Shakespeare's best-known lines — from "to be, or not to be" to "a rose by any other name" — still circulate because they condense complex ideas about love, power, identity and death into a few memorable words. Below is what each quote actually says in its play, who speaks it, and what it has come to mean.
William Shakespeare's plays and poems, mostly written between the late 1580s and early 1610s, produced a number of lines that are still quoted today, often without the speaker realising their theatrical origin. Many of these phrases have passed from the stage into everyday English, according to the Folger Shakespeare Library, the Washington-based research institution devoted to his work.
"To be, or not to be" — Hamlet
The line opens a 33-line soliloquy in Act 3, Scene 1 of Hamlet, first performed around 1600–1601 by the King's Men at the Globe Theatre, according to the Shakespeare resource NoSweatShakespeare. In the scene, Prince Hamlet weighs the value of continuing to live against suffering and the unknown nature of death. NoSweatShakespeare describes the speech as going beyond a simple weighing of life and death, reflecting instead on how fear of what comes after death can stop people from acting decisively.
To be, or not to be: that is the question: Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune...
— Hamlet, Act 3, Scene 1
Love and identity
Several quotes concern how Shakespeare's characters define love or human worth. In Romeo and Juliet, Act 2, Scene 2, Juliet argues that "a rose by any other name would smell as sweet," meaning that names are arbitrary labels and a person's essence does not depend on their family identity, according to the education platform Superprof. In Sonnet 116, the poet describes love as "an ever-fixed mark" that does not change even when circumstances do — a passage the Folger Shakespeare Library notes is frequently read at weddings.
A Midsummer Night's Dream, Act 1, Scene 1, gives the line "Love looks not with the eyes, but with the mind," which the Folger Shakespeare Library says explains the traditional image of Cupid as blind: love is based on perception rather than appearance. The same scene contains "The course of true love never did run smooth," which Folger identifies as a statement of the play's central theme.
Appearance, fate and wit
In The Merchant of Venice, Act 2, Scene 7, the Prince of Morocco opens a gold casket to find a warning that concludes "all that glisters is not gold" — commonly quoted today as "all that glitters is not gold." Superprof notes the line teaches that outward appearance does not guarantee inner worth.
In Julius Caesar, Act 1, Scene 2, a soothsayer warns Caesar to "beware the ides of March," foreshadowing his assassination, which in the Roman calendar fell on 15 March, according to Superprof.
In Hamlet, Act 2, Scene 2, Polonius tells King Claudius and Queen Gertrude that "brevity is the soul of wit," urging concise speech — then immediately delivers a long-winded preamble before reaching his point, prompting Gertrude to reply "More matter, and less art," according to NoSweatShakespeare. The site calls this a case of dramatic irony, since the advice is delivered by one of Shakespeare's most talkative characters.
Selected Shakespeare quotes: source and meaning
Quote (short form)
Play, Act/Scene
Core meaning
"To be, or not to be"
Hamlet, 3.1
Weighing continued life against suffering and the unknown
"A rose by any other name"
Romeo and Juliet, 2.2
A person's worth does not depend on their name
"All that glitters is not gold"
The Merchant of Venice, 2.7
Appearance can be misleading
"Beware the ides of March"
Julius Caesar, 1.2
A warning foreshadowing Caesar's assassination
"Brevity is the soul of wit"
Hamlet, 2.2
Concise speech is valued, delivered ironically by a long-winded character
Questions
What is Shakespeare's most quoted line?
"To be, or not to be, that is the question," from Hamlet's Act 3, Scene 1 soliloquy, is widely cited as his most recognisable line, according to NoSweatShakespeare.
What does "a rose by any other name would smell as sweet" mean?
Spoken by Juliet in Romeo and Juliet, Act 2, Scene 2, it means that names are arbitrary and a person's true value or nature does not depend on the label attached to them, according to Superprof.
Is "brevity is the soul of wit" meant sincerely?
The line is spoken by Polonius in Hamlet, Act 2, Scene 2, but he immediately follows it with a long, roundabout speech, which NoSweatShakespeare describes as deliberate dramatic irony on Shakespeare's part.
What event does "beware the ides of March" warn about?
In Julius Caesar, Act 1, Scene 2, a soothsayer's warning foreshadows the assassination of Julius Caesar, which occurred on 15 March in the Roman calendar, according to Superprof.
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