Over 300 John F. Kennedy Quotes And Famous Words

As one of the most quoted politicians of recent times, the quotes of John F. Kennedy can be a great source of inspiration and motivation.

John F. Kennedy – Politician

John F. Kennedy was the 35th president of the United States. He was in office from 1961 until his assassination in 1963.

People thought that John F. Kennedy was a great president. He was very influential and had a lot of charisma. He was also very young when he became president, which made him stand out from other presidents.

John F. Kennedy is one of the most quoted politicians of recent times.

The great enemy of the truth is very often not the lie, deliberate, contrived and dishonest, but the myth, persistent, persuasive and unrealistic

Here’s some of the most well known quote by JFK

Famous Quotes from JFK

We prefer world law in the age of self-determination to world war in the age of mass extermination.

– John F. Kennedy


The rights of every man are diminished when the rights of one man are threatened.

– John F. Kennedy


The only reason to give a speech is to change the world.

– John F. Kennedy

The only reason to give a speech is to change the world. - John F. Kennedy


Ask not that the journey be easy; ask instead that it be worth it.

– John F. Kennedy


Those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable.

– John F. Kennedy


Blight has descended on our regulatory agencies – and a dry rot, beginning in Washington, is seeping into every corner of America – in the payola mentality, the expense account way of life, the confusion between what is legal and what is right.

– John F. Kennedy


If men and women are in chains anywhere in the world, then freedom is endangered everywhere.

– John F. Kennedy


Without debate, without criticism, no administration and no country can succeed, and no republic can survive.

– John F. Kennedy


World peace, like community peace, does not require that each man love his neighbor – it requires only that they live together with mutual tolerance, submitting their disputes to a just and peaceful settlement.

– John F. Kennedy


We must find time to stop and thank the people who make a difference in our lives.

– John F. Kennedy


Any danger spot is tenable if men, brave men, will make it so.

– John F. Kennedy


Children are the world’s most valuable resource and its best hope for the future.

– John F. Kennedy


The United States has to move very fast to even stand still.

– John F. Kennedy


There are many people in the world who really don’t understand-or say they don’t-what is the great issue between the free world and the Communist world. Let them come to Berlin!

– John F. Kennedy


The Chinese use two brush strokes to write the word ‘crisis.’ One brush stroke stands for danger; the other for opportunity. In a crisis, be aware of the danger – but recognize the opportunity.

– John F. Kennedy


Lower rates of taxation will stimulate economic activity and so raise the levels of personal and corporate income as to yield within a few years an increased – not a reduced – flow of revenues to the federal government.

– John F. Kennedy


JFK Quotes

Our most basic common link is that we all inhabit this planet. We all breathe the same air. We all cherish our children’s future. And we are all mortal.

– John F. Kennedy


It might be said now that I have the best of both worlds. A Harvard education and a Yale degree.

– John F. Kennedy


There is an old saying that the course of civilization is a race between catastrophe and education. In a democracy such as ours, we must make sure that education wins the race.

– John F. Kennedy


When written in Chinese, the word ‘crisis’ is composed of two characters. One represents danger, and the other represents opportunity.

– John F. Kennedy


Never before has man had such a great capacity to control his own environment, to end hunger, poverty, and disease, to banish illiteracy and human misery. We have the power to make the best generation of mankind in the history of the world.

– John F. Kennedy


As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them.

– John F. Kennedy


A life of complete leisure is the hardest work of all.

– John F. Kennedy

A life of complete leisure is the hardest work of all. - John F. Kennedy


A nation that is afraid to let its people judge the truth and falsehood in an open market is a nation that is afraid of its people.

– John F. Kennedy


Only in winter can you tell which trees are truly green. Only when the winds of adversity blow can you tell whether an individual or a country has steadfastness.

– John F. Kennedy


Our goal is not victory of might but the vindication of right – not peace at the expense of freedom, but both peace and freedom, here in this hemisphere and, we hope, around the world. God willing, that goal will be achieved.

– John F. Kennedy


For if Freedom and Communism were to compete for man’s allegiance in a world at peace, I would look to the future with ever-increasing confidence.

– John F. Kennedy


The human mind is our fundamental resource.

– John F. Kennedy

The human mind is our fundamental resource. - John F. Kennedy


In giving rights to others which belong to them, we give rights to ourselves and to our country.

– John F. Kennedy


Politics is a jungle-torn between doing the right thing and staying in office.

– John F. Kennedy


There is nothing more certain and unchanging than uncertainty and change.

– John F. Kennedy


Life isn’t fair. In never was and never will be.

– John F. Kennedy


John F Kennedy Quotes

It’s only when they join together in a forward movement that this country moves ahead…

– John F. Kennedy


I’m an idealist without illusions.

– John F. Kennedy


Efforts and courage are not enough without purpose and direction.

– John F. Kennedy

Efforts and courage are not enough without purpose and direction. - John F. Kennedy


I was never accepted into certain parts of New England society because my grandfather was an Irish barkeep.

– John F. Kennedy


It is time for a new generation of leadership to cope with new problems and new opportunities. For there is a new world to be won.

– John F. Kennedy


You never know what’s hit you. A gunshot is the perfect way.

– John F. Kennedy

You never know what’s hit you. A gunshot is the perfect way. - John F. Kennedy


Our progress as a nation can be no swifter than our progress in education. The human mind is our fundamental resource.

– John F. Kennedy


Every area of trouble gives out a ray of hope, and the one unchangeable certainty is that nothing is certain or unchangeable.

– John F. Kennedy


We had a dog who was named Pushinka, who was given to my father by a Soviet official. And we trained that dog to slide down the slide we had in the back of the White House. Sliding the dog down that slide is probably my first memory.

– John F. Kennedy


A man may die, nations may rise and fall, but an idea lives on.

– John F. Kennedy


To state, the facts frankly is not to despair the future nor indict the past. The prudent heir takes careful inventory of his legacies and gives a faithful accounting to those whom he owes an obligation of trust.

– John F. Kennedy


A wall is a hell of a lot better than a war.

– John F. Kennedy


The highest duty of the writer, the composer, the artist, is to remain true to himself and to let the chips fall where they may.

– John F. Kennedy


Be aware of danger-but recognize the opportunity.

– John F. Kennedy

Be aware of danger-but recognize the opportunity. - John F. Kennedy


The only unchangeable certainty in life is that nothing is unchangeable or certain.

– John F. Kennedy


The ignorance of one voter in a democracy impairs the security of all.

– John F. Kennedy


Quotes from John F. Kennedy

I look forward to a great future for America – a future in which our country will match its military strength with our moral restraint, its wealth with our wisdom, its power with our purpose.

– John F. Kennedy


Those who foolishly sought power by riding the back of the tiger ended up inside.

– John F. Kennedy


Physical fitness is not only one of the most important keys to a healthy body, but it is also the basis of dynamic and creative intellectual activity.

– John F. Kennedy


Foreign aid is a method by which the United States maintains a position of influence and control around the world.

– John F. Kennedy


In serving his vision of the truth, the artist best serves his nation.

– John F. Kennedy


Victory has a thousand fathers, but defeat is an orphan.

– John F. Kennedy

Victory has a thousand fathers, but defeat is an orphan. - John F. Kennedy


For without belittling the courage with which men have died, we should not forget those acts of courage with which men have lived.

– John F. Kennedy

Related: 300+ Courage Quotes To Help You Face Fears And Overcome Adversity


If not us, who? If not now, when?

– John F. Kennedy


Leadership and learning are indispensable to each other.

– John F. Kennedy


In a very real sense, it will not be one man going to the moon; it will be an entire nation. For all of us must work to put him there.

– John F. Kennedy


Our task is not to fix blame for the past, but to fix the course for the future.

– John F. Kennedy

Our task is not to fix blame for the past, but to fix the course for the future. - John F. Kennedy


Someone always needs rescuing, yet there’s only one person who ever seems to understand you. It’s a lot like being Lassie.

– John F. Kennedy


The rising tide lifts all the boats.

– John F. Kennedy

The rising tide lifts all the boats. - John F. Kennedy


Everything changes but change itself.

– John F. Kennedy


Do not pray for easy lives. Pray to be stronger men.

– John F. Kennedy


For I can assure you that we love our country, not for what it was, though it has always been great – not for what it is, though of this we are deeply proud – but for what it someday can, and, through the efforts of us all, someday will be.

– John F. Kennedy


Famous JFK Quotes

Failure has no friends.

– John F. Kennedy

Failure has no friends. - John F. Kennedy


Time and the world do not standstill. Change is the law of life.

– John F. Kennedy


We believe that when men reach beyond this planet, they should leave their national differences behind them.

– John F. Kennedy


The problem of power is how to achieve its responsible use rather than its irresponsible and indulgent use; of how to get men of power to live for the public rather than off the public.

– John F. Kennedy


Not every child has an equal talent or an equal ability or equal motivation, but they should have the equal right to develop their talent and their ability and their motivation, to make something of themselves.

– John F. Kennedy


The farmer is the only man in our economy who buys everything at retail, sells everything at wholesale, and pays the freight both ways.

– John F. Kennedy


Those who dare to fail miserably can achieve greatly.

– John F. Kennedy

Those who dare to fail miserably can achieve greatly. - John F. Kennedy


We in this country, in this generation, are, by destiny rather than choice, the watchmen on the walls of world freedom.

– John F. Kennedy


If anyone is crazy enough to want to kill a president of the United States, he can do it. All he must be prepared to do is give his life for the president’s.

– John F. Kennedy


There are risks and costs to action. But they are far less than the long-range risks of comfortable inaction.

– John F. Kennedy


I think the American people expect more from us than cries of indignation and attack. The times are too grave, the challenge too urgent, and the stakes too high – to permit the customary passions of political debate.

– John F. Kennedy


There’s a plot in this country to enslave every man, woman, and child. Before I leave this high and noble office, I intend to expose this plot.

– John F. Kennedy


The very word ‘secrecy’ is repugnant in a free and open society; and we are as a people inherently and historically opposed to secret societies, to secret oaths, and to secret proceedings.

– John F. Kennedy


For one true measure of a nation is its success in fulfilling the promise of a better life for each of its members. Let this be the measure of our nation.

– John F. Kennedy


The most powerful single force in the world today is neither Communism nor Capitalism, neither the H-bomb nor the guided missile – it is man’s eternal desire to be free and independent.

– John F. Kennedy


If a free society cannot help the many who are poor, it cannot save the few who are rich.

– John F. Kennedy


J F Kennedy Quotes

I have said that control of arms is a mission that we undertake particularly for our children and our grandchildren and that they have no lobby in Washington.

– John F. Kennedy


Let us welcome controversial books and controversial authors.

– John F. Kennedy

Let us welcome controversial books and controversial authors. - John F. Kennedy


My fellow Americans, ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country.

– John F. Kennedy


According to the ancient Chinese proverb, A journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step.

– John F. Kennedy


It is our task in our time and in our generation, to hand down undiminished to those who come after us, as was handed down to us by those who went before, the natural wealth and beauty which is ours.

– John F. Kennedy


All of us do not have equal talent, but all of us should have an equal opportunity to develop our talent.

– John F. Kennedy


All of us in the Senate live in an iron lung-the iron lung of politics, and it is no easy task to emerge from that rarified atmosphere in order to breathe the same fresh air our constituents breathe.

– John F. Kennedy


Nuclear weapons are so destructive, and ballistic missiles are so swift, that any substantially increased possibility of their use or any sudden change in their deployment may well be regarded as a definite threat to peace.

– John F. Kennedy


Mankind must put an end to war before war puts an end to mankind.

– John F. Kennedy


Geography has made us neighbors. History has made us friends. Economics has made us partners, and necessity has made us allies. Those whom God has so joined together, let no man put asunder.

– John F. Kennedy


Food is strength, and food is peace, and food is freedom, and food is a helping hand to people around the world whose goodwill and friendship we want.

– John F. Kennedy


Struggle for freedom. Where people are denied the right of choice, recourse to such struggle is the only means of achieving their liberties.

– John F. Kennedy


Our alliance is born, not of fear, but of hope. It is an alliance that advances what we are for, as well as opposes what we are against.

– John F. Kennedy


One person can make a difference, and everyone should try.

– John F. Kennedy

One person can make a difference, and everyone should try. - John F. Kennedy


Change is the law of life.

– John F. Kennedy


But however close we sometimes seem to that dark and final abyss, let no man of peace and freedom despair. For he does not stand alone.

– John F. Kennedy


Best John F. Kennedy Quotes

Let us resolve to be masters, not the victims, of our history, controlling our own destiny without giving way to blind suspicions and emotions.

– John F. Kennedy


What really counts is not the immediate act of courage or of valor, but those who bear the struggle day in and day out – not the sunshine patriots but those who are willing to stand for a long period of time.

– John F. Kennedy


If we cannot now end our differences, at least we can help make the world safe for diversity.

– John F. Kennedy


Diplomacy and defense are not substitutes for one another. Either alone would fail.

– John F. Kennedy


There can be no progress if people have no faith in tomorrow.

– John F. Kennedy

There can be no progress if people have no faith in tomorrow. - John F. Kennedy


We want to be first; not first if, not first but; but first!

– John F. Kennedy

We want to be first; not first if, not first but; but first! - John F. Kennedy


We live in a hemisphere whose own revolution has given birth to the most powerful force of the modern age; the search for freedom and self-fulfillment of man.

– John F. Kennedy


Aggressive conduct, if allowed to go unchecked and unchallenged, ultimately leads to war.

– John F. Kennedy


I am not so much concerned with the right of everyone to say anything he pleases as I am about our need as a self-governing people to hear everything relevant.

– John F. Kennedy


When we got into office, the thing that surprised me most was to find that things were just as bad as we’d been saying they were.

– John F. Kennedy


Where nature makes natural allies of us all, we can demonstrate that beneficial relations are possible even with those with whom we most deeply disagree-and this must someday be the basis of world peace and world law.

– John F. Kennedy


Forgive your enemies, but never forget their names.

– John F. Kennedy

Forgive your enemies, but never forget their names. - John F. Kennedy


Show me a man with a great golf game, and I’ll show you a man who has been neglecting something.

– John F. Kennedy


Our problems are man-made; therefore, they may be solved by man. And man can be as big as he wants. No problem of human destiny is beyond human beings.

– John F. Kennedy


The only significance of analyzing the past is that it does give us some key to the future.

– John F. Kennedy


In our democracy, every young person should have an equal opportunity to obtain a higher education, regardless of his station in life or financial means.

– John F. Kennedy


Kennedy Quotes

Things do not happen. Things are made to happen.

– John F. Kennedy


We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things. Not because they are easy, but because they are hard.

– John F. Kennedy


Communism has never come to power in a country that was not disrupted by war or corruption, or both.

– John F. Kennedy


No matter how big the lie; repeat it often enough, and the masses will regard it as the truth.

– John F. Kennedy


The American Labor Movement has consistently demonstrated its devotion to the public interest. It is, and has been, good for all America.

– John F. Kennedy


Intelligence and skill can only function at the peak of their capacity when the body is healthy and strong.

– John F. Kennedy


The US Airforce assures me that UFO’s pose no threat to National Security.

– John F. Kennedy


As they say on my own Cape Cod, a rising tide lifts all the boats. And a partnership, by definition, serves both partners without domination or unfair advantage. Together we have been partners in adversity let us also be partners in prosperity.

– John F. Kennedy


The wave of the future is not the conquest of the world by a single dogmatic creed but the liberation of the diverse energies of free nations and free men.

– John F. Kennedy


It is in the American tradition to stand up for one’s rights – even if the new way to stand up for one’s rights is to sit down.

– John F. Kennedy


Freedom is indivisible, and when one man is enslaved, all are not free.

– John F. Kennedy


The time to repair the roof is when the sun is shining.

– John F. Kennedy


This country cannot afford to be materially rich and spiritually poor.

– John F. Kennedy


No responsibility of government is more fundamental than the responsibility of maintaining the highest standard of ethical behavior for those who conduct the public business.

– John F. Kennedy


Liberty without Learning is always in peril and Learning without Liberty is always in vain.

– John F. Kennedy


There has also been a change – a slippage – in our intellectual and moral strength. Seven lean years of drouth and famine have withered a field of ideas.

– John F. Kennedy


Quotes by John F. Kennedy

To those whom much is given, much is expected.

– John F. Kennedy


Peace need not be impracticable, and war need not be inevitable.

– John F. Kennedy


Since the time of the ancient Greeks, we have felt that there was a close relationship between a strong, vital mind and physical fitness.

– John F. Kennedy


In the long history of the world, only a few generations have been granted the role of defending freedom in its hour of maximum danger. I do not shrink from this responsibility – I welcome it.

– John F. Kennedy


So, let us not be blind to our differences – but let us also direct attention to our common interests and to the means by which those differences can be resolved.

– John F. Kennedy


A country is as strong, really, as its citizens. And I think that mental and physical health – mental and physical vigor – go hand in hand.

– John F. Kennedy


We go into space because whatever mankind must undertake, free men must fully share.

– John F. Kennedy

Related: Space Quotes To Inspire You To Shoot For The Stars


A young man who does not have what it takes to perform military service is not likely to have what it takes to make a living. Today’s military rejects include tomorrow’s hard-core unemployed.

– John F. Kennedy


The Jewish people, ever since David slew Goliath, have never considered youth as a barrier to leadership.

– John F. Kennedy


Conformity is the jailer of freedom and the enemy of growth.

– John F. Kennedy

Conformity is the jailer of freedom and the enemy of growth. - John F. Kennedy


We stand for freedom. That is our conviction for ourselves; that is our only commitment to others.

– John F. Kennedy


Tolerance implies no lack of commitment to one’s own beliefs. Rather it condemns the oppression or persecution of others.

– John F. Kennedy


Man will be what he was born to be: free and independent.

– John F. Kennedy


It is not our wealth that built our roads, but it is our roads that built our wealth.

– John F. Kennedy


To be courageous requires no exceptional qualifications, no magic formula, no special combination of time, place, and circumstance. It is an opportunity that sooner or later is presented to us all.

– John F. Kennedy


We are not afraid to entrust the American people with unpleasant facts, foreign ideas, alien philosophies, and competitive values.

– John F. Kennedy


Famous Quotes JFK

Let us not seek the Republican answer or the Democratic answer, but the right answer. Let us not seek to fix the blame for the past. Let us accept our own responsibility for the future.

– John F. Kennedy


America has tossed its cap over the wall of space.

– John F. Kennedy


In order to know who, you are you need to know God is.

– John F. Kennedy


Peace is a daily, a weekly, a monthly process, gradually changing opinions, slowly eroding old barriers, quietly building new structures.

– John F. Kennedy


Just because we cannot see clearly the end of the road, that is no reason for not setting out on the essential journey.

– John F. Kennedy


Great crisis produces great men and great deeds of courage.

– John F. Kennedy


Knowledge of the oceans is more than a matter of curiosity. Our very survival may hinge upon it.

– John F. Kennedy


Anyone who can solve the problems of water will be worthy of two Nobel prizes – one for peace and one for science.

– John F. Kennedy


Those whom nature hath so joined together, let no man put asunder.

– John F. Kennedy

Those whom nature hath so joined together, let no man put asunder. - John F. Kennedy


The best road to progress is freedom’s road.

– John F. Kennedy

The best road to progress is freedom’s road. - John F. Kennedy


I would encourage every American to walk as often as possible. It’s more than healthy; it’s fun.

– John F. Kennedy


There is too little public recognition of how much we all depend upon farmers as stewards of our soil, water, and wildlife resources.

– John F. Kennedy


The high office of the President has been used to foment a plot to destroy the American’s freedom, and before I leave office, I must inform the citizens of this plight.

– John F. Kennedy


Nor problem of human destiny is beyond human beings.

– John F. Kennedy


Wealth is the means, and people are the ends. All our material riches will avail us little if we do not use them to expand the opportunities of our people.

– John F. Kennedy


I have a nice home, the office is close by, and the pay is good.

– John F. Kennedy


John F. Kennedy Sayings

While we cannot guarantee that we shall one day be first, we can guarantee that any failure to make this effort will make us last.

– John F. Kennedy


We are not here to curse the darkness, but to light the candle that can guide us through that darkness to a safe and sane future.

– John F. Kennedy


The Federal Government is the people, and the budget is a reflection of their need.

– John F. Kennedy


Let both sides seek to invoke the wonders of science instead of its terrors. Together let us explore the stars, conquer the deserts, eradicate disease, tap the ocean depths, and encourage the arts and commerce.

– John F. Kennedy


If the self-discipline of the free cannot match the iron discipline of the mailed fist, in economic, political, scientific, and all the other kinds of struggles, as well as the military, then the peril to freedom will continue to rise.

– John F. Kennedy

Related: 175+ Discipline Quotes For Maximum Motivation


My experience in government is that when things are non-controversial and beautifully coordinated, there is not much going on.

– John F. Kennedy


Let us never negotiate out of fear. But let us never fear to negotiate.

– John F. Kennedy


Never let your fears hold you back from pursuing your hopes.

– John F. Kennedy


I want every American to be free to stand up for his rights, even if sometimes he has to sit down for them.

– John F. Kennedy


The basis of self-government and freedom requires the development of character and self-restraint and perseverance and the long view. And these are qualities which require many years of training and education.

– John F. Kennedy


The world is very different now. For man holds in his mortal hands the power to abolish all forms of human poverty, and all forms of human life.

– John F. Kennedy


A great change is at hand, and our task, our obligation, is to make that revolution, that change, peaceful and constructive for all.

– John F. Kennedy


We are under-exercised as a nation. We look instead of play. We ride instead of walk. Our existence deprives us of the minimum of physical activity essential for healthy living.

– John F. Kennedy


Moral courage is more a rare commodity than bravery in a battle or great intelligence.

– John F. Kennedy


Nothing compares to the simple pleasure of a bike ride.

– John F. Kennedy


The basis of effective government is public confidence, and that confidence is endangered when ethical standards falter or appear to falter.

– John F. Kennedy


Well Known Quotes of John F. Kennedy

For plague and pestilence, plunder and pollution, the hazards of nature and the hunger of children are the foes of every nation. The earth, the sea, and the air are the concern of every nation.

– John F. Kennedy


The Greeks understood that mind and body must develop in harmonious proportions to produce a creative intelligence.

– John F. Kennedy


If I don’t have a woman every three days or so, I get a terrible headache.

– John F. Kennedy


I think the success of any school can be measured by the contribution the alumni make to our national life.

– John F. Kennedy


The cost of freedom is always high, but Americans have always paid it. And one path we shall never choose, and that is the path of surrender, or submission.

– John F. Kennedy


Domestic policy can only defeat us; foreign policy can kill us.

– John F. Kennedy


Sincerity is always subject to proof.

– John F. Kennedy


I do not say that all men are equal in their ability, character, and motivation. I do say that every American should be given a fair chance to develop all the talents they may have.

– John F. Kennedy


We must never forget that art is not a form of propaganda; it is a form of truth.

– John F. Kennedy


It is insane that two men, sitting on opposite sides of the world, should be able to decide to bring an end to civilization.

– John F. Kennedy


Life in freedom is not easy, and democracy is not perfect.

– John F. Kennedy


A nation reveals itself not only by the men it produces but also by the men it honors, the men it remembers.

– John F. Kennedy


It takes two to make peace.

– John F. Kennedy


And with privilege goes responsibility.

– John F. Kennedy

And with privilege goes responsibility. - John F. Kennedy


In a time of domestic crisis, men of goodwill and generosity should be able to unite regardless of party or politics.

– John F. Kennedy


Politics is like football; if you see daylight, go through the hole.

– John F. Kennedy


John F. Kennedy Famous Quotes

We must abolish nuclear weapons, or they will abolish us.

– John F. Kennedy


Real men stay faithful. They don’t have time to look for other women because they’re too busy looking for new ways to love their own.

– John F. Kennedy


Only an educated and informed people will be a free people.

– John F. Kennedy


It was involuntary. They sank my boat.

– John F. Kennedy


War and hunger and ignorance and despair know no religious barriers.

– John F. Kennedy

Also read:175+ George Washington Quotes And Words Of Wisdom



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