Key takeaways
- The most quoted gratitude quote comes from Cicero, who said of gratitude: "this one virtue is not only the greatest, but is also the parent of all the other virtues."
- Seneca wrote a full treatise on giving and receiving, and his On Benefits names the worst ingratitude of all: "The most ungrateful man of all is he who forgets it."
- Book I of Marcus Aurelius's Meditations is one long list of thanks, starting with his grandfather and ending with the gods.
- Two popular lines credited to Marcus Aurelius and Meister Eckhart have no traceable source in the classic English translations by George Long and Claud Field.
- Shakespeare wrote more memorably about ingratitude than gratitude, from King Lear's "thankless child" to the winter wind in As You Like It.
Gratitude quotes fill journals, cards and morning feeds, and many of them are attached to names that never wrote them. The real lines are older, sharper and often less sentimental than the versions that circulate.
This list keeps only gratitude quotes that trace to a primary text, with the speech, book or scene for each one. It starts with Cicero, whose speech in defense of Plancius is free to read in C. D. Yonge's translation at the Perseus Digital Library.
What are the best gratitude quotes?
The best gratitude quotes start with Cicero, who argued in court that gratitude is the virtue every other virtue grows from. In section 80 of his speech for Plancius, in Yonge's translation, he says "there is nothing which I can esteem more highly than the being and appearing grateful."
He then makes the claim that made the line famous: "For this one virtue is not only the greatest, but is also the parent of all the other virtues." The modern version, "Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues, but the parent of all the others," is a fair summary of this passage, tidied up for modern readers.
Cicero was not writing a greeting card. He was speaking in court in defense of Plancius, and he wanted to be seen being grateful, not just to feel it.
Why did Cicero call gratitude the parent of all virtues?
Cicero called gratitude the parent of all virtues because he saw duty, patriotism and piety as forms of thanks. His next sentence makes the case: "What is filial affection, but a grateful inclination towards one's parents?"
He goes on to describe good citizens as people who "recollect the kindness which they have received from their country." Then he asks the question that ends the passage: "what friendship can exist between ungrateful people?"
That is a bigger idea than the modern gratitude journal. For Cicero, gratitude is not a mood you cultivate in private. It is a public obligation that shows up in how you treat the people who helped you.
What did Seneca say about gratitude?
Seneca said gratitude should be loud and lasting, and that forgetting a kindness is the worst ingratitude of all. His On Benefits, in Aubrey Stewart's translation at Project Gutenberg, is a full treatise on giving and receiving.
In Book II, chapter XXII, he urges readers to show "how acceptable a gift is by loudly expressing our gratitude for it; and let us do so, not only in the hearing of the giver, but everywhere." In his view, the person who receives a benefit with gratitude has already begun to repay it.
Book III opens with his sharpest line: "The most ungrateful man of all is he who forgets it." Back in Book I, chapter X, he ranks the ungrateful man as worse than thieves and tyrants. Seneca took the subject seriously.
Which gratitude quotes trace to a real source?
Every line in this table traces to a primary text or a named public-domain translation.
| Quote | Source | Where it comes from |
|---|---|---|
| "This one virtue is not only the greatest, but is also the parent of all the other virtues" | Cicero, Yonge translation | Pro Plancio, section 80 |
| "The most ungrateful man of all is he who forgets it" | Seneca, Stewart translation | On Benefits, Book III, chapter I |
| "To the gods I am indebted for having good grandfathers, good parents, a good sister, good teachers" | Marcus Aurelius, Long translation | Meditations, Book I |
| "A grateful disposition" | Epictetus, Long translation | Discourses, Book I, chapter 6 |
| "Gratitude is the sign of noble souls" | Aesop, Jacobs edition | Androcles |
| "How sharper than a serpent's tooth it is / To have a thankless child!" | William Shakespeare | King Lear, Act 1, Scene 4 |
| "Thou art not so unkind / As man's ingratitude" | William Shakespeare | As You Like It, Act 2, Scene 7 |
| "I hate ingratitude more in a man / Than lying" | William Shakespeare | Twelfth Night, Act 3, Scene 4 |
| "It is taking them without gratitude" | G. K. Chesterton | Irish Impressions, chapter II |
How did Marcus Aurelius practice gratitude?
Marcus Aurelius practiced gratitude in writing: Book I of his Meditations is a list of what he owed to the people who shaped him. In George Long's translation, available at MIT's Internet Classics Archive, it opens: "From my grandfather Verus I learned good morals and the government of my temper."
The book moves through his parents, teachers and friends, then closes with thanks to the gods: "To the gods I am indebted for having good grandfathers, good parents, a good sister, good teachers, good associates, good kinsmen and friends, nearly everything good." More of his lines, checked the same way, are in our verified list of Marcus Aurelius quotes.
One popular gratitude quote is credited to him wrongly. "When you arise in the morning, think of what a precious privilege it is to be alive, to breathe, to think, to enjoy, to love" has no traceable source in the Long translation. The nearest real passage opens Book V, and it is far less cheerful: "In the morning when thou risest unwillingly, let this thought be present: I am rising to the work of a human being."
Did Meister Eckhart say "If the only prayer you ever say is thank you, it will be enough"?
The line is widely credited to Meister Eckhart, but it does not appear in Claud Field's early English translation of his sermons. That selection, published around 1909 and available from the Christian Classics Ethereal Library, contains no such sentence.
Field's booklet does mention thanks. In one sermon Eckhart counsels his listeners to "grow in knowledge, and thank God, while you are in time." That is a long way from the tidy modern quote, and I could not find the popular wording in his translated work.
The saying may still be a fair summary of his spirit. It is just not a quotation you can footnote, so it is better shared without his name attached.
What did Shakespeare say about ingratitude?
Shakespeare wrote about ingratitude far more vividly than about gratitude, and his lines are among the most quoted on the subject. In King Lear, Act 1, Scene 4, the old king curses his daughter: "How sharper than a serpent's tooth it is / To have a thankless child!"
A few lines earlier he calls ingratitude a "marble-hearted fiend." In As You Like It, Act 2, Scene 7, a song in the forest compares it with the weather: "Blow, blow, thou winter wind. / Thou art not so unkind / As man's ingratitude."
In Twelfth Night, Act 3, Scene 4, Viola puts it at the top of her list of faults: "I hate ingratitude more in a man / Than lying, vainness, babbling, drunkenness." Shakespeare seems to have agreed with Seneca that a forgotten kindness cuts deepest.
What are some short gratitude quotes?
The best short gratitude quotes come from fables and philosophers, where every word has to earn its place.
- Aesop, Androcles, in Joseph Jacobs's 1894 edition: "Gratitude is the sign of noble souls."
- Aesop, The Wolf and the Crane, same edition: "Gratitude and greed go not together."
- Epictetus, Discourses, Book II, chapter 16, on losing what you love: "be thankful for the time that a man has had the use of it." Our list of verified Epictetus quotes has more.
- Seneca, On Benefits, Book III: "The most ungrateful man of all is he who forgets it."
- G. K. Chesterton, Irish Impressions, on taking things for granted: "It is taking them without gratitude."
Which gratitude quotes work on a wall?
Gratitude quotes work on a wall when they are quiet enough to live with every morning. A single word, a short definition or one clear line beats a paragraph of sentiment.
Gratitude Open Book sets the word as a dictionary entry on the pages of an old book, with a one-line definition about already having it all. It suits a living room or study. Gratitude Palette turns the idea into a golden yellow color swatch, which works in a kitchen or bedroom. Note To Self lists daily affirmations on a notepad, including "I am Grateful," and fits beside a desk or mirror.
Each piece is one gallery-wrapped canvas on a solid pine frame, made to order in Europe and ready to hang, with an optional floating frame. More word-led pieces sit in the typography wall art collection, and our guide to choosing quote wall art covers sizing and placement.
Featured gratitude pieces
Frequently asked questions
Who said gratitude is the parent of all virtues?
Cicero, in his speech defending Plancius, section 80. In C. D. Yonge's translation the line reads "this one virtue is not only the greatest, but is also the parent of all the other virtues." The shorter version that circulates today is a tidied paraphrase of that sentence.
Did Meister Eckhart really say thank you is enough of a prayer?
The line is widely credited to him, but it does not appear in Claud Field's English selection of his sermons, published around 1909. That booklet does have Eckhart urging listeners to "thank God, while you are in time," which is close in spirit but not the popular quote.
What is a short gratitude quote?
Aesop's "Gratitude is the sign of noble souls," the moral of Androcles in the Jacobs edition, is short and real. Seneca's "The most ungrateful man of all is he who forgets it" is another strong choice, from Book III of On Benefits.
What did the Stoics say about gratitude?
They treated it as a sign of clear thinking. Epictetus said that praising the order of the world needs "a grateful disposition," Seneca wrote a full treatise on benefits, and Marcus Aurelius opened his Meditations with a book of thanks to the people who shaped him.
Which gratitude quote works best on a wall?
Short, calm lines work best. A single word like gratitude in a kitchen or bedroom, Aesop's line about noble souls in a study, or Cicero's parent of all virtues line in a living room all hold up to daily reading.
