“In all things it is better to hope than to despair.”
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
OptimismDespair
Hope Quotes
200 FAMOUS QUOTES · HOPE
Hope Quotes
Read the best hope quotes on optimism, courage and better days ahead from Goethe, Virgil, Milton, Burke, Bhartrihari, Lu Xun and more. Words to lift your spirits.
“While I breathe, I hope.”
Latin Motto
Short QuotesLife
“Hope is the last thing to die.”
Italian Proverb
ResilienceShort Quotes
“As long as there is breath, there is hope.”
Hindi Proverb
LifeResilience
“Only Hope remained there in an unbreakable home within, under the rim of the great jar, and did not fly out at the door.”
Hesiod
MythologyPandora
“Hope is like a path in the countryside. Originally, there is no path; yet as people walk this way again and again, a path appears.”
Lu Xun
ProgressPersistence
“Hope ever urges on, and tells us tomorrow will be better.”
Tibullus
TomorrowOptimism
“If things are bad now, they will not always be so.”
Horace
Hard TimesChange
“Endure, and preserve yourselves for better times.”
Virgil
PatienceEndurance
“This too shall pass.”
Persian Proverb
Hard TimesShort Quotes
“Never despair; but if you do, work on in despair.”
Edmund Burke
PerseveranceHard Work
“Let us consult what reinforcement we may gain from hope; if not, what resolution from despair.”
John Milton
CourageDetermination
“If it were not for hopes, the heart would break.”
Thomas Fuller
HeartComfort
“The natural flights of the human mind are not from pleasure to pleasure, but from hope to hope.”
Samuel Johnson
Human NatureOptimism
“To live without hope is to cease to live.”
Fyodor Dostoevsky
LifeMeaning
“It is hope that makes the shipwrecked sailor swim in the midst of the sea, though no land is in sight.”
Ovid
SurvivalPerseverance
“Everything that is done in the world is done by hope.”
Martin Luther
ActionMotivation
“Hope is a wondrous chain: those bound by it run about, and those freed from it stand still.”
Bhartrihari
DesireWisdom
“Even if you are the most sinful of all sinners, you will cross over all evil by the raft of knowledge.”
The Bhagavad Gita
RedemptionKnowledge
“Our real blessings often appear to us in the shape of pains, losses and disappointments; but let us have patience, and we soon shall see them in their proper figures.”
Joseph Addison
PatienceBlessings
“Hope rules a land for ever green.”
William Wordsworth
OptimismPoetry
“'Tis distance lends enchantment to the view.”
Thomas Campbell
PerspectivePoetry
“There is no chance, no destiny, no fate, can circumvent or hinder or control the firm resolve of a determined soul.”
Ella Wheeler Wilcox
DeterminationWillpower
“Hope is a lover's staff; walk hence with that, and manage it against despairing thoughts.”
William Shakespeare
LoveDespair
“Things out of hope are compassed oft with venturing.”
William Shakespeare
CourageTaking Chances
Related Topics
About Hope Quotes
Hope is what keeps us going when life gets hard. It's the quiet belief that tomorrow can be better than today, that storms pass, and that even the longest night ends with morning. People have written about hope for thousands of years, from the ancient Greek story of Pandora's jar to the poets and thinkers of every age.
This collection brings together 200 of the best hope quotes from Goethe, Virgil, John Milton, Edmund Burke, Bhartrihari, Lu Xun and many more, along with proverbs from around the world. Some will comfort you, some will challenge you, and all of them remind us why hope matters. For more uplifting words, explore our [Positive Quotes](/topics/positive-quotes).
Frequently asked questions
Quick answers about Hope quotes.
What is a famous quote about hope?
Goethe wrote, "In all things it is better to hope than to despair." The Latin motto "While I breathe, I hope" is another classic that has inspired people for centuries.
What is a good quote for hard times?
Try the Persian saying "This too shall pass," or Horace's reminder: "If things are bad now, they will not always be so."
What is the story of hope in Pandora's jar?
In the Greek myth told by Hesiod, Pandora opened a jar that released all the troubles of the world. Only Hope stayed inside, which is why people say hope remains even in the worst times.
What did Edmund Burke say about despair?
Burke gave simple, practical advice: "Never despair; but if you do, work on in despair."
What does the Bible say about hope?
Romans 5 teaches that tribulation builds patience, patience builds experience, and experience builds hope, "and hope maketh not ashamed."
What are good short hope quotes?
Try "While I breathe, I hope," "Hope is the last thing to die," "This too shall pass," or "Tomorrow is another day."