction you choose. You’re on your own. And you know what you know. And YOU are the one who’ll decide where to go…
28.) Kid, you’ll move mountains.
29.) Take every chance. Drop every fear.
30.) Just never forget to be dexterous and deft.
And never mix up your right foot with your left.
31.) And will you succeed?
Yes! You will, indeed!
32.) In my world, everyone’s a pony and they all eat rainbows and poop butterflies!
33.) Things may happen and often do to people as brainy and footsy as you.
Writing in Verse
34.) The main problem with writing in verse is, if your fourth line doesn’t come out right, you’ve got to throw four lines away and figure out a whole new way to attack the problem. So the mortality rate is terrific.
35.) Fill your house with stacks of books in all the crannies and all the nooks.
36.) My trouble was I had a mind but I couldn’t make it up!
37.) It is fun to have fun, but you have to know how.
38.) I’m sorry to say so, but sadly, it’s true that bang-ups and hang-ups can happen to you.
39.) I speak for the trees, for the trees have no tongues.
40.) Think and wonder, wonder and think.
41.) In the places I go there are things that I see that I never could spell if I stopped with the Z.
42.) Christmas doesn’t come from a store; maybe Christmas perhaps means a little bit more.
43.) For a host, above all, must be kind to his guests.
44.) I meant what I said, and I said what I meant. An elephant’s faithful one hundred percent!
The Good Doctor’s Advice – Dr Seuss Quotes
45.) Stop telling such outlandish tales. Stop turning minnows into whales.
46.) But I’ve bought a big bat.
I’m all ready, you see.
Now my troubles are going
To have troubles with me!
47.) Cause you never can tell
What goes on down below!
This pool might be bigger
Than you or I know!
48.) Do you ever sit and fidget
when you don’t know what to do…?
Everybody gets the fidgets.
Even me and you.
49.) But it’s hard work being a King,
and he does his work well.
If he wants to have a bit of fun…
sure!…Let him have it!
50.) Did you ever milk this kind of cow?
Well, we can do it.
We know how.
If you never did,
you should.
These things are fun
and fun is good.
Silly Verses
51.) Simple it’s not, I am afraid you will find, for a mind-maker-upper to make up his mind.
52.) Waiting for the fish to bite or waiting for wind to fly a kite. Or waiting around for Friday night… everyone is just waiting!
53.) I know, up on top you are seeing great sights, but down here at the bottom we, too, should have rights.
54.) Today I shall behave, as if this is the day I will be remembered.
55.) It doesn’t matter what it is. What matters is what it will become.
56.) Humor has a tremendous place in this sordid world. It’s more than just a matter of laughing. If you can see things out of whack, then you can see how things can be in whack.
57.) Reading can take you places you have never been before
58.) He who makes a beast out of himself gets rid of the pain of being a man
59.) You find magic wherever you look. Sit back and relax. All you need is a book.
60.) You do not like them. So you say. Try them! Try them! And you may!
61.) Children want the same things we want.
To laugh, to be challenged, to be entertained, and delighted.
62.) So, open your mouth, lad! For every voice counts!
63.) I am lucky to be what I am! Thank goodness I’m not just a clam or ham or a dirty jar of sour gooseberry jam!
64.) A book is just like life, and anything can change!
65.) When something bad happens you have three choices. You can either let it define you, let is destroy you, or you can let it strengthen you.
Dr. Seuss Quotes On Love
66.) Don’t cry because it’s over. Smile because it happened.
67.) We are all a little weird and life’s a little weird, and when we find someone whose weirdness is compatible with ours, we join up with them and fall in mutual weirdness and call it love.
68.) You know you’re in love when you can’t fall asleep because reality is finally better than your dreams.
69.) Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It’s not.
70.) To the world, you may be one person, but to one person, you may be the world.
71.) I’m glad we had the times together just to laugh and sing a song, seems like we just got started and then before you know it, the times we had together were gone.
72.) Day
Play
We play all day.
Night
Fight
We fight all night.
73.) Sometimes, you will never know the value of a moment until it becomes a memory.
74.) Life’s too short to wake up with regrets. So love the people who treat you right, forgive the ones who don’t and believe that everything happens for a reason.
75.) You really can’t teach reading as a science. Love gets mixed up in it.
Check out the Dr. Seuss Museum in the works.
Graduation Dr. Seuss Quotes
76.) Today you are you! That is truer than true! There is no one alive who is you-er than you!
77.) Oh, what a day. I will make it a holiday.
78.) And will you succeed? Yes indeed, yes indeed! Ninety-eight and three-quarters percent guaranteed.
79.) You’re on your own, and you know what you know. And you are the guy who’ll decide where to go.
80.) You can get help from teachers, but you are going to have to learn a lot by yourself, sitting alone in a room.
81.) Why fit in when you’re born to stand out?
82.) The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.
83.) Today is your day. Your mountain is waiting. So… get on your way.
84.) Only you can control your future.
85.) Be who you are and say what you mean. Because those who mind don’t matter, and those who matter don’t mind.
86.) Today was good. Today was fun. Tomorrow is another one.
87.) And when they played they really played. And when they worked they really worked.
Tip: Use these Dr. Seuss quotes as captions for graduation photos or photos with friends on Instagram and Facebook.
Inspirational Dr. Seuss Quotes
88.) You’ll be seeing great sights! You’ll join the high fliers who soar to high heights.
89.) With your head full of brains and your shoes full of feet, you’re too smart to go down any not-so-good street.
90.) Sometimes, when I see my granddaughters make small discoveries of their own, I wish I were a child
History & Background
Geisel was born and raised in Springfield, Massachusetts. He adopted the name “Dr. Seuss” while working on his undergraduate degree at Dartmouth College. After graduating from Dartmouth, he attended and graduated from school at Oxford University.
His first career job was as a cartoonist and illustrator for Vanity Fair magazine. His first book was And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street. Publishers reportedly turned it down 27 times before it was green-lighted.
Father Wanted Him To Be A Medical Doctor
Geisel’s dad always wanted him to be a doctor, so he adopted that title in his pseudonym. During World War II, Geisel created propaganda cartoons and animated films.
Geisel married his second wife, Audrey Stone Dimond, in 1967. Dimond said about Geisel, “(he) lived his whole life without children, and he was very happy without children.” He said, “You have ’em; I’ll entertain ’em.”
Dr. Seuss’s work goes beyond the literary field. His work has been displayed in animated short films, with many garnering famous awards, including an Academy Award. Geisel’s works have been converted into famous television shows.
Dr. Seuss Legacy
His fame and reputation have gone so far and wide that his birthday is celebrated as National Read Across America Day. Dr. Seuss’s quotes have become an integral part of everyday life and for special events like graduations and birthdays.
He has influenced generations with his unique thinking and wit. This collection of sayings spans several of his books and provides a snapshot of his writing excellence.
Fun Facts about Dr. Seuss
1.) He is credited for coming up with the word: Nerd. He first used it in his 1950 book If I Ran the Zoo.
2.) Geisel has won two Academy Awards, two Emmy Awards, and a Pulitzer Prize.
3.) He was responsible for the “Quick Henry the Flit” ad campaign, which became a household catchphrase.
4.) Geisel graduated from Dartmouth and attended Oxford University (but did not graduate from there).
5.) In an interview, he once said that the Grinch character is based on himself.
6.) One of his first jobs after college was working as a writer and illustrator at Judge, a humor magazine.
7.) The Cat in the Hat killed Dick and Jane books. Geisel thought the Dick and Jane series so boring, he felt it would discourage kids from reading.
8.) The book Green Eggs and Ham uses exactly 50 words. This quantity of words resulted from a bet Geisel had with Bennett Cerf, his editor, where Cerf maintained that Geisel would be unable to write a book with that low a word count.
Here are the words: I am Sam; that; do not like; you green eggs and ham; them; would here or there; anywhere; in a house with a mouse; eat box fox; car they; could; may will see a tree; let me be; train on; say the dark; rain; goat; boat; so try may; if; good; thank. We could not say that five times fast. Would not, could not.
Dr. Seuss Trivia
- Geisel never fathered children. Geisel won the bet, and Green Eggs and Ham was his all-time best seller.
- The How the Grinch Stole Christmas film was an initial flop. However, repeated viewings year after year helped it become a classic favorite.
- According to his wife, Geisel was somewhat afraid of children. Geisel once said, “You have ’em, I’ll amuse ’em.”
- He also wrote under the names “Rosetta Stone” and “Theo LeSieg.” “LeSieg” is Geisel spelled backwards.
- Mulberry Street is the street that Geisel’s grandmother lived on.
- Oh, The Places You’ll Go was designed to be read to children in utero. But its fame caught on as a graduation gift, resulting in spiked sales in May.
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Best Books by Dr. Seuss
- The Cat in the Hat.
- Green Eggs and Ham.
- Oh, the Places You’ll Go – (A popular gift for graduates).
- The Lorax.
- One fish two fish red fish blue fish.
- Hop on Pop.
- How the Grinch Stole Christmas.
- Fox in Socks.
- Horton Hears a Who!
- ABC.
- Sneetches and Other Stories.
- And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street.
- Horton Hatches the Egg.
- If I Ran the Zoo.
- The Foot Book.
- If I Ran the Circus.
In all, Geisel wrote more than 60 books in his distinguished career. They’ve sold over 600 million copies. Green Eggs and Ham was his best seller.
Theodor Seuss Geisel Verses
91.) It is opener, out there, in the wide, open air.
92.) Just tell yourself, Duckie, you’re really quite lucky.
93.) Onward up many a frightening creek, though your arms may get sore and your sneakers may leak. Oh! The places you’ll go!
94.) You won’t lag behind, because you’ll have the speed.
95.) You’ll pass the whole gang, and you’ll soon take the lead.
96.) Wherever you fly, you’ll be best of the best.
97.) Wherever you go, you will top all the rest.
98.) Except when you don’t.
99.) Because, sometimes, you won’t.
100.) I know it may seem small and insignificant, but it’s not about what it is; it’s about what it can become.
101.) Adults are obsolete children.
You Have to Be Odd Dr. Seuss Quotes
102.) You have to be odd to be number one.
103.) Don’t give up! I believe in you all.
A person’s a person, no matter how small!
104.) If you get a chance, take it. If it changes your life, let it. Nobody said it’d be easy, they just promised it would be worth it.
105.) But on you will go
though the weather be foul.
On you will go
though your enemies prowl.
On you will go
though the Hakken-Kraks howl.
Onward up many
a frightening creek,
though your arms may get sore
and your sneakers may leak.
106.) There’s no limit to how much you’ll know, depending how far beyond zebra you go.
Writing Style
About the writing style: Yes, the good Doctor liked to rhyme. But his books (and thus, his quotations) are much more than simple rhymes. His books were fun. They had rhythm. Dr. Seuss believed in the details. Although Cat in the Hat had only 236 words, it took him nine months to finish it.
Dr. Seuss’s books teach children self-acceptance, love, and positivity. They encourage kids to do and be anything they want in life.
By Michael O’Halloran
Michael O’Halloran founded Greeting Card Poet in 2014 and has worked as its publisher and editor ever since. He has co-authored four books on kids’ trivia and four on coaching. Previously, Michael was the president of Magnetic Poetry. He has invented and brought over 75 new gift and toy products to market, most of which deal with wordplay. Mike is married and a father of four daughters.
Further Reading
Dr. Seuss Quotes and Sayings — You’re Here!
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