I think perhaps the most important problem is that we are trying to understand the fundamental workings of the universe via a language devised for telling one another when the best fruit is.

Meaning of the quote

This quote suggests that the language we use to communicate about everyday things may not be the best way to understand the deeper truths of our universe. The words we use to describe when the best fruit is ripe may not be the same words we need to describe the complex workings of the cosmos. In other words, the language we use for simple, everyday tasks may not be enough to help us uncover the fundamental mysteries of the world around us.

About Terry Prachett

Terry Pratchett was an acclaimed English author best known for his Discworld fantasy novels. He was a prolific writer, producing over 40 books, and received numerous awards for his contributions to literature. Despite being diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease late in his life, Pratchett remained an influential and beloved figure in the literary world until his passing in 2015.

More about the author

More quotes from Terry Prachett

My experience in Amsterdam is that cyclists ride where the hell they like and aim in a state of rage at all pedestrians while ringing their bell loudly, the concept of avoiding people being foreign to them.

Terry Prachett

I have, before now, waited for a pen to perform a macro.

Terry Prachett

Dickens, as you know, never got round to starting his home page.

Terry Prachett

Eight years involved with the nuclear industry have taught me that when nothing can possible go wrong and every avenue has been covered, then is the time to buy a house on the next continent.

Terry Prachett

I think I would like to go into modelling. Of course, I don’t know how to do it, and wouldn’t be any good at it if I did, so I’m going to employ someone to walk the catwalks on my behalf. It would still be me, of course.

Terry Prachett

I mean, I wouldn’t pay more than a couple of quid to see me, and I’m me.

Terry Prachett

Over the centuries, mankind has tried many ways of combating the forces of evil… prayer, fasting, good works and so on. Up until Doom, no one seemed to have thought about the double-barrel shotgun. Eat leaden death, demon.

Terry Prachett

Freedom without limits is just a word.

Terry Prachett

Build a man a fire and he’ll be warm for the night. Set a man on fire and he’ll be warm for the rest of his life.

Terry Prachett

You can’t remember the plot of the Dr Who movie because it didn’t have one, just a lot of plot holes strung together. It did have a lot of flashing lights, though.

Terry Prachett

This isn’t life in the fast lane, it’s life in the oncoming traffic.

Terry Prachett

I didn’t go to university. Didn’t even finish A-levels. But I have sympathy for those who did.

Terry Prachett

If it wasn’t for the fun and money, I really don’t know why I’d bother.

Terry Prachett

I’ll be more enthusiastic about encouraging thinking outside the box when there’s evidence of any thinking going on inside it.

Terry Prachett

Opera happens because a large number of things amazingly fail to go wrong.

Terry Prachett

I think perhaps the most important problem is that we are trying to understand the fundamental workings of the universe via a language devised for telling one another when the best fruit is.

Terry Prachett

Mind you, the Elizabethans had so many words for the female genitals that it is quite hard to speak a sentence of modern English without inadvertently mentioning at least three of them.

Terry Prachett

Go on, prove me wrong. Destroy the fabric of the universe. See if I care.

Terry Prachett

‘Educational’ refers to the process, not the object. Although, come to think of it, some of my teachers could easily have been replaced by a cheeseburger.

Terry Prachett

Personally, I think the best motto for an educational establishment is: ‘Or Would You Rather Be a Mule?’

Terry Prachett

Never trust any complicated cocktail that remainds perfectly clear until the last ingredient goes in, and then immediately clouds.

Terry Prachett